In The News

Standing in the shadow of the Washoe Smelter, Republican Sen. Steve Daines got the lay of the land on Anaconda’s Superfund Friday while the quiet valley lay far below. Daines got a rare visit to the 585-foot smoke stack while making stops throughout southwest Montana Friday. He also visited Whitehall, Dillon and Deer Lodge as part of a 56-county tour around the state. He talked to ranchers in Whitehall, stock growers in Dillon, and lumber industry professionals in Deer Lodge. He also paid a visit to a pilot’s group in Missoula. He stopped in Butte in early March. His stopover

Two Montana groups will share $100,000 in federal grants to focus on local drug crises and emerging drug abuses, Sen. Steve Daines said Friday. The Substance Abuse Prevention Alliance in Great Falls and the Lincoln County Unite for Youth Coalition will each get $50,000 for communities’ efforts to combat local drug use, especially among youth. “Montana’s meth and drug epidemic has taken lives and destroyed families,” Daines, R-Mont., said. “These critical funds will help Montana combat drug use and rebuild impacted communities.” Daines said Montana had a 427 percent increase in methamphetamine violations from 2010-2015 and the 11 drug task

Republican-backed bills have been introduced in the House and Senate to ensure that government money targeted to subsidize rural broadband, a White House and FCC priority, is not going to overbuild existing service. The Reprioritizing Unserved Rural Areas and Locations (RURAL) for Broadband Act of 2018 has been introduced in the House by Rep. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) and and the Senate by Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.), two states that are about as rural as they get. The bill prioritizes Rural Utility Service (RUS) funds to unserved areas over underserved areas. One of ISPs’ big issues with the RUS dispensation of

The U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee released its version of the 2018 Farm Bill on June 8, presenting an opportunity for the Senate to reaffirm our national commitment to reducing hunger. Montana Food Bank Network applauds Montana’s U.S. Sen. Steve Daines and the rest of the Senate Agriculture Committee for developing a bipartisan bill that recognizes the importance and effectiveness of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Unlike the House Farm Bill, which made harsh and indiscriminate cuts to SNAP, the Senate Agriculture Committee’s bill protects access to vital food benefits for children and their parents, seniors, people with disabilities and

The new version of the 2018 Farm Bill may have a lot of Montana-based timber policy changes, including restrictions on court challenges to logging projects and simplified forest management rules. Much of that will come from Sen. Steve Daines, R-Montana, who filed 20 amendments to the bill on Monday evening. Those additions will be discussed in mark-up sessions over this week. “Chairman Roberts asked me to take the lead on the forestry side,” Daines said on Tuesday, referring to Agriculture Committee Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kansas. “I’m using that as another vehicle to work on forest management reform.” Daines said a

BILLINGS —  Leaders of the Blackfeet Nation and U.S. Interior Department on Tuesday put into effect a $471 million settlement of water rights claims that was decades in the making for the northwestern Montana American Indian tribe. Tribal Chairman Harry Barnes and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke signed documents in Washington, D.C., that set the stage for the government to begin paying for drinking water and irrigation projects envisioned in the agreement. Montana Gov. Steve Bullock signed the documents last week. The settlement gives the tribe control over 95 percent of the water on its 2,340-square mile reservation, Barnes told The

The U.S. Forest Service is reviewing 14 recent wildfires to conduct post-fire salvage operations in western Montana, including five on the Lolo National Forest, one of which was approved by the agency’s interim chief earlier this month. Acting chief Vicki Christiansen used the emergency situation determination to begin work on the Sunrise fire near Superior, which burned in 2017. The work was initially reported as salvage work resulting from the Lolo Peak fire, though that was incorrect. “Lolo Peak did not rank out, given the impact on the community,” Tim Stauffer with the post-fire emergency management team said Friday. “There wasn’t

After more than four decades of service, Conrad Police Chief Gary Dent recently retired. Dent spent 40 years in law enforcement, and 31 of those years were with the city of Conrad. Fellow officers and dispatchers joined in on his final goodbye to say thank you for all he has done. On Friday, U.S. Senator Steve Daines honored Dent in his weekly “Montanan Of The Week” email. The following is the statement submitted by Daines to the Congressional Record: Mr. President, this week I have the honor of recognizing Gary Dent of Pondera County for his over 42 years of service

LIVINGSTON – Livingston’s Printing For Less (PFL) held a ceremonial groundbreaking event Friday for its new 55,000 sq. ft digital printing and fulfillment center. The company plans to add 100 new employees once the new center is complete. Just this past year it added 80 new positions at its Livingston location. “We’re obviously optimistic about our own future because we’re investing millions in a new facility,” said PFL Founder and CEO Andrew Fields. PFL currently employs just under 300 people at its Livingston location who produce printed orders off their online site or work with customers on creating automated marketing