In The News

BILLINGS – With Montana coal exports in jeopardy, the state’s Republican congressmen are asking the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to ignore Indian tribe requests to end environmental review of a Washington coal port. U.S. Sen. Steve Daines and Rep. Ryan Zinke petitioned the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to not abandon the environmental review of the proposed Gateway Pacific Terminal at Cherry Point in Bellingham, Wash. The Lummi Tribe, which has fishing grounds next to Cherry Point, asked the Army Corps in January to the abandon review of the port proposal. The Lummi argue its treaty fishing rights would

BILLINGS – Summer is construction season across the state, but that could be put on hold. Right now, Washington is in a standoff over transportation issues, which include paying to fix roads and bridges. The deadline for the decision is in three days. The House has accepted a five-month extension but the senate is hoping to get a six-year solution done by the deadline on Friday. “Infrastructure is an investment, not an expense. Longer term highway bill that is payed for and prioritized is certainly at the top of my list,” said Representative Ryan Zinke. The Senate wants to deal with

When four Republican freshmen were tapped to join the Senate Appropriations Committee this session, it was taken as a sign of the panel’s waning appeal in a no-earmarks era. Senators used to wait years to join the committee and even longer to rise up the ranks. Four of the once-coveted seats — and even a subcommittee chairmanship — were extended to Steve Daines of Montana, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, James Lankford of Oklahoma and Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia. Since then, the newcomers have scrambled to find ways to have an impact. Capito said they’re all learning that they can bring change even sitting “all the way at

Today, Congressman Ryan Zinke voted in favor of the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act of 2015 or REINS Act. REINS requires that any new major regulation will have to be voted on by Congress and signed by the President. A “major regulation” is defined as any regulation having an economic impact of $100 million or more. A bipartisan majority of the House approved the measure 243-165. “One of the founding pillars of our nation was ‘no taxation without representation’ and yet, that’s exactly what the administration is doing every time they implement a new costly rule or regulation

Senator Steve Daines, a member of the Senate Commerce Committee, yesterday emphasized the growing threat of a serious cyber attack from the Islamic State— including the potential to penetrate America’s vehicles, like the risk that spurred the recent recall from Fiat Chrysler. “Recent news reminds us that we must also consider the security of the cars that are driving on our roadways. In fact, just in the past week news broke that Fiat Chrysler announced the recall of 1.4 million vehicles due to vulnerability that could allow hackers to disable the vehicles on the highways,” Daines stated. “In fact, through

A Senate committee has agreed to extend identity fraud protections for the victims of the recent hacks that have rattled the government.  The provision came as part of a larger funding bill that would also boost funding and oversight for the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), the agency at the center of the recent data breach. The Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday advanced a bill that would allot $264.5 million for the OPM, which has been struggling to handle the fallout from two damaging cyberattacks that exposed more than 22 million people’s sensitive information. That funding level is $24 million,

Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) and Marine veteran Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.) introduced a bill Tuesday that would give troops the ability to carry weapons at military recruitment centers, following fatal attacks on service members last week in Chattanooga, Tenn. The bill is called the Securing Military Personnel Response Firearm Initiative Act, or “SEMPER FI” — a shortened version of the Latin phrase for “Always Faithful,” the motto of the Marine Corps.  It would allow military officers, including non-commissioned officers, to be armed when at recruitment centers, or to improve structural security at the centers.  “The fastest way to stop a

Washington (CNN) — Lawmakers in Washington are moving quickly on legislation to allow trained members of the military to carry guns on bases and recruiting centers, but Pentagon officials and military commanders are exploring whether the possible legal change could raise additional security concerns. Rep. Duncan Hunter of California and Sen. Steve Daines of Montana, both Republicans, introduced a bill Tuesday that allows the military to authorize those who work at recruiting centers to be armed and permits security enhancements at those facilities. On Monday, Democrats and Republicans from Tennessee introduced legislation in the House of Representatives that would lift a

Montana Senator Steve Daines is voicing opposition to the Iran nuclear deal between the U.S., Iran, and five other countries after the UN unanimously approved it today, July 20. Daines chastised the president for taking the deal to the United Nations before debates in congress had had time to develop. “The President taking the deal with Iran to the United Nations before Congress even had its first full day to review the deal is an affront to the American people,” Daines said. “The UN’s vote will not corner Congress into rubberstamping a bad deal. The actions taken by the President make