In The News

As temperatures warm up wildfires are on the minds of many Montanans, and Senator Steve Daines is one of them. Daines is calling for legislation today to remove red tape around forest management that he says could prevent wildfires. The red tape is what Senator Steve Daines calls “destructive litigation” from extreme environmental groups. Daines says that litigation keeps logging companies from removing already dead trees from our national forest, which fuel wildfires during the summer.  Senator Daines says there are roughly 5 million acres of dead or dying timbers in Montana alone, and if it is not harvested it

Montana’s senators questioned U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell Wednesday on challenges to forest management reform, wildfire funding and declining trail budgets. Tidwell testified before the Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee, which counts both Republican Steve Daines and Democrat Jon Tester among its members. The hearing focused on the Forest Service’s $4.8 billion budget request for the next fiscal year, including a small increase for Land and Water Conservation Fund and increased fuels reduction spending authorized by the 2014 Farm Bill. The budget “represents some really tough choices and where we can prioritize our limited funding,” Tidwell said, pointing to a

Montana Senator Steve Daines spoke at an Appropriations Subcommittee to discuss the U.S. Forest Service’s Fiscal Year 2017 budget. Daines is pleased with the progress of the 2014 Farm Bill, but he voiced his concern that it’s not being completed at an adequate pace. “We’ve identified in Montana about five million acres with dead or dying trees and that’s something we have been communicating to Montanans back home,” said Daines. “These are dead and dying trees, five million acres, you take 6,200 acres of projects that have been identified so far, do the quick math, its about .1% that is

HELENA — Veterans Affairs will establish a veterans center outstation in Helena by this fall to better treat veterans, service members and their families, officials said Tuesday. The facility will be staffed by a readjustment counselor and outreach specialist. The community-based counseling centers provide sociological and psychological services in a confidential setting outside VA Health Care facilities. Services include mental health screenings, suicide prevention, drug and alcohol assistance, family counseling, employment assistance, education training and other services to help veterans transition to civilian life, Sen. Jon Tester said. Helena veterans now have to two hours round-trip to access the mental

A new federal Veterans Center, which offers mental health and other counseling to military veterans, will be opening this fall in Helena. The Helena center will be the fifth such facility in Montana, where veterans can visit and talk to professionals and other veterans about problems they’re facing adjusting to civilian life. Centers already exist in Billings, Great Falls, Missoula, and Kalispell. “One of the biggest advantage of Veterans Centers is veterans talking to vets, about challenges that they have,” U.S. Senator Jon Tester (D-MT) told reporters in a telephone interview Tuesday. “These are really opportunities where a veteran can walk

The big Montana energy conference organized by Sen. Steve Daines got off to an unexpected start last week, when the Billings hotel was evacuated as the fire alarm went off. A skirmish then broke out in which an unruly drunk apparently attempted to rob Daines’ chief of staff Jason Thielman, the Montana Republican confirmed to Heard on the Hill. “Our attorney general, who is the chief law enforcement officer with the state of Montana, Tim Fox, he literally grabbed the guy and restrained him, and took him to the ground until the police arrived,” Daines said in an interview. “I think it was someone who might have had too

Dr. Joe Medicine Crow, the last living Plains Indian war chief, died at the age of 102 today. Senator Steve Daines today released the following statement in honor of the Crow War Chief: “Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow leaves an unmatched legacy as the Crow Tribe’s historian and storyteller, a decorated World War II veteran and the first member of the Crow Tribe to attain a master’s degree,” Daines stated. “Medicine Crow’s spirit, humility and life achievements leave a lasting imprint on Montana’s history. My deepest condolences are with Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow’s family and all of Crow Nation.”  Daines will

The death of revered and respected Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow had thousands praising the man’s life and legacy. Montana lawmakers and leaders provided statements on Medicine Crow’s passing on Sunday. Governor Steve Bullock issued the following statement on the passing of Dr. Joe Medicine Crow: “Today, Lisa and I join Montanans to pay respect and celebrate the rich life of Dr. Joe Medicine Crow,” said Governor Bullock. “Joe was a Crow War Chief, veteran, elder, historian, author, and educator. His legacy will forever serve as an inspiration for all Native Americans – and all Montanans.” Senator Steve Daines released the following statement: “Dr. Joseph Medicine

No one will mistake Sen. Steve Daines’ spring recess for a vacation. Some 2,000 miles from Capitol Hill, the Republican from Montana led an energy summit for about 600 people that featured executives from major transportation and energy industries and groups, as well as state and federal officials. “We need more made in America energy, not more made in the Middle East energy. And we don’t need these Washington, D.C., regulations that are defining our future here in Montana instead of letting Montanans define that,” Daines said in opening Montana Energy 2016, previewing what would be a recurring theme. “It’s actually