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Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) officials are reporting a recent increase in the number of cases of chickenpox reported in school-aged children. And, at least half of these infections were acquired from an adult family member with shingles. Chickenpox, or varicella, can be a serious illness and is easily preventable with vaccination. “The best way to protect yourself and your child from chickenpox is vaccination,” says Jessica Lopeman, a registered nurse and epidemiologist with DPHHS. In 2022, the...
The drawings for moose, bighorn sheep, mountain goat and bison licenses are complete. There are a few ways to get your drawing results. Visit fwp.mt.gov, click on MyFWP Login in the upper righthand corner, then click on the “Lookup Draw Results, Register for Lists” tab on the left-hand menu, or login to your MyFWP account. You may also sign up for an account at fwp.mt.gov/MyFWP. Applicants may also call any FWP Regional office or the licensing office at 406-444-2950. Deadline reminders: The deadline to apply for elk B, dee...
On Tuesday, Governor Greg Gianforte convened local, state, tribal, and federal agency administrators, and fire management officers for the 2023 Fire Briefing. "Advancing our agenda this legislative session, Montana has more resources than ever before to effectively and aggressively respond to and prevent wildfire," Gov. Gianforte said after the briefing. "For the benefit of our communities, people, and way of life, we'll continue to better manage our forests, reduce fuel...
The 68th Legislative session is over after the Senate adjourned Tuesday afternoon and the House of Representatives worked into the evening, taking final votes on the more than 50 bills before adjourning at 9:15 p.m. on a 89-7 vote. In the Senate, Democratic Sen. Pat Flowers, D-Belgrade, made the motion to sine die – a latin term that means to adjourn indefinitely. The motion passed on a 26-24 vote and set the fate for the rest of the 87th day of the 90-day session. When the Senate adjourned, the House had yet to vote on t...
With 10 days left of Montana’s 90-day legislative session, eyes turned Monday to House Bill 2, the state’s main budget bill. The Senate got its turn with HB 2 Monday, amending the bill eight times before advancing it on a 28-to-22 vote. But, in the House, the public gallery erupted in protest over Republican Speaker of the House Matt Regier’s decision to not allow Rep. Zooey Zephyr, D-Missoula, to speak on a bill for a third time. On Tuesday, leadership canceled the House Floor session and the Capitol was, at least parti...
The drawings for Montana deer and elk permits and for nonresident combination licenses are complete and applicants can find their results online. You can see your results by visiting fwp.mt.gov, click on MyFWP Login in the upper righthand corner, then click on Lookup Draw Results, Register for Lists tab on the left-hand menu, or login to your MyFWP account. You may also sign up for an account at myfwp.mt.gov. Applicants may also call any FWP Regional office or the licensing...
Montana is closing in on becoming the first state in the nation to ban the social media platform TikTok. The House of Representatives passed a bill 54-43 last week that would penalize app stores for providing anyone within Montana's borders access to TikTok. The Senate passed the bill on a 30-to-20 vote last month. The bill would carry fines of $10,000 per person able to access the app, compounded daily. The bill would not fine Montanans who access the app, just the app store...
Mid-Rivers Communications is proud to announce the award of 36 Scholarships to students from the Cooperative’s service area. Two $2,500 scholarships were awarded to students planning to attend Dawson Community College or Miles Community College, and 34 $2,000 scholarships were awarded to students planning to attend a four-year college or university, community college or tech school in the fall of 2023. Preference was given in the scholarship award selection process to students who plan to live and work in Eastern and C...
HELENA -- The Senate passed a bill 30-to-20 Tuesday that would criminalize the abortion of a viable fetus, or a fetus that could survive outside of the womb, unless it is to save the mother’s life. The bill now has one more vote in the Senate before it moves back to the House for review. House Bill 575 would require that patients seeking an abortion get a determination of viability. Under the bill, viability of a fetus is presumed after 24 weeks or if uncertainty exists about the viability of the fetus. The bill does allow f...
Montana's spring turkey season is set to open on Saturday, April 15. Southeast Montana's turkey populations are relatively stable across the region and handled the drought conditions well, according to FWP Region 7 upland game bird biologist Justin Hughes. However, populations of turkeys that are more isolated on the plains in mediocre habitat will be impacted more by recent weather patterns than turkeys living in riparian areas that had higher soil moisture and better...
The Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) began conducting Medicaid and Healthy Montana Kids (HMK) eligibility redeterminations on April 1 for the first time in three years. Federal requirements during the COVID-19 pandemic led to the suspension of annual redeterminations, in order to keep every individual enrolled in Medicaid covered throughout the pandemic. However, last December’s federal omnibus spending bill directed states to resume evaluating eligibility of Medicaid enrollees on April 1. Beginning i...
If you have a particular outdoor skill and are interested in sharing it with others, you might make an excellent volunteer instructor for the Becoming an Outdoors Woman (BOW) program. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is seeking BOW instructors in southeast Montana to help offer educational events across the region. An informational meeting is scheduled for Saturday, April 22 from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. at the Sleep Inn & Suites in Miles City, with lunch provided. BOW, a nationwide progr...
In 2022, 17 agricultural producers across Montana received more than $2.3 million in direct funds through USDA Rural Development’s Value- Added Producer Grant (VAPG) program which helps these businesses generate new products, create, and expand marketing opportunities, and increase overall producer income with the goal of growing local economies in rural areas. Montana’s Value-Added Producer Grant recipients from 2022 were: Todd Family Meats in Big Timber, Montana, received a $48,173 grant to fund processing, packaging, and...
Each spring, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks receives calls from people who have picked up deer fawns or other wildlife. It’s important to remember that FWP does not accept, hold or rehabilitate moose, deer, elk and most other animals. Often times, people think they are rescuing an orphaned animal. However, it’s important to understand that wildlife care for their young much differently than humans. They have strategies to provide the highest chance of survival for their young. One strategy that some species, particularly thos...
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is accepting applications from landowners who are interested in participating in the 2023 Block Management Program. Block Management is a cooperative effort between landowners and FWP to help manage wildlife and public hunting activities on enrolled lands. Through the Block Management program, landowners and FWP enter into voluntary agreements that determine how hunting will be conducted on the landowner’s property. Items such as permission requirements, times when permission will be granted, h...
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks will prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) and conduct public scoping on a proposed action to develop a new wolf management plan. The 2003 Montana Gray Wolf Conservation and Management Plan and associated EIS were developed 20 years ago. Since then, new, and improved research, management tools and methods have been developed and incorporated into Montana’s gray wolf management strategy; however, they are not described in the 2003 Wolf Plan. Gov. Greg Gianforte asked FWP to create a n...
With warmer temperatures and snow quickly disappearing, shed-antler hunters are anxious to get into the field. Buck deer and bull elk and moose grow antlers each year, some to magnificent size, which drop off to regrow each spring. Hunting for and collecting these "shed" antlers in spring has become a popular activity. Many of Montana’s wildlife management areas (WMAs) provide security to wildlife during the winter. However, shed hunters need to be aware that Montana’s big game winter range WMAs are closed to public use aft...
Hunters have until April 1 to apply for deer and elk licenses, but they shouldn’t wait for the last minute. Get it done now. Hunters who are applying for special licenses and permits need to have a valid email address. Hunters can apply for permits on the FWP website. If hunters want to apply in person, FWP offices are open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. Hunters and anglers can also take advantage of the MyFWP mobile app, if they haven’t already. The app holds and displays licenses, permits and E-Tags, whi...
The 2023 session has a long way yet to go, but as of late last week, the special committee tasked with probing election integrity in Montana has all but completed its work. After returning from this month’s transmittal break, the Joint Select Committee on Election Security had just one lingering item left on its docket: finalizing a proposal addressing enforcement of state election laws. Agreement proved a bit more difficult than members anticipated. Democrats thought the duty of enforcing those laws should fall to the c...
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently announced that beginning in April it will provide approximately $123 million in additional, automatic financial assistance for qualifying farm loan program borrowers who are facing financial risk, as part of the $3.1 billion to help distressed farm loan borrowers that was provided through Section 22006 of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). The announcement builds on financial assistance offered to borrowers through the same program in October 2022. The IRA directed USDA to...
The Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) and Sletten Construction will begin the Southeast Montana Bridge Preservation project this spring. This project will rehabilitate 11 bridges in southeastern Montana. These bridges impact Montana Highway 39 (MT 39), US Highways 212 (US 212) and 12 (US 12), Interstate 94 (I 94), and the communities of Forsyth, Colstrip, Lame Deer, Broadus, Ashland, and the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation. Crews will begin with the Powder River...
Supporters of a bill that would exempt Montana landlords from paying full property taxes if they rent their property below market value told the House Taxation Committee Monday that the bill could offer a much needed solution to the housing crisis, and provide affordable housing for renters. Rep. Julie Dooling, R-Helena, is the sponsor of House Bill 848. She said the bill was designed to combat rising property taxes that she says end up putting both landlords and renters in a bind. “There was a time when I was living p...
The House Appropriations Committee will now hammer out the details of a bill that would set aside one million dollars a year for a new teacher mentoring program to decide if the investment is worth it. Rep. Melissa Romano, D-Helena, is the sponsor of House Bill 455. She says teaching can have an especially difficult learning curve and in other careers, new hires have more opportunities to ask questions since their coworkers are right next to them, which just isn’t possible in a classroom setting. But, she says, a statewide t...
National Ag Week is March 20-26 with National Ag Day March 22. It's a time to celebrate agriculture. Agriculture remains the number-one industry for Montana, outpacing mining, tourism and forestry products along with oil and gas. Montana agriculture is diverse and known throughout the world for its wheat, beef, pulse crops and barley, plus local farmers and ranchers produce plenty of other agricultural products including bees/honey, cherries, sugar beets, corn, canola, seed po...
Flanked by dozens of Republican lawmakers on the steps of the state Capitol, Gov. Greg Gianforte signed a tax cut, rebate and spending package totaling more than $1 billion Monday. The eight-bill package, which provides short-term property and income tax rebates and also cuts state income taxes on an ongoing basis, puts a major slice of the state's estimated $2.5 billion budget surplus toward what the governor called "the largest tax cut in Montana history." The bills also...
