A public hearing was held on Monday regarding the proposed sale of a portion of Hoyt Park to Frances Mahon Deaconess Hospital. The Glasgow City Council hosted the public hearing during their regular council meeting.

FMDH CEO Nick Dirkes explained at the public hearing that the hospital is proposing a price of $550,000 and the land would transition into a parking lot. He made sure to stress that the parking lot would not only be utilized by FMDH but an agreement would be made between the City and the facility in order for the public to utilize the parking lot as well when using the new pool.

He also stated the city park would still be accessible to the public until construction begins, which is expected to be in three to five years, however it is dependent on the next legislative session. Current drawings have been drafted up on how everything would look, however those drawings are just drafts as the actual design phase hasn’t begun yet. No matter what the final design will look like, the Melissa Greenhagen memorial will stay where it is.

At the public hearing, there was opposition from city residents who didn't feel the city needed to sell a portion of the city park to FMDH. Many felt the city should not give up any green space or park space for a parking lot owned by the hospital. It was also noted that Hoyt Park is the only city park on the south side of Glasgow and it would mean less park space for south side residents.

The Glasgow City Council has indicated if the sale is approved, the money earned from the sale could go the cost of building a bathhouse for the new swimming pool currently being constructed.

The council did not take any immediate action on the proposed sale and its expected that the council will vote on the sale at their next meeting in May.

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks has announced that 36 trail organizations, communities and various land-managing agencies throughout Montana will receive Montana Trail Stewardship Program grant awards for their projects in 2024.

Forty TSP applications were received this year from a variety of eligible applicants, including federal and state agencies, towns, cities, counties, recreational clubs and nonprofit organizations.

The TSP awards for this year’s cycle total approximately $2 million in state funds. Grants funds are allocated to the highest-scoring projects and State Trails Advisory Committee recommendations.

The 36 TSP projects for the 2024 cycle include 20 rehabilitation/maintenance projects, seven new trail development projects and nine new trailhead development projects.

Local projects include:

•The Town of Fort Peck, which is being awarded

$100,000 to construct a 1.3mile gravel pedestrian walking path along Highway 117 to increased pedestrian safety and outdoor accessibility.

Story credit to Glasgow Courier:

Nashua candidates who filed to fill two open positions on the Town of Nashua’s Council during the 2024 election received a letter at the end of March stating there will no longer be an election for Nashua Town Council seats this election year. Per the letter that was sent by Valley County Election Administrator Marie Pippin, municipal elections are held in odd-numbered years, opposite the primary and general elections which are held in even-numbered years. As a result, the two alderman/woman terms and the mayor’s term will expire at the end of 2025 and the other two terms will expire at the end of 2027.

After further investigation, it was determined Dave Leraas and Ann MacDonald’s terms on the Town of Nashua’s Council expired Dec. 31, 2023, however the Town did not have an election in 2023 for new four-year terms to fill these two council seats and no one filed for these open seats.

“I figured the council appointed the same individuals to fill the seats they held prior to Jan. 1, 2024. Apparently, that wasn’t the case. Although we probably should, my office doesn’t always receive oaths of office from municipalities,” stated Pippin.

Even though no election was held, Leraas and MacDonald have continued serving as alderman/woman in the Council, however have not been recognized by the State of Montana as fulfilling these roles for the Town of Nashua.

During the April 8 regular Town council meeting, the Council voted to pass Resolution No. 535-2024 which declared two seats to be vacant for municipal officers. With the passing of this Resolution, the town officially declares Leraas and MacDonald’s seats as vacant due to no election occurring in 2023, and the seats are now open for appointment. The two existing council members, Darwin Johnson and Mike Meredith, and the Mayor JoAnna Turner, are currently making a quorum and will need to appoint members to fill the two seats that had been held by MacDonald and Leraas.

Qualified individuals need to present letters of interest to the Town Council by Friday, April 19, via email, townofnashua@nemont.net.

“In theory, the Town Council will interview the interested individuals and will appoint two individuals to fill those empty positions,” explained Pippin. The Council and the Mayor will hold a special meeting on Monday, April 22, 7 p.m. to appoint officers to these seats and administer the oath of office.

In 2025, which is the next election cycle for municipalities, the two individuals who are appointed during the April 22 meeting, if they wish to retain their seats, will need to file a Declaration of Nomination with the Election Office to fulfill the last two years of the term, which is through Dec. 31, 2027. If the two appointed individuals do not wish to retain their seats, they will not complete the last two years of the term.

Also in 2025, the mayor and the other two town council member positions will come open. Individuals wanting to run for these positions will have to file Declarations for Nomination for four-year terms starting Jan. 1, 2026, and Dec. 31, 2029.

“In 2025, five people can file to run for seats on the Nashua Town Council, one for mayor and four for town council seats. It’s very unusual to have the whole town council on the ballot at one time, but in 2025 that’s how the Town of Nashua will be. But the terms will not all be ending at the same time,” explained Pippin.

As part of the report card released by the Montana Office of Public Instruction, attendance numbers were part of the report card for Valley County public schools.

Each school district reported the percentage of students in the school system that had at least 95% attendance for the 2022-2023 school year.

The statewide percentage was 33%.

Here is how the Valley County School Districts fared with the percentage of students that had at least 95% attendance.

Glasgow K-12: 36%
Hinsdale Elementary: 47%
Hinsdale High School: 48%
Frazer Elementary: 39%
Frazer High School: 34%
Opheim: 60%
Nashua: 41%
Lustre Elementary: 28%

The State of Montana is reporting that marijuana sales in Valley County totaled $145,271 in the month of March. $115,128 in adult-use sales and $30,143 in medical marijuana sales.

This compares to total sales of $132,000 in February and $139,000 in January.

Valley County imposes a 3% tax on sales of both adult-use and medical marijuana. This is distributed to Valley County and to Glasgow, Opheim, Fort Peck and Nashua. 50% is distributed to Valley County while 45% goes to the municipalities in Valley County. The remaining 5% is sent back to the State of Montana.

The Montana Department of Commerce announced today that three Montana communities will share $100,000 in grant funding to regenerate Main Street businesses and downtowns. The funding is through Commerce’s Montana Main Street Program (MMS).

“Montana’s Main Streets are at the heart of our state’s values, our neighborhoods and the economy. That’s why Commerce, through the Montana Main Street Program, will continue to help foster community development efforts, revitalization projects and historic preservation for our Main Streets,” said Paul Green, Director of the Montana Department of Commerce. “These Main Street grant awards will help visitors better navigate and explore Cut Bank and Glasgow, as well as assist Broadus with future economic growth and opportunities for its downtown.”

The Montana Main Street Program helps communities strengthen and preserve their historic downtown commercial districts by focusing on economic development, urban revitalization and historic preservation through long-range planning, organization, design and promotion. Additionally, the program works with local partners to identify and plan for a community’s greatest development needs and provides seed money to help implement high-impact projects.

Communities receiving MMS grant funding:

The Town of Broadus will receive $30,000 of MMS grant funding to create a downtown masterplan.

The City of Cut Bank will receive $30,000 of MMS grant funding to install wayfinding signage.

The City of Glasgow will receive $40,000 of MMS grant funding to install wayfinding signage and directional messaging.

According to the Montana DNRC, record low snowpack has resulted in abnormally dry to severe drought conditions this spring.

According to the 2024 Montana Water Supply Outlook Report, 40% of the state is classified in moderate to severe drought, while another 50% of the state is showing abnormally dry conditions.

Due to this past winter’s low snowpack, the current streamflow forecast is below average. The upcoming summer streamflows will depend on temperature and precipitation. Thankfully, as of now, most state and federal reservoirs are projected to fill due to higher-than-normal fall and winter carry-over. Additionally, soil moisture indicators for much of Montana are average to above average.

The DNRC cautions that warm and sunny conditions or sudden large rain events could release a substantial amount of water in a short time, potentially resulting in flooding.

Montana is No. 1 in the nation for drunk driving fatalities, according to a new ranking by Forbes.

Recent data show fewer highway deaths related to impaired driving in 2022 compared to the previous year, according to the Montana Department of Transportation.

But a state report said Montana also hasn’t met its most recent goal of reducing the five-year rolling average of those fatalities.

“Montana Department of Transportation is well aware of the challenges of impaired driving throughout Montana and the rest of the nation,” said Kevin Dusko, supervisor of the state highway traffic safety section of the department, in a phone call Tuesday.

“MDT takes the topic very seriously, and we provide a lot of resources — substantial resources — to mitigate impaired driving throughout Montana.”

It said 8.57 drunk drivers are involved in fatal crashes for every 100,000 licensed drivers, and 7.14 people are killed in crashes involving a drunk driver for every 100,000 residents.

“Both are the highest in the nation,” Forbes said.

Neighboring South Dakota ranks as the No. 2 worst for drunk driving fatalities, and Wyoming and North Dakota rank as Nos. 4 and 5, respectively. Texas sits at No. 3.

The report cites data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the FBI and U.S. Department of Transportation.

Dusko said support the agency provides includes high visibility enforcement, treatment courts, education and media messaging, and even safety elements in highway construction projects, such as “rumble strips,” the bumpy stretches along shoulders that make a car vibrate.

As a rural state with a small population, Dusko said Montana families and emergency responders especially feel the effects of impaired driving crashes. He said MDT is grateful to them and other partners.

“People don’t realize how much trauma those emergency responders go through, showing up to a fatality,” Dusko said. “Those fatalities are not pleasant. They are graphic, and they do it day in, day out.”

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Montana had seen a slight dip in alcohol-related highway fatalities at least by total numbers, with 93 in 2013. It saw 56 in 2017; 80 in 2017; and 66 in 2019, according to national traffic safety data from MDT.

However, those deaths still made up at least roughly one third of the total fatalities.

In 2020, the year the pandemic started, Montana saw 95 alcohol-related driving fatalities, or 45% of all fatal crashes, according to national data provided by MDT. It counted 102 the following year, or 43% of the total.

The total of fatal crashes that involved alcohol dropped to 71 in 2022, back to 33% of all those crashes.

Dusko said data from last year isn’t available yet. He also said he doesn’t like to blame COVID-19, but the pandemic undoubtedly affected Montana’s goal of reducing highway fatalities related to alcohol.

A Montana Department of Transportation report called Vision Zero said the state’s goal is to reduce its five-year average of impaired-driving fatalities, but the target for the most recent period ending in 2021 was 73.6. It said Montana didn’t meet it, with an average of 80.

“For the department, this is a priority, to try to bring our numbers down,” Dusko said.

During the pandemic, he said substance use and mental health issues were possible factors in the increases, and speeding and tourism may play roles in the outcomes as well. Although the rankings from Forbes focus on alcohol, Dusko said seatbelt use always affects safety as well.

Even at 25 mph or slower, he said, a seatbelt improves safety; a person without a seatbelt might not die if they hit something at a slower speed, but they still might suffer a traumatic head injury.

Although also not counted in the recent ranking, Dusko said recreational marijuana affects drivers as well, and many crashes involve both alcohol and other drugs. However, he said there isn’t wide agreement on how to measure impaired driving related to marijuana compared to alcohol.

He said alcohol’s wide availability is the elephant in the room.

“I don’t want to demonize alcohol because the majority of individuals use it responsibly, but it is definitely a contributing factor,” he said.

A 2023 report from the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services said alcohol-related crashes kill 29 people in the country every day and cost $44 billion a year.

“Driving under the influence of alcohol can be especially dangerous for youth, who have less driving experience than adults,” said the report, called Public Health In the 406. “In 2021, 7% of Montana high school students and 22% of Montana college students reported driving after drinking alcohol.”

Data from MDT show Yellowstone, Big Horn, Flathead and Missoula counties are the worst for percentage of roadway fatalities that involve alcohol in Montana. Dusko said the department takes a data-driven approach in providing resources and is working from the director’s office to “boots on the ground” to decrease the deaths.

“We do have all hands on deck here trying to mitigate,” Dusko said.

The new Glasgow Swimming Pool is currently under construction. This week’s activities include import of a significant amount of fill material. With that a high volume of haul truck traffic and loading and unloading operations will cause delays and interruptions to traffic on 3rd Street South.

The City asks drivers to please avoid 3rd Street South from 3rd Ave South to 5th Ave South for the remainder of the week. We apologize for the inconvenience. Please choose an alternate route for non-essential traffic. We would like to keep 3rd Street South open; however, we may close 3rd Street for safety purposes if trafficproject conflicts arise.

Thank you to Glasgow residents for their patience while we construct the new pool.

Press Release from Montana Department of Commerce:

Congratulations to our Tourism Award winners for their excellence in sharing what makes our state so inspiring to visitors year after year, and thank you to all who attended or sponsored our Governor’s Conference on Tourism in Missoula earlier this week.

Tourism Destination of the Year Award: Lewis and Clark Foundation at the Interpretive Center, Great Falls

Heritage and Cultural Tourism Award: Friends of Fort Owen, Stevensville

Tribal Tourism Award: Montana Indian Athletic Hall of Fame, Donnie Wetzel

Marketing Campaign of the Year Award: Visit Billings

Tourism Ambassador of the Year Award: Dale and Kathy Galland of Prairie Unique, Terry

Film Community of the Year Award: Livingston Area Chamber

Excellence in Film and Culture Award: Lily Gladstone

According to a recent report by the Institute for Tourism & Recreation Research, University of Montana, in 2023, more than 12.5 million people visited Montana and spent an estimated $5.45 billion. Additionally, the report says 48,000+ Montana jobs are supported by out-of-state tourism.

The Glasgow City Council will meet tonight at 5pm. The main item on the agenda will be a public hearing on the proposed sale of a portion of Hoyt Park to Frances Mahon Deaconess Hospital.

The Valley County Clerk and Recorder’s Office will be running five elections, four School Districts and the Fort Peck Rural County Water District.

These five elections are all mail-ballot elections. The ballots will be mailed to voters on Friday, April 19, 2024. Voted ballots must be received back in the election office by Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at 5 pm. Ballots postmarked May 7 but not received until after will not be counted.

Glasgow School District ballot will have a Building Reserve Fund Safety Levy.

Hinsdale School District ballot will have two General Fund Levy propositions, one for additional funding for the Elementary School and one additional funding for the High School.

Lustre Elementary School District has an additional General Fund Levy proposition.

Nashua School District will not have a levy election, but has four candidates running for the two open seats on the School Board. The candidates are Sharon Merideth (incumbent), Tim Bellon (incumbent), Mark Bengochea, and Kayla Thievin.

Fort Peck Rural County Water District, Inc. has four individuals running for two vacant seats on that board. The candidates are Josh Kittleson (incumbent), Samuel Morehouse (incumbent), Mary Kaercher, and Debra Steffani.

Frazer School is running their own election. They do not have a levy proposition, but they have six candidates running for the two open positions on their School Board. The candidates are Dori Talks Different, Jewel Fourstar, Mary Sue Jackson, Landon Olfert, Darryl Quilty, and Michael Redstone. The Frazer School election is a polling place election; the polling place is the red annex building behind the Frazer School. Polling place hours are 12 noon to 8 pm.

Opheim School has neither a levy nor a trustee election this year.

the Valley County County Combined Campaign is now underway through April 24th. It's the 42nd year of the Combined Campaign helping local non-profit organizations fund their activities.

The Valley County Combined Campaign was formed in 1982 to more effectively and efficiently contact community members and businesses throughout Valley County. The generosity of the residents of Valley County in 2023 greatly impacted the participating organizations and they thank those who continue to make the campaigns successful.

The organizations taking part in the 2024 Combined Campaign:

Girl Scouts of the USA
Montana Council of Boy Scouts of America
Glasgow Head Start
Scottie Day Care
Valley Event Center
Hi-Line Home Programs
Nashua Senior Citizens Center

Press Release from Two Rivers Economic Growth:

Valley County Clean Up Week, presented by Two Rivers Economic Growth, is
calling on the residents of Valley County to join forces in beautifying our
community.

From April 15 to April 22, we're rallying together to clear away litter
and debris, fostering a cleaner, safer environment for everyone to enjoy.

To participate, swing by the Two Rivers Economic Growth office to pick up your
essential cleanup kit, including trash bags and gloves. While you're there, grab a
map and sign up for a chance to win some incredible prizes generously provided
by our local sponsors: Eugene's Pizza, Robyn's Nest, Baker's Jewelry,
Cottonwood Inn & Suites, D&G Sports and Western, and Valley Builders Glasgow.

But that's not all! Prairie House Gardens is offering an extra incentive. For every
bag of trash collected between the Coca-Cola plant and Sullivan Park, they'll
reward you with $5. It's a win-win for both our community and your wallet!

Don't forget to document your efforts by snapping some photos of the areas
you've cleaned and sending them to trg2@nemont.net. We'll be announcing the
winners and distributing prizes on Earth Day, April 22.

Let's come together to make Valley County shine brighter than ever before!

The annual Glasgow school election is on Tuesday, May 7, with mail ballots going out on Friday, April 19. The Glasgow School Board has voted to put on the ballot a Building Reserve Safety Levy. There were two Trustee positions available this year and the two candidates who have filed the necessary paperwork are Chrissa Nelson and Derek Beadle. Due to the fact Beadle and Nelson were the only candidates to file for the Trustee positions, both candidates will be considered elected and will be sworn in as Trustees during the May school board meeting. Beadle is a newcomer and will replace Ryan Fast while Nelson is an incumbent school board member.

Ballots must be returned to the Valley County Election Administrator by 8 p.m. on Election Day.

Notice from the Glasgow School Board explaining the Building Reserve Safety Levy:

Due to significant loss in enrollment, the Glasgow School District is experiencing a General Fund (GF) budget shortfall of $358,000. Also contributing to the budget shortfall are the inflationary increases to operating costs for the district. Legislative increases to school funding have fallen far short of the actual rate of inflation the past several years. This year, there is no option to run a GF levy due to the loss in enrollment and how the State funding formula works, and actually, the GF levies will be significantly reduced for tax payers. In order to balance the deficit of $358,000, the District would need to make staff reductions of at least $160,000, as well as pass the safety & security levy in the amount of $197,500.

There are options to relieve the General Fund budget, many of which the District is already doing, and a new focus state-wide is on the Safety & Security Levy. This option was passed by the legislature in 2019. A School Safety & Security levy would provide a dedicated revenue stream for the ongoing costs of school safety, including salaries for counselors and associated safety costs in the amount of $197,500. If approved, these costs would be removed from the under-funded GF to reduce the pressure of the District’s main funding source.

The new Building Reserve Safety Levy, if approved, would be a permanent levy of 12.18 mills. Passage of this proposal will increase the annual taxes on a home with an assessed market value of $100,000 by approximately $16.44, and on a home with an assessed market value of $300,000 by approximately $49.32, and on a home with an assessed market value of $600,000 by approximately $98.64. With the reduction of the GF levies, the net increase to taxes payers would be minimal. The net impact to taxpayers, as shown in the required annual levy impact notice on page 6B, would be: a home with an assessed market value of $100,000 approximately $4.85, and a home with an assessed market value of $300,000 approximately $14.55, and a home with an assessed market value of $600,000 approximately $29.10.

Story credit to Billings Gazette

As part of a study into endangered pallid sturgeon, beginning on April 26 the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has authorized the release of water from Fort Peck Dam's spillways to mimic spring runoff.

“Even with the lower than average runoff forecast the hydrologic conditions are sufficient to conduct a flow test from Fort Peck Dam,” said John Remus, chief of the Corps’ Missouri River Basin Water Management Division, in a news release.

In anticipation of the test flows, dam operators have been holding back more water than usual at Fort Peck Reservoir, building the lake's elevation up to 2,231 feet, compared to a level of 2,219 at the same time last year — a 12-foot difference.

Upstream on the Missouri River, Canyon Ferry Dam has also been holding back water. As of April 8, the reservoir near Helena was at an elevation of 3,787 feet. Last year on the same date it was 9 feet lower.

How much water will be released from Fort Peck will be based in part on how high the Milk River is flowing, since it joins the Missouri downstream of the dam. As of April 8, the Milk River at Nashua was flowing at 625 cubic feet per second. That's down from the long-term median flow of 772 cfs for the same date.

The goal is to boost flows from Fort Peck by 1,700 cfs each day until the peak flow at the Wolf Point gauge reaches 16,000 cfs.

As of Monday, the gauge at Wolf Point was 6,130 cfs. Water releases from Fort Peck Dam have been averaging 5,000 cfs.

Fish monitoring, lidar and aerial photography, physical surveys, cultural resource surveys and water quality sampling will be done during the flow test. Interested parties can also provide information through a web-based application that can be found online at https://hydroviz.ca/fort-peck-feedback.

Pallid sturgeon are one of the rarest fish in North America and have been protected under the Endangered Species Act since 1990. Spawning in the wild has been hampered by the construction of dams, like Fort Peck, that have blocked upstream migrations.

To keep the long-lived fish from going extinct in Montana, hatchery raised pallid sturgeon have been released into the Yellowstone and Missouri rivers.

Reduced flows on the Milk River are in part due to low snow levels in the Bears Paw Mountains near Havre, which had only 42% of its normal snowpack.

That mirrors lower mountain snowpack across much of the upper Missouri River Basin, which as of April 1 was only 74% of average. Particularly hard hit were the mountains between Helena and Browning, which were averaging around 60% to 68% of their normal snowpack.

A stretch of snow-starved country can also be found from the Big Hole Valley north and east to the Lincoln area, where reporting stations are recording 27% to 47% of normal snowpack.

Over the weekend, snow and rain added moisture to some areas — the Bridger Mountains near Bozeman received 2 feet of snow — but not enough to overcome the seasonal deficit.

Dry plains
“The overall lack of snowpack in both the plains and the mountains has led to a below average runoff forecast for the Missouri River Basin,” Remus said. “The soil is dry across much of the basin with over 60% of the basin experiencing drought.”

The 2024 calendar year runoff forecast above Sioux City is 17.5 million acre-feet (MAF), 68% of average. The runoff forecast is based on current soil moisture, mountain snowpack, and long-term precipitation and temperature outlooks. The March forecast was 17 MAF.

March runoff in the Missouri River Basin above Sioux City was 1.8 MAF, 59% of average.

“While the forecast remains below average, the basin has shown some improvement in runoff conditions since the March forecast," Remus said. "Given reach runoff and basin conditions, we expect runoff in April to remain below normal for all reaches, but this will depend on precipitation and temperatures.”

Required test
The upcoming flow test at Fort Peck Dam is a requirement of the 2018 Biological Opinion and is meant to determine if there is a water management scenario that could benefit pallid sturgeon. Ideally, the higher water would encourage the fish to move upstream and spawn. A similar test flow is planned for June as well.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will host weekly virtual meetings during the flow test to update the public on test progress and planned operations. Information on accessing the public meetings can be found at https://www.nwd.usace.army.mil/MRWM/Public-Meetings/.

Montana students’ proficiency in math and science ticked up by a percentage point last academic year. That’s according to the latest data gathered from schools as part of the federal Every Student Succeeds Act.

Reading scores remained identical to 2022’s report card. More than half of students in each subject are falling short of proficiency.

“I look at these scores and I don’t see good things,” Elsie Arntzen said.

Arntzen is Montana’s superintendent of public instruction.

State wide, Montana students are 37% proficient in math, 46% proficient in reading and 37% proficient in science.

“I believe these scores do not reflect what is really happening. But, they do say something. They say that there is a need, a definite need, to focus on the basics,” Arntzen told MTPR in a phone interview.

Arntzen said students take standardized tests once at the end of each year. A new model rolling out statewide next school year will test students multiple times in smaller doses. Arntzen believes the change will better reflect student learning.

The state report card also indicated ongoing absenteeism issues. Two-thirds of Montana students missed more than 10 days of school last year, down slightly from 2022, but sharply higher than 2021.

Here is a selection of Valley County Schools and results from the Every Student Succeeds Act for the 2022-2023 school year:

Glasgow K-12
36% proficient in Math
34% Proficient in Reading
31% Proficient in Science
Per pupil expenditure- $11,808

Lustre Elementary
51% proficient in Math
65% proficient in Reading
89% proficient in Science
Per pupil expenditure- $12624

Nashua K-12
24% proficient in Math
36% proficient in Reading
29% proficient in Science
Per pupil expenditure- $16,502

Frazer Elementary
5% proficient in Math
4% proficient in Reading
0% proficient in Science
Per pupil expenditure-$31,234

Frazer High School
21% proficient in Math
13% proficient in Reading
0% proficient in Science
Per pupil expenditure- $47,480

Press Release from City of Glasgow:

"Get ready, Glasgow! Spring is here, and so is Spring Clean Up Week! Thanks to the city's partnership with T&R Trucking, we're making it easier than ever for you to tidy up. Starting April 15th through April 23rd, dumpsters will be available in the parking lot on 7th Street North, near the bus barn. It's your chance to clear out clutter and embrace the season of renewal. Don't miss out – mark your calendars and let's clean up together!"

The Glasgow School enrollment increased in the month of March with an enrollment of 742 compared to 740 in February.

The largest class in the school system is the 3rd grade class with 69 students while the smallest class is the 4th grade class with 46 students.

The Glasgow Kiwanis Club hosted their annual Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday at Bundy Park in Glasgow

4000 plastic eggs filled with candy were divided into three sections: Ages 0-3, Ages 4-5, and Ages 6-8.

The eggs were stuffed by Kiwanians, Milk River clients, Builders Club students, and numerous community volunteers. Kiwanians and other volunteers assisting to set up and hide the eggs on site included Lisa Koski, Arnold and Ann Hill, Rocky Zimdars, Jeff Hayward, Sydney Hayward, Charles Wilson and Ben Wilson, along with GHS Key Club Advisor Tasheena Wilcox and Milk River volunteers.

Sponsors included the Glasgow Kiwanis Club, Reynolds, FMDH, Nemont and the Glasgow Area Chamber of Commerce and Agriculture.

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is accepting applications from landowners who are interested in participating in the 2024 Block Management Program. Application deadline is June 1.

Through the Block Management Program, landowners and FWP work together to help manage wildlife and public hunting activities on enrolled lands.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, hunting opportunities provided and vehicle use are a few examples of what is covered in an agreement.

Block Management offers various benefits to landowners enrolled in the program. These benefits include assistance of FWP staff to help monitor hunting activities, compensation to help offset impacts associated with allowing public hunting, wildlife management, a free subscription to Montana Outdoors magazine and a complimentary, non-transferable sportsman or big game combination (nonresident) license. Landowners do not relinquish any rights by enrolling and are covered by Montana’s recreational liability statute as well as livestock loss reimbursement, both of which are extended to landowners who allow access at no charge.

For more information or to receive an application packet, go to fwp.mt.gov/hunt/landownerprograms/block-management, contact your local biologist, warden or FWP regional access manager or contact the Parks and Outdoor Recreation Division’s main office at 406-444-3750 or email LndSportRelations@mt.gov.

The Solar Eclipse will occur on April 8th from 11:45 am to 1:55 pm, (times vary a bit depending on your location). In Northeast Montana this will be a partial eclipse of the sun with the maximum obscurity of 40 to 50% occurring around 12:48 pm, with obscurity increasing the further to the southeast you go.

The Powerball jackpot has increased to an estimated $1.23 billion after another drawing without a big winner Wednesday night.

The numbers selected were: 11, 38, 41, 62, 65 and the Powerball 15.

The jackpot, which now ranks as the eighth-largest in U.S. lottery history, has been growing for more than three months, reflecting the long odds of 1 in 292.2 million of winning the top prize. Since the last player won the jackpot Jan. 1, there have been 40 consecutive drawings without anyone matching all six numbers and hitting it rich.

The $1.23 billion prize is for a sole winner who chooses to be paid through an annuity with 30 annual payments. Winners almost always prefer the cash option, which for the next drawing Saturday night would be an estimated $595.1 million.

Here's what to know about Powerball.

How do I play Powerball?
Players can buy tickets for $2 per play. In Idaho and Montana, Powerball is bundled with Power Play for $3 per play.

Select five numbers between 1 and 69 for the white balls, then select one number between 1 and 26 for the red Powerball.

People can pick their own numbers — and some play the same numbers each time — but most players opt for the quick pick option, which lets a computer generate random numbers.

Players can win a prize by matching one of the 9 ways to win. The jackpot is won by matching all five white balls in any order and the red Powerball.

Who runs the lottery games?
Powerball, and Mega Millions, the other big lottery game, are run separately but both are overseen by state lotteries. Powerball operates in 45 states plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Mega Millions is played in 45 states as well as Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The games don't operate in Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada or Utah.

Both of the games raise money for the jurisdictions where they operate along with profits from other lottery games, such as scratch tickets. Some states shift the money into their general funds while others use it for specific purposes, such as funding college scholarships or state parks.

The Montana Primary Care Association is launching a program to help people who lost Medicaid during the state’s evaluation process reapply.

The Montana Primary Care Association will train public service providers like food banks to help the roughly 130,000 Montanans that lost Medicaid during the last year.

The state recently finished evaluating the eligibility of everyone on its Medicaid rolls. That process was on hold during the pandemic.

Olivia Riutta with the Primary Care Association said the process of reapplying can be confusing and there are many people who are still eligible or lost coverage for procedural reasons.

“We are working to increase the capacity across the state so that people who have lost Medicaid or Healthy Montana Kids can reapply for coverage as quickly as possible,” Riutta said.

Riutta is encouraging organizations that can’t directly help people re-apply to refer them to the Primary Care Association's Cover Montana program. That program provides remote and in-person help to people applying for Medicaid or buying insurance on the federal marketplace.

The Census Bureau reports the population of Valley County is just over 7500 but the State of Montana reports there are 13,633 registered light vehicles the county. This includes 3090 passenger cars, 6914 pickups and 2871 sport utility vehicles. There are also 426 vans and 241 light truck sport utility vehicles.

Valley County also has 203 motorhomes registered, 3088 motorcycles and 968 heavy trucks. There are 8870 trailers registered and 2105 boats registered. 464 snowmobiles and 3 golf carts are registered and licensed in Valley County.

The total number of registered vehicles, motorcycles, heavy trucks, trailers, boats, snowmobiles, and golf carts totaled 29,700.

The numbers come from the Montana Department of Justice Motor Vehicle Division.

Many Glasgow area residents had their Easter Sunday dinner interrupted with a power outage for nearly 3 hours according to Northwestern Energy.

NWE is reporting that a bird caused the power outage that effected nearly 900 customers on Sunday afternoon. Power was restored early Sunday evening after NWE crews responded and fixed the issue caused by the bird.

The Glasgow City Council will meet Monday night at 5pm in the council chambers at the Glasgow Civic Center.

The number of passengers using the Glasgow Airport and Cape Air Airline has increased in 2024 compared to 2023 according to numbers from the Montana Department of Transportation.

Through the month of February, 717 passengers used Cape Air to fly from Glasgow to Billings and from Billings to Glasgow. This compares to 690 for the same period in 2023.

In 2023, 5614 passengers used Cape Air to fly from Glasgow to Billings and from Billings to Glasgow.

Cape Air services several rural Montana airports under the Essential Air Service Program. For the first 2 months of 2024, ridership in Glendive was 628, 851 in Havre, 2248 in Sidney and 888 in Wolf Point.

Last year, during a dispute with Gov. Greg Gianforte over the state’s “95 mill” school equalization property tax, officials with 49 of Montana’s 56 counties chose to reduce their fall tax bills against the wishes of the Montana Department of Revenue. This month, after landing on the losing side of a November Montana Supreme Court ruling, those counties’ treasurers are left with the thankless task of sending supplemental property tax bills to hundreds of thousands of property owners across the state.

The supplemental bills will increase the amounts homeowners and other property owners owe for the second half of calendar year 2023, payments that are due at the end of May. The exact amount will depend on property type and tax valuations, with homes assessed at a market value of $450,000 owing about $104 extra, according to MTFP calculations.

In Valley County, the amount that will be collected with the supplemental tax bills is $500,000.

The entire amount collected with the supplemental tax bills will be sent to the State of Montana.

Valley County Treasurer Brenda Anderson told Kltz/Mix-93 today that the supplemental tax bills for Valley County are being processed this week and will be mailed April 3rd.

March was colder than February at Glasgow, MT this year. It was the 13th time since record began in 1895 that March was colder than February for average temperature.

The Glasgow City Council will meet Monday night at 5pm in the council chambers at the Glasgow Civic Center.

The annual school election is on Tuesday, May 7, with mail ballots going out on Friday, April 19. The Glasgow School Board has voted to put on the ballot a Building Reserve Safety Levy. There were two Trustee positions available this year and the two candidates who have filed the necessary paperwork are Chrissa Nelson and Derek Beadle. Due to the fact Beadle and Nelson were the only candidates to file for the Trustee positions, both candidates will be considered elected and will be sworn in as Trustees during the May school board meeting. Beadle is a newcomer and will replace Ryan Fast while Nelson is an incumbent school board member.

Ballots must be returned to the Valley County Election Administrator by 8 p.m. on Election Day.

Notice from the Glasgow School Board explaining the Building Reserve Safety Levy:

Due to significant loss in enrollment, the Glasgow School District is experiencing a General Fund (GF) budget shortfall of $358,000. Also contributing to the budget shortfall are the inflationary increases to operating costs for the district. Legislative increases to school funding have fallen far short of the actual rate of inflation the past several years. This year, there is no option to run a GF levy due to the loss in enrollment and how the State funding formula works, and actually, the GF levies will be significantly reduced for tax payers. In order to balance the deficit of $358,000, the District would need to make staff reductions of at least $160,000, as well as pass the safety & security levy in the amount of $197,500.

There are options to relieve the General Fund budget, many of which the District is already doing, and a new focus state-wide is on the Safety & Security Levy. This option was passed by the legislature in 2019. A School Safety & Security levy would provide a dedicated revenue stream for the ongoing costs of school safety, including salaries for counselors and associated safety costs in the amount of $197,500. If approved, these costs would be removed from the under-funded GF to reduce the pressure of the District’s main funding source.

The new Building Reserve Safety Levy, if approved, would be a permanent levy of 12.18 mills. Passage of this proposal will increase the annual taxes on a home with an assessed market value of $100,000 by approximately $16.44, and on a home with an assessed market value of $300,000 by approximately $49.32, and on a home with an assessed market value of $600,000 by approximately $98.64. With the reduction of the GF levies, the net increase to taxes payers would be minimal. The net impact to taxpayers, as shown in the required annual levy impact notice on page 6B, would be: a home with an assessed market value of $100,000 approximately $4.85, and a home with an assessed market value of $300,000 approximately $14.55, and a home with an assessed market value of $600,000 approximately $29.10.

For the 2024-2025 school year, the Grobel Scholarship Trust shall award two (2) scholarships, each in the amount of $3,500.00. Scholarship applicants must be graduates of a Valley County high school and must have completed at least 30 semester hours, or equivalent, in a course of study leading to a degree or certification in nursing (for example, CNA, LPN, RN, nurse practitioner) or other medical-related occupation.

Lynn and Lois Grobel established the Grobel Scholarship Trust in 1997 in honor of their daughter, Mary, a nurse, and dedicated health-care professional. The trust provides a continuing source of funds and has awarded more than 85 scholarships.

The trust is administered by Stephen L. Grobel, Esq., Hatteras Island, North Carolina and Samuel D. Waters, board member Opportunity Bank and Eagle Bancorp Montana.

Applications are available from steve@exitjail.com or by calling or texting 757.846.0373. Completed applications must be emailed or postmarked no later than June 10, 2023. Awards will be announced June 21.

Press Release from Great Northern Development:

We are excited to announce the finalists of the 3rd Minnow Tank Business Plan Competition. The vision is to strengthen and support the existing and startup businesses that form the backbone of local communities. With the completion of our first phase, we would like to congratulate and announce the

2024 Minnow Tank Business Plan Competition finalists.
Start-Up Finalists
Wolf Point Mercantile (Roosevelt County), Tootsie's Fitness Salon & Spa Center (Valley County), Circle Country Market (McCone County), Sand Springs General Store and Cafe (Garfield County), MBS Adventures North Post (Sheridan County), Thrifty Business (Richland County)

Existing Finalists
Moonlight Laserworks, LLC (Daniels County), Highway 2 Inn (Valley County), Big Sky Renovisions (Roosevelt County), and The Rush Espresso on Wheels (Richland County)

We would like to give a special thanks to our donors who made this award prize possible for our small businesses in our region: Montana Department of Commerce, Nemont, Farmers Union Oil Co. Circle MT Daniels County Chamber of Commerce & Agriculture, Richland Federal Credit Union Grasslands Federal Credit Union Grasslands Federal Credit Union Opportunity Bank of Montana Beagle Properties Inc. Cottonwood Inn & Suites PRO Co-op Ag Center, Ag Partners LLC and Fox Ford, Inc

Finalists will present their business plan ideas to a live audience at 6:00 P.M. on May 3rd, 2024, at the Great Northern Development Corporation Conference Room in Wolf Point. After businesses pitch their plans of using the award to the live audience and a panel of judges, one start-up and one existing business will win $5,000 cash towards implementing their ideas. The Minnow Tank Finale live event is open to the public, and your vote counts as a percentage of each finalist's score.

Sixty-one new officers who will serve in 36 agencies across the state graduated today from the Montana Law Enforcement Academy (MLEA) within the Montana Department of Justice. MLEA provides basic and advanced training for state, county, city, and tribal law enforcement officers throughout the state.

Attorney General Austin Knudsen was in attendance to congratulate and address the graduates.

“I’m confident that today’s graduates are ready to face the challenges ahead of them as they begin their careers in law enforcement and I’m proud of what they have already accomplished,” Attorney General Knudsen said. “They will be on the front lines protecting our communities and I’m sure they will do so with integrity and courage.”

One of the 61 officers graduating from the Montana Law Enforcement Academy was Andrew Brandt of Glasgow. Brandt is a Deputy with the Valley County Sheriff's Office.

The Economic Research Service says the number of U.S. wheat farms has dropped substantially over time. Since 2002, the total number of wheat farms fell by over 40 percent, from 169,528 in 2002 to 97,014 in 2022.

According to the ERS, the reduction in the number of farms reporting wheat harvested area occurred across all wheat classes. The number of farms producing durum wheat saw the largest percentage drop, down nearly 60 percent from the 2002 Census and 30 percent from the 2017 Census. Only five states saw increases in the number of wheat farms.

The 2022 Census of Agriculture showed that 8 States accounted for 54 percent of the total number of wheat operations in 2022. Kansas alone accounts for 15 percent, or 14,520, wheat operations, followed by North Dakota and Ohio with 8,053 and 7,604 total operations, respectively.

On average, the States with the highest wheat area per farm are located in the northern States such as Montana, Washington, and North Dakota. Each of these States has an average wheat area of 750 or more acres per wheat-producing farm. States located in the eastern half of the United States tend to grow fewer acres of wheat per farm, with several States in the Corn Belt growing 100 acres of wheat or less per farm.

In addition to the decline in wheat farms, wheat production is down slightly but has been variable year to year. The ERS says annual wheat production ranged from about 1.6 billion bushels in marketing year 2002-2003 to as much as 2.5 billion bushels in 2008-2009. However, wheat production didn’t exceed two billion bushels from 2017 through 2023.

One major reason for the decline in wheat production and area over time is that in some areas of the country wheat has become a rotational crop that is mixed into rotations with more profitable corn or soybean crops.

According to the USDA, the value of production less operating cost for wheat, which is a measure of profitability, has grown from $101.72 per acre in 2017 to $185.26 per acre in 2022. The same measure of profitability for corn has more than doubled from $273.77 per acre to $654.46 per acre, more than 3 times that of wheat. The value of production less operating costs for soybeans has also grown from $296.64 per acre in 2017 to $441.53 per acre in 2022.

Additional factors include changing farming practices, the development of seed varieties for corn and soybeans that are more conducive to growing conditions in areas traditionally planted to wheat, and other technological developments.

Overall, the number of wheat farms continues to shrink across all but the largest farm sizes. The average farm size continues to grow as the number of smaller farms declines and larger farms increase in number.

The IRS is warning taxpayers that they may be leaving more than $1 billion on the table.

The federal tax collector said Monday that roughly 940,000 people in the U.S. have until May 17 to submit tax returns for unclaimed refunds for tax year 2020, which total more than $1 billion nationwide.

The average median refund is $932 for 2020. Texas (93,400), California (88,200), Florida (53,200) and New York (51,400) have the largest amount of people potentially eligible for these refunds.

IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said in a statement: “We want taxpayers to claim these refunds, but time is running out for people who may have overlooked or forgotten about these refunds. There’s a May 17 deadline to file these returns so taxpayers should start soon to make sure they don’t miss out.”

For people who need to file a return, the IRS advises taxpayers to request their W-2, 1098, 1099 or 5498 from their employer or bank — or order a free wage and income transcript using the “Get Transcript Online” tool at IRS.gov.

Taxpayers typically have three years to file and claim tax refunds, otherwise the money becomes the property of the U.S. Treasury.

Generally the deadline to claim old refunds falls around the April 15 tax deadline, but this year the three-year window for 2020 unfiled returns was postponed to May 17, because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But if taxpayers haven’t filed a return for tax year 2021 and 2022, any 2020 refunds would be withheld until they file for those years as well to make sure they don’t owe.

Werfel said “some people may not realize they may be owed a refund. We encourage people to review their files and start gathering records now, so they don’t run the risk of missing the May deadline.”

Tax season officially began on January 29.

According to the latest tax season statistics, more than 71.5 million individual tax filings have been submitted to the IRS this season.

The Montana Department of Revenue is reporting that Valley County had $139,111 in marijuana sales in the month of January. Sales of $108,677 in adult-use and $30,434 in medical sales.

In February sales totaled $132,361 with $107,512 in adult use and $24,849 in medical sales.

Valley County collects 3% of all sales and disperses that money to local governments in Valley County including the City of Glasgow, Town of Fort Peck, Town of Nashua and the Town of Opheim.

Montana Farmers Union has invested $30,000 in burgeoning FFA chapters over the past year through it's new FFA New Chapter Sponsorship program.

Montana Farmers Union’s standing FFA New Chapter Sponsorship program was created in 2023 to help with startup costs associated with building a chapter. The program is specifically for new or rechaptered FFA programs from Jan 1, 2022, and offers $2,500 per qualifying chapter. Florence, Frenchtown, Harrison, Havre, Augusta, Belt Valley, Scobey, Nashua, Whitehall, Winnett, Drummond, and Jordan FFA chapters have qualified for the sponsorships.

“Educating and connecting with the future generation has always been important to Montana Farmers Union, and the new sponsorship funding is a great way to put that ideal to some practical use,” MFU board member Jeff Bangs said.

“Honestly, my jaw just hit the floor with the generosity of that offer,” said Morgan Kuntz, director of development for the Montana FFA Foundation.

FFA has instilled the importance of community service and career skills in Montana youths since its formation in 1930. Today, Montana FFA has more than 6,600 members.

In Havre, the FFA club plans to use the funds to help pay for a greenhouse to offer hands-on learning and attract more students to the program, said Saralyn Standley, FFA advisor for Havre Public Schools.

“Havre is a very strong agricultural community, so it really has been a long time coming for an agricultural program to start,” Standley said, adding the chapter is thankful for MFU’s and the school district’s support.

The new chapter sponsorship program is a natural extension of MFU’s longstanding support of FFA, including as a lead sponsor during convention, providing both financial support and leadership opportunities for members, and filling financial needs for special projects.

Recently, MFU Membership Ambassadors visited the 2023 sponsorship recipients to present them with shirts from MFU as well as visit with them about agriculture and MFU’s grassroots efforts to support family farms and ranches.

“Visiting the new FFA chapters in my area gives me great hope for the future. It is exciting to see ag kids still interested in ag and non-ag kids finding their way into agriculture. There is so much potential for establishing relationships with these aspiring producers. I encourage all farmers and ranchers to help encourage and guide these precious youth as the future generation of farmers and ranchers,” MFU Ambassador Samantha Ferrat said.

“It’s so impressive to see the enthusiasm and energy of the new the Jordan Chapter,” MFU Ambassador Eleanor Dutton said. “When I asked them why they wanted to start a chapter, the most common answer was, ‘I want to learn more about the different ways ag can be a part of my life after graduation.’ That is what FFA offers kids – the opportunity to gain experience and knowledge in specific ag fields in an environment of healthy competition and camaraderie. All of those things are transferable to life outside of high school.”

Learn more about MFU FFA New Chapter Sponsorship program by contacting MFU Chief of Staff Matt Rains at mrains@montanafarmersunion.com or Montana FFA Foundation Director of Development Morgan Kuntz at development@ffa.org.

With the question of whether to override Gov. Greg Gianforte’s veto of Senate Bill 442 now in the hands of lawmakers, a report published this week by a Legislative Services Division research analyst details how most of the state’s counties would stand to get tens, or hundreds, of thousands of dollars to maintain their county roads if the override is successful.

The Montana Supreme Court will have the ultimate say if whether Gianforte’s veto of the broadly supported bill that redistributes the state’s marijuana revenue to send more toward county roads and a legacy conservation program was done properly, since the state has filed a notice of an appeal of a Lewis and Clark County District Court decision.

But if the override poll is successful and the court upholds the lower court opinion saying lawmakers needed the chance to override the veto, the analysis shows how the county roads maintenance portion of more than $50 million in annual marijuana tax revenue will be distributed to all 56 counties, including the ones that don’t allow for recreational marijuana sales.

“If the veto override should prevail, SB 442 could go into effect, changing the distribution of marijuana tax revenue, starting with the 2024 fiscal year. What that actually means, though, deserves a little more explanation,” wrote research analyst Erin Sullivan, who is also the lead staffer for the Economic Affairs Interim Committee.

Under the structure passed by lawmakers in the 2021 session, the marijuana tax revenue and fees the state collects each fiscal year is transferred out to multiple accounts. The Department of Revenue first reserves three months of operating expenses — about $4.1 million — out of the full pot of money, which totaled $56.4 million in fiscal year 2023.

Next, $6 million goes to the Healing and Ending Addiction through Recovery and Treatment (HEART) Fund for behavioral health and treatment programs.

Then, money is then distributed as follows: 20% for wildlife habitat and conservation funding; 4% each for state parks, trails and recreational facilities, and nongame wildlife; $200,000 for veterans and surviving spouses; and $150,000 for the Board of Crime Control. The rest of the money then goes into the General Fund.

Competing bills during the session sought to redistribute more of the money toward crime prevention, the Department of Justice, and the General Fund, but SB 442, sponsored by Sen. Mike Lang, R-Malta, won out among the three after it was rewritten to put more money toward county road maintenance.

That curried the favor of dozens of conservation, rural Montana and other groups who said that repairing and maintaining county roads with the money would be beneficial in supporting the habitat and outdoors funding that some said was the reason that Montanans voted to legalize adult-use marijuana in the first place.

Under the final version of the bill, which passed with support from 130 of 150 lawmakers, the HEART Fund gets 11% of the tax revenue instead of a flat $6 million, veterans and spouses get 5%, the Board of Crime Control gets 0.2%, county roads get 20%, and the other allocations remain unchanged aside from the drop in money going toward the General Fund.

The report says the change of the HEART Fund getting $6 million to 11% of the revenue means the amount the fund receives will fluctuate based on adult-use and medical sales and the fund for veterans and surviving spouses could see “a significant increase” in funding if tax collections continue to increase.

Total marijuana sales have topped $24 million a month in every month since February 2022, peaking so far last August at $28.7 million for the month. From January 2022 through January 2024, the state has sold an estimated $647.8 million in medical and adult-use marijuana, collecting about $104.1 million in total tax revenue. Nearly 94% of that tax revenue comes from adult-use sales, according to the Department of Revenue.

Sullivan’s report forecasts how those percentages allocate out into dollars if the override were to pass by using the $56.4 million in revenue that was dispersed last June 30 for the prior fiscal year.

According to her analysis, if Montana brought in the same amount of revenue in FY2024 and SB 442 were law, the HEART Fund would see a reduction of $247,000 compared to last year under the new 11% formula.

The report says the wildlife habitat, state parks, trails and recreation, and nongame wildlife funds would likely see 13% increases, respectively, totaling to an increase among all four funds of about $2 million.

The veterans and surviving spouses fund would see a 1200% boost of about $2.4 million dollars, according to the report. The Board of Crime Control would lose about $45,000, or 30%, of its current funding, while the General Fund would lose about $20.6 million dollars, a 66% reduction from last year.

The bulk of that General Fund money, about $16.6 million, according to Sullivan’s estimate, would go directly toward the county road fund, then be distributed to the Department of Transportation. The DOT will hand the money out to each county based on a formula that accounts for the number of rural road miles, state and federal land area, and block management acres in each – with an emphases on the share of the rural road mileage in each county compared to the total rural road mileage in Montana.

“The revenue deposited into the County Roads fund first goes into three buckets: Rural Roads, Block Management Acres, and Federal and Trust Acres,” the report says. “Half of the revenue is deposited into the Rural Roads bucket, and 25% each into the Block Management Acres and Federal and Trust Acres buckets.”

Montana’s 56 counties are split 50-50 as to whether they allow adult-use marijuana sales. The more rural and loss populated counties largely account for the 28 counties that don’t allow for adult-use sales.

But those counties also stand to see the largest comparative shares of money going toward their road maintenance compared to the lack of, or relatively small amounts, of revenue they bring in with just medical sales if the SB 442 veto is overridden and the court’s decision upheld, according to the report.

Among 22 counties that contribute zero tax revenue, allocations range from 0.5% of the county road money for Wibaux County up to 3.9% for Phillips County. Most counties that don’t contribute marijuana tax revenue will see around 1-2% of the county road funding.

But even 0.5% of the total road money would mean an estimated $55,312 for county roads annually for Wibaux County, according to the report, and many of those counties would see more than $100,000 a year. Phillips County, home to Lang, would get an estimated $406,134 each year if SB 442 was law, according to the report.

The biggest boost to county roads would be in Flathead County, which stands to receive $492,950 a year, according to the report, but Valley ($389,000), Beaverhead ($393,000), Lincoln ($368,000), and Blaine ($306,000) would all stand to get more than $300,000 a year.

Most of the rest of the counties in the state would stand to receive between $120,000 and $300,000, according to the report.

Among the counties that do allow adult-use marijuana sales, they would receive distributions ranging from 0.6% of the county road fund in Silver Bow County to 4.7% of the share in Flathead County.

“If the override does prevail, the marijuana tax revenue distribution will adjust for at least fiscal year 2024,” Sullivan wrote in the conclusion of the report. “When the next legislative session convenes in 2025, legislators again will have an opportunity to review statutes and craft policies, meaning the marijuana tax distribution may see additional adjustments in the near future.”

Lawmakers will have until 5 p.m. on April 18 to send their ballot back to the Secretary of State’s Office, and they will need two-thirds of the Legislature to support the override for it to pass.

Three of the groups that were key in bringing the outside groups and lawmakers together to support the bill during the session — the Montana Association of Counties, Wild Montana, and the Montana Wildlife Federation — sued to challenge the Legislature’s lack of ability to override the veto. They said Tuesday when the override polls were sent out they were pressing lawmakers to support the override.

“Respectfully to the 130 legislators who supported this vital bill almost a year ago, ‘Stick to your guns,’ the next 30 days will impact what makes Montana, Montana, for the next 30 years,” Montana Wildlife Federation Executive Director Frank Szollosi said in a statement earlier this week.

But Republican leadership in both the House and Senate – many of whom supported the bill during the session – are now trying to convince their members not to fill out the override poll or to vote against the override.

Twenty-seven Republican senators sent a letter to the Supreme Court on Monday in a last-minute attempt to block the override, saying that the Senate president was still in possession of the bill and arguing that if the poll override were sent out without the actual original copy of the bill, it would be an illegal poll.

“The legislature will not participate in an unconstitutional poll,” the letter said.

On Wednesday, a day after the polls were sent out, seven Republican members of House leadership also said the courts’ decisions were unconstitutional and, like the senators, claimed they would not be participating because they believe the courts are stepping on the Legislature’s toes.

“All three branches of state government must be vigilant to protect the powers divided by our constitution,” read the letter from the House Republican leaders, which was addressed to the Supreme Court. “To that end, House Leadership will not be participating in Judge Menahan’s opinion of how he believes the legislature should operate. This has no bearing on the content of SB 442. That will be addressed with a solution provided by us, the legislature.”

Lang, in an opinion piece published in his hometown paper this week, urged his colleagues to support the override: “SB 442 brought Montana together in a time when division is the preferred course of action in politics. I hope my colleagues will still stand with me and cast their vote to overturn the governor’s veto, and support this excellent bill.”

A winter storm is expected this weekend with the potential for significant snow amounts over 6 inches along with gusty winds up to 40 mph. A Winter Storm Watch is in effect for northeastern Montana

New statewide data show a dip in public school enrollment for the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Office of Public Instruction reports Montana’s K-12 student count declined last fall by more than 1% since the start of the 2022 school year.

State funding for public schools is partially tied to enrollment counts and the education agency reports the decline impacted one in five school budgets this academic year.

Montana’s student count steadily declined from 1996 to 2011, then gradually improved prior to the pandemic.

State education officials said they need to collect more data to determine the causes of this year’s enrollment dip.

Data show a decline in schools participating in a program to improve new teacher pay

State education officials shared new data this week that show a decline in schools participating in a program intended to improve pay for new teachers.

Lawmakers intended the 2021 TEACH Act to incentivize districts to raise starting teacher pay to make the state more competitive for new educators, which are in short supply. The law offers schools additional state funding if they boost new teacher salaries to a set benchmark.

While lawmakers said the jury is still out on the policy’s success, the Office of Public Instruction reports fewer schools are benefiting from the additional funding.

More than 100 public schools in Montana used the program in its first year. But, the Office of Public Instruction reports fewer than half that many are set to participate in the coming school year.

Montana Association of School Business Officials Director Shelley Turner said the confusing and shifting messaging from the state education department may have led administrators to miss this year’s application deadline.

“It’s very complicated and hard,” Turner said. “And so, we’re feeling a little bit like we’re on shifting quicksand, trying to get our schools the funding they need.”

Deputy Superintendent of Public Instruction Rob Stutz said the agency provides many training opportunities for districts on complying with the policy.

Lawmakers were told the agency believes the decline may be due to districts struggling to keep up with the pay increases required to qualify for the program.

Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen announces overall unchanged graduation rates while dropout rates decreased. A total of 9,563 students graduated in the state of Montana in the spring of 2023. The state-wide graduation rates from spring 2019 to spring 2023 were:

2019 – 86.64%
2020 – 85.89%
2021 – 86.13%
2022 – 85.80%
2023 – 85.62%

“We are all Montana proud of the students, parents, teachers, and school leaders who are committed to academic success,” said Superintendent Elsie Arntzen. “Montana is increasing student engagement through innovation. The new MAST through-year assessment and the revitalization of our Math and Reading standards are a path forward.”

The 2022-2023 graduation rate for American Indian students showed a 3.77% decrease from the previous 2021-2022 school year. The American Indian graduation rates from spring 2019 to spring 2023 were:

2019 – 66.73%
2020 – 68.27%
2021 – 69.18%
2022 – 68.67%
2023 – 66.08%

The dropout rate calculates the number of students who dropped out of school in a single year divided by the total enrollment of students in that grade. The state-wide dropout rate for grades 9-12 from the 2018-2019 school year through the 2022-2023 school year were:

2019 – 3.59%
2020 – 2.91%
2021 – 3.74%
2022 – 3.99%
2023 – 3.76%

The 2022-2023 American Indian student dropout rate showed a 17.13% decrease from the previous school year. The American Indian dropout rates from 2018- 2019 to 2022- 2023 were:

2019 – 8.39%
2020 –6.91%
2021 – 7.99%
2022 – 10.74%
2023 – 8.90%

The Governor’s Office of Community Service (ServeMontana), Reach Higher Montana, and Montana Campus Compact (MTCC) are pleased announce 100 Montana high school seniors have been awarded Youth Serve Montana Scholarships. This scholarship is offered in two awards, $1,000 for 50-99 hours of service and $1,500 for 100+ hours of service to attend a Montana Campus Compact member institution next fall.

“We are honored to recognize the valuable contributions of these high school seniors who dedicated their time and efforts to uplift others” said Kelly Cresswell, Executive Director of Reach Higher Montana. “Beyond funding education, the Youth Serve Montana Scholarships honor a spirit of service, inspiring these future leaders to continue making meaningful impacts in their communities.”
The Youth Serve Montana Scholarship was created to promote volunteerism among high school students. Funds are available through support from Montana Campus Compact, a network of Montana campuses committed to community service; Reach Higher Montana, a nonprofit dedicated to helping students pursue and fund post-secondary education; and the Governor’s Office of Community Service, the state agency tasked with expanding and promoting community service in Montana.

The Governor’s Office of Community Service administers the scholarship funds.
"These scholarships are not just about rewarding students” said Josh Vanek, Director of Montana Campus Compact. “Their volunteerism develops a culture of compassion and leadership, where every act of service is a steppingstone towards a brighter collective future.”

Congratulations to these Glasgow area Montana high school seniors:

$1,000 Youth Serve Montana Scholarship Recipients serving 50-99 hours:

Danielle Cahill Scobey Scobey High School

Grace Gackle Circle Circle High School

Tanner White Glasgow Glasgow High School

$1,500 Youth Serve Montana Scholarship Recipients serving 100 or more hours:

Aiden Fouhy Peerless Scobey High School

Kaylee Johnson Wolf Point Wolf Point High School

Kylie Rodenberg Wolf Point Wolf Point High School

The Youth Serve Montana Scholarship is offered annually with the application opening each fall.

A Hays man accused of selling methamphetamine from a yellow school bus he used as his residence on the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation admitted to a trafficking charge today, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.

Lyle Gilbert Snow, Sr., 64, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute meth. Snow faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, a $1 million fine and at least three years of supervised release.

U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Sentencing was set for July 31. Snow was detained pending further proceedings.

In court documents, the government alleged that in April 2022, the FBI received information that Snow was selling meth on the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation and had been selling gram quantities since at least 2021 from the yellow school bus in which he lived. Law enforcement made a series of controlled purchases of meth from Snow. In June 2023, law enforcement served a federal search warrant on the yellow school bus and recovered a loaded .270-caliber rifle, ammunition and a flip phone. Messages on the phone indicated drug trafficking. While the search was under way, law enforcement saw Snow pull off the highway and begin to drive down his driveway. When he saw law enforcement, Snow pulled out of the driveway and began traveling away from his residence. Snow was pulled over a because he was driving with a suspended license. Snow possessed $1,537 in cash, including $20 bills identified as having been used in a controlled buy.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda L. Myers is prosecuting the case. The FBI and Fort Belknap Law Enforcement Services conducted the investigation.

The Valley County Comprehensive Child Find Screening will be held on April 4th and April 5th at the First Lutheran Church in Glasgow from 9:00 to 11:00 AM and 1:00 to 3:00 PM.

This screening is for ALL children from birth to school entry age. The purpose of this screening is to find children who may need special help AND to help facilitate Irle School kindergarten registration.

The screening assessments include the following areas:
--Hearing for children of all age
--Speech for children three years old and older.
--Gross/Fine Motor Development
--Concept Development

*ALL children who will be entering Kindergarten in the Glasgow School District this fall are required to attend child find screening/registration. Kindergarten Registration can be found on our school website starting April 4th, 2024.

The Glasgow School Board voted unanimously on Wednesday to put a Building Reserve Safety Levy on the ballot for the May School Election.

The Safety Levy is an option being offered by the Glasgow School Board to relieve the General Fund budget in the Glasgow School District. Due to a significant loss in enrollment, the Glasgow School District is experiencing a General Fund budget shortfall of $358,000. Also contributing to the budget shortfall are the inflationary increases to operating costs to the district. The school district is unable to run a General Fund Levy due to the loss in enrollment and how the state funding formula works. Taxpayers in the school district will actually see levies reduced for the General Fund due to the declining enrollment. In order to balance of the deficit of $358,000, the district would need to make staff reduction of at least $160,000 as well as pass the safety and security levy in the amount of $197,500.

The safety and security levy would provide a dedicated revenue stream for the ongoing costs of school safety, including salaries for counselors and associated safety costs in the amount of $197,500. If approved, these costs would be removed from the under-funded general fund to reduce the pressure of the district's main funding budget.

If approved, the levy would be a permanent levy of 12.18 mills. This would in fact raise taxes on a home with an assessed market value of $300,000 by approximately $49.32. But with the reduction of the general fund levies, the net increase to taxpayers would be minimal. The net impact would be a tax increase of 1.4%.

The safety levy will be on the ballot for the May School Election in Glasgow. Also on the ballot will be 2 trustee positions and the two candidates who have filed the necessary paperwork are Chrissa Nelson and Derek Beadle.

From the National Weather Service: get ready for winter weather! Temperatures will drop off lasting well into next week. Precipitation is expected to start across the west early today and spread to the rest of northeast Montana this evening and last on and off through Sunday.

The two heaviest periods will then be today into Thursday and this weekend. Accumulations today may take awhile to stack up due to warm ground.

The Montana Department of Commerce announced this week that 32 Montana towns, cities, and counties will share more than $1 million of grant funding to help develop and plan infrastructure projects to increase the health and safety for those communities and their residents.

The funding is through the agency's Montana Coal Endowment Program [lnks.gd] (MCEP).

“It is vital that Montana communities have safe and reliable infrastructure systems to enable steady growth and economic expansion, for right now and for many years to come,” said Paul Green, Director of the Montana Department of Commerce, in a news release. “That is why Commerce will continue to allocate grants through programs like this, funding that can support eligible community development projects that will add health and safety improvements for Montanans and their communities.”

The State-funded MCEP program is designed to help address the affordability of infrastructure projects by providing grants to lower the cost of constructing public facilities.

The following communities and districts will receive MCEP Planning grants:

The Basin Water and Sewer District will receive $16,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a water preliminary engineering report.

The Bigfork County Water and Sewer District will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a water preliminary engineering report.

The City of Bozeman will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a stormwater preliminary engineering report.

The City of Conrad will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a wastewater preliminary engineering report.

The Town of Culbertson will receive $32,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a stormwater preliminary engineering report.

The Town of Darby will receive $30,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a wastewater preliminary engineering report.

The City of Deer Lodge will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a stormwater preliminary engineering report and $16,040 to complete a comprehensive capital improvements plan.

The City of Dillon will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a water preliminary engineering report.

The Town of Drummond will receive $30,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a water preliminary engineering report.

The East Canyon Ferry County Water and Sewer District will receive $36,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a wastewater preliminary engineering report.

Flathead County Water District No 1-Evergreen will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a wastewater preliminary engineering report.

The City of Havre will receive $16,960 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a water preliminary engineering report.

The Town of Joliet will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a wastewater preliminary engineering report.

The Town of Jordan will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a water preliminary engineering report.

Judith Basin County will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a wastewater preliminary engineering report for the Geyser Water and Sewer District.

Lewis & Clark County will receive $32,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a bridge preliminary engineering report.

The Town of Manhattan will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a water preliminary engineering report.

The North Valley County Water and Sewer District will receive $18,885.72 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a water preliminary engineering report.

The Town of Philipsburg will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a stormwater preliminary engineering report.

The Town of Pinesdale will receive $36,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a water preliminary engineering report.

RAE Subdivision County Water and Sewer District No. 313 will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a wastewater preliminary engineering report.

Ravalli County will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a wastewater preliminary engineering report.

The Town of Richey will receive $15,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a water preliminary engineering report.

The City of Ronan will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a water preliminary engineering report.

The Town of Ryegate will receive $32,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a water preliminary engineering report.

The City of Shelby will receive $36,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a water preliminary engineering report.

The Town of Sheridan will receive $32,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a water preliminary engineering report.

The Town of St. Ignatius will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a wastewater preliminary engineering report.

The Sun Prairie Village County Water and Sewer District will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a water and wastewater systems capital improvements plan.

The Ten Mile/Pleasant Valley Estates Sewer and Water District will receive $25,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a wastewater preliminary engineering report.

The Town of Whitehall will receive $40,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a stormwater preliminary engineering report.

The City of Wolf Point will receive $20,000 of MCEP planning grant funding to complete a wastewater preliminary engineering report and $28,000 to complete a capital improvements plan.

Eligible applicants for MCEP planning grants include incorporated cities or towns, counties, consolidated governments, tribal governments and county or multi-county water, sewer or solid waste districts. The funding for the program comes from revenues earned on interest from coal severance taxes.

The Glasgow School Board will have their regular March meeting Wednesday at 6pm.

Items of particular importance will include discussion on how to move forward with the search for a new superintendent and discussion on the budget shortfall the school district is facing for the 2024-2025 school year.

The high temperature at Glasgow, MT reached a record of 71 degrees this afternoon, beating the previous record of 69 degrees set back in 2017.

Valley County Election Administrator Marie Pippin has told Kltz/Mix-93 that the 3-person race for Valley County Commissioner will be on the June Primary Election Ballot.

Originally, Pippen said that all three candidates for Valley County Commissioner would advance to the November General Election. After further research, Pippin found that the 3 candidates would have to be on the Primary Election Ballot with the two candidates receiving the highest number of votes advancing on to the General Election.

Candidates Mitch Willett, Jeff Alsberg and Mike Carney will now appear on the ballot for the June 4th Primary and two of them will advance to November.

The Glasgow City Council voted on Monday to move forward with a sale of a portion of Hoyt Park to Frances Mahon Deaconess Hospital.

FMDH has been interested in the portion of Hoyt Park located near the Hospital for several months and made an offer of $550,000 for the southern end of the park.

The Glasgow City Council gave preliminary approval on Monday and a public hearing will be held on April 15th allowing for the public to provide input on the proposed sale.

FMDH plans to develop the portion of the park into a parking lot. FMDH CEO Nick Dirkes noted that the hospital plans to hold it until such a time as expansion of the existing facilities become necessary. In the meantime, FMDH would lease back the property at a nominal fee to the city.

While not formal vote has been taken, if the sale of the park becomes final the City Council appeared to favor using the proceeds to finance the completion of the bathhouse for the new swimming pool.

New estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau show Valley County losing population from 2020 to 2023.

From April 1st of 2020 to July 1st of 2023, Valley County saw its population drop from 7,575 to 7,474.

Other local counties and their population estimates as of July 1st of 2023:

McCone County- 1676
Philips County- 4249
Richland County- 11,173
Roosevelt County- 10,319
Sheridan County- 3498
Daniels County- 1633
Garfield County- 1211

The National Weather Service is tracking a winter snowstorm that could potentially bring large amounts of snow to northeast Montana.

Mandy Smoker Broaddus is a former Montana poet laureate who helped implement the Indian Education Act for All Act across the state. John Shaffner is a legendary Hollywood production designer who created sets for many of television’s most beloved shows.

Both will receive an honorary doctorate this spring from the University of Montana.

On March 16 the state Board of Regents approved UM’s request to present the doctorates during Commencement ceremonies on Saturday, May 13. The two will serve as UM Commencement speakers, with Smoker Broadus speaking at the morning ceremony and Shaffner speaking in the afternoon.

“Mandy and John are both extraordinary UM alumni whose creative talents have had tremendous impact in the world,” UM President Seth Bodnar said. “They are leaders in their respective fields, and it is our great privilege to present them with honorary doctorates.”

Smoker Broaddus will receive an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters, and Shaffner will receive an Honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts.

Smoker Broaddus was born on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation and is a member of the Assiniboine and Sioux tribes. She attended Pepperdine University for her undergraduate work, earned a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing from UM in 2002, and pursued additional graduate studies at UCLA and the University of Colorado. She was awarded the Richard Hugo Memorial Scholarship at UM and also received the Arianna and Yellow Thunder Scholarship at UCLA.

In 2005 she published an acclaimed book of poetry titled “Another Attempt at Rescue,” which explores culture, language, identity, relationships and the natural world. Other publications followed, including 2022’s “Thunderous,” a children’s graphic novel she co-wrote with Natalie Peeterse whose central characters are all American Indian. The novel works to authentically represent Lakota values and traditions.

Early in her career, Smoker Broaddus taught at Fort Peck Community College and was dean of students at Frazer Public Schools. When the Montana Legislature funded the Indian Education for All Act in 2005, she joined the state Office of Public Instruction as the first Indian student achievement specialist in the Indian Education Program. She was promoted to director of Indian Education in 2009 and served in that role until 2018, becoming instrumental in helping classrooms across Montana learn more about Native history, contributions and issues.

At OPI, Smoker Broaddus also advanced the Schools of Promise initiative, which worked to close achievement gaps for Montana’s lowest-performing schools. In 2015 she was named Educator of the Year by the National Indian Education Association.

In 2019 Gov. Steve Bullock named Smoker Broaddus and Melissa Kwasny co-poet laureates for the state of Montana. They served in that role until 2021.

Now living in Helena, Smoker Broaddus is managing consultant for Native and culturally responsive education for Education Northwest, which works to address pressing education and youth-services needs across the region and nation. She also serves as a member of the National Advisory Council on Indian Education for the Department of Education and the Department of the Interior.

UM alumna Denise Juneau, who was Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction from 2009 to 2017, wrote this of Smoker Broaddus: “She is a phenomenal role model who manages to be as comfortable as a data geek as she is a poet laureate. She is a teacher, mother, advocate and leader who has had significant influence in Montana and the nation. She ensures that tribal voices are included at every table she sits at and brings forward a view of building inclusive systems.”

The Glasgow City Council will meet on Monday at 5pm in the council chambers at the Glasgow Civic Center.

Press Release From Valley County Law Enforcement:

At 10:45pm, Friday night, a car was reported stolen in Glasgow. Glasgow Police Department took the call for service. Valley County Deputies, aware of the report, encountered the stolen vehicle eastbound on US HWY 2.

An attempt to stop the vehicle using emergency lights was ignored and a pursuit of the fleeing vehicle was initiated. The pursuit went as far as the Frazer area and then back west toward Glasgow. A coordinated effort between deputies allowed for the use of Spike Strips to slow and stop the stolen vehicle, at Nashua. The stolen vehicle was traveling at speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour. The stolen vehicle, with two flat tires, went off HWY 2 and the suspects fled on foot. At 11:20 pm one suspect was captured and detained.

Assistance from Montana Highway Patrol, FBI, and additional Valley County Sheriff Officers then attempted to locate the second suspect. Glasgow Police Department assisted with coordinating a drone pilot with Search and Rescue and a drone that has infrared capabilities came to the scene to assist in locating the suspect. At 24:40 the second suspect was taken into custody. Both suspects were booked into the Valley County Detention Center early Saturday morning.

This is the Third pursuit in 2024 and the second involving the stoppage of a vehicle with spike strips.

Last year, during a dispute with Gov. Greg Gianforte over the state’s “95 mill” school equalization property tax, officials with 49 of Montana’s 56 counties chose to reduce their fall tax bills against the wishes of the Montana Department of Revenue. This month, after landing on the losing side of a November Montana Supreme Court ruling, those counties’ treasurers are left with the thankless task of sending supplemental property tax bills to hundreds of thousands of property owners across the state.

The supplemental bills will increase the amounts homeowners and other property owners owe for the second half of calendar year 2023, payments that are due at the end of May. The exact amount will depend on property type and tax valuations, with homes assessed at a market value of $450,000 owing about $104 extra, according to MTFP calculations.

In Valley County, the amount that will be collected with the supplemental tax bills is $500,000.

Terri Kunz with the statewide county treasurer’s association said in an interview Wednesday that county treasurers are coordinating to send out the supplemental bills in the second half of March so people who own properties in multiple counties will receive notices at roughly the same time.

The 95 mills, which collect about $128 for every $100,000 of a home’s assessed property value, are collected statewide to fund part of a state program that equalizes funding between tax-base-rich and tax-base-poor school districts. They represent a minor component of most property tax bills, which also include collections for local school levies and the operation of city and county programs.

The 95 mills became a flashpoint last year after the revenue department’s two-year reappraisal cycle for residential properties reported extraordinary tax valuation increases for homes across the state of 40% on median. While the way local government budgets are apportioned among taxpayers means tax bills didn’t ultimately rise in direct proportion to that increase, the reappraisals produced widespread concern and did contribute to notable tax increases for many homeowners. According to an MTFP estimate, the median residential property in Montana saw its tax bill rise by 21% in 2023.

The governor and local government officials have sparred repeatedly over the property tax issue in recent years, with the governor trying to blame rising taxes on local government spending, and many local officials arguing that the governor and state Legislature have failed to take state-level action that could ease homeowners’ tax burdens.

During last year’s tax angst, many county officials came to the conclusion that an obscure provision of the state tax code limits the growth of collections from the 95 mills, which are somewhat distinctive in that they produce a tax in direct proportion to property value. Despite a directive to the contrary from the revenue department and the governor’s budget office, the county officials argued they could legally collect the school equalization tax only at a lower, 77.9-mill level. Counties maintained that the difference, about $80 million statewide, could be readily offset by the state’s flush General Fund.

The dispute produced months of political back-and-forth as well as several lawsuits, with counties touting their dedication to lightening the load on taxpayers and the governor arguing he was defending an essential piece of the school funding system. The Supreme Court ultimately concluded the lawsuits by ruling in favor of the Gianforte administration, noting that the revenue department had used a consistent methodology for calculating the 95 mills for two decades.

Normally, counties mail property tax bills once a year in the fall, sending notices that specify amounts for fall and spring payments. The Supreme Court ruling, however, came after counties had already sent their fall 2023 mailings with what the court deemed incorrect amounts, necessitating the supplemental bills this spring.

The seven counties that didn’t collect the reduced amount for the 95 mill tax, and are now spared from supplemental collections, are Broadwater, Deer Lodge, Glacier, Madison, Meagher, Teton and Toole.

Counties where taxpayers can expect the supplemental bills span Montana’s largest cities: Billings, Missoula, Bozeman, Great Falls, Kalispell and Helena.

County treasurers said this week that they expect the unusually timed bills to produce widespread confusion among taxpayers.

Missoula County Treasurer Tyler Gernant, for example, said he worries that residents who are accustomed to paying their tax bill once a year may end up in a bind because they discount the new notice, assuming it’s either a scam or a notice for a tax bill they’ve already paid. He said he’s particularly worried about snowbird residents who head south for the winter after paying their fall tax bill and who might not be keeping a close eye on their mailbox in Montana.

“Our biggest concern is people aren’t going to necessarily know about this,” Gernant said.

Unpaid tax bills incur late fees and, in extreme situations that develop over time, can result in owners losing their properties.

While all Montana property owners receive mailed tax bills, most homeowners with mortgages on their properties have their taxes bundled into their monthly housing payments. Gernant and Kunz both said treasurers will notify mortgage companies of the updated tax bills, though Kunz encouraged homeowners to reach out to their banks with questions.

Kunz, who also serves as the Jefferson County treasurer, asked that members of the public who call their local treasurer’s office with questions about the new bills keep in mind that the decisions that produced them weren’t made by the line staff who will be picking up the phone.

“It’s really nobody in our office’s fault. We’re just doing our best,” she said.

“My local team members don’t need to get beat up with this,” she added.

A Dodson man who admitted to an assault charge stemming from a vehicle crash in which his truck hit another vehicle, seriously injuring the other driver, was sentenced today to 18 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.

The defendant, Marvin James Cole, 28, pleaded guilty in October 2023 to assault resulting in serious bodily injury.

Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided.

The government alleged that on June 22, 2022, Cole crashed his GMC truck into a Dodge Avenger driven by the victim, identified as John Doe, on Highway 66 near Harlem, on the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation. Doe suffered serious injuries and ultimately was treated at a hospital in Seattle. A toxicology report showed amphetamine and methamphetamine in Cole’s blood. Cole agreed that he likely drifted into the other lane when he looked at his phone.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case. The FBI, Fort Belknap Law Enforcement, Montana Highway Patrol and Phillips County Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation.

The Glasgow School Board will have a work session on Monday at 2pm to discuss the school budget and to start the search for a new superintendent for the Glasgow School District.

Due to declining enrollment, the Glasgow School District will be facing a budget shortfall for the 2024-2025 school year. The preliminary general fund budget for Fiscal Year 2025 is $6,945,807 which is an increase of $108,338. But due to declining enrollment, the amount of state funding will be reduced creating a deficit of $358,000.

Salaries make up a large portion of the general fund budget. Of the $6.9 million dollar general fund budget, nearly $5.8 million goes to salaries for teachers, administrators, classified employees, substitute teachers and coaches/advisors.

The Glasgow School Board will look at budget reductions and ways to increase revenues to tackle the budget deficit.

The work session will also include taking steps to replace Wade Sundby as Glasgow School Superintendent. Sundby has taken the job as Cut Bank School Superintendent.

Story credit to Northern Plains Independent in Wolf Point:

A huge economic project appears headed for Roosevelt County in the near future.

The Eastern Montana Fertilizer Project, headed by Cyan H2 LLC., is planned to be constructed 15 miles east of the Fort Peck Reservation and near Culbertson.

The project is estimated to cost $1.6 billion. The lone public assistance will come from a loan from the U.S. Department of Energy that will be paid off with interest.

John K. Mues of Cyan H2 said early estimates are that the project will create 3,200 jobs including 2,000 during the construction phase, 200 permanent jobs and 1,000 of in-direct jobs created through economic opportunities.

Mues said 500 acres are under legal contract by the company east of the reservation in Roosevelt County.

“We could break ground if everything goes perfectly by the end of the year,” Mues said. “I feel the main challenges have been overcome.”

One of the things that still need to be achieved is establishing a Financial Investment Decision for public and private investors.

The project has been supported by U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, Gov. Greg Gianforte, Roosevelt County Commissioner Gordon Oelkers, Montana Farmers Union, Montana Electrical Workers Union and the AFL-CIO.

Tester wrote in a statement, “Boosting America’s energy independence and lowering costs for Montanans are two of my top priorities in the United States Senate, and the Cyan H2 Project can help do both by generating fertilizer and hydrogen in northeastern Montana. I will continue to fight to lower energy costs and strengthen our national security by lessening our reliance on a global market that’s shaped in part by adversaries like China and Russia, and I’m hopeful that the project will receive assistance through a competitive process at the Department of Energy.”

“It’s economic development,” Oelkers said of the project. “This will be a major taxpayer in Roosevelt County if it happens.” He added that it would bring good paying jobs to the area.

The county commissioner noted the project will be environmentally friendly. “It’s federally backed to move the U.S. to be more independent with fertilizer.”

Oelkers added that part of the project down is a solar farm. About 1,000 acres of land is needed for that portion. “It will happen in phases,” he explained.

Mues said he’s been told the fertilizer plant is the largest job creation project in Montana in four decades.

He said there are several reasons to develop the low-carbon fertilizer project in eastern Montana including renewable energy potential, land and water available. The project has the potential to let the country be least dependent on foreign countries China, Russia and the Middle East.

“Eastern Montana in general is one of the best regions in the world for low-carbon energy for agriculture production,” Mues said. He spent part of his childhood being raised in Wolf Point.

Cyan H2 is a Montana veteran- owned business. Four principles are veterans including two West Point graduates and two U.S. Naval graduates.

“We’re finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel,” Mues said.

The Valley County Community Foundation would like to announce to the community that the 2024 grant application is currently open until March 31st. New this year, organizations can apply online at our website at valleycountycf.net, or paper applications can still be mailed to PO Box 304, Glasgow MT 59230.

Community groups, such as 501c(3) organizations, schools, and government entities, who are working to complete a project and looking for capital funds to assist in their project are encouraged to apply.

In 2023, the Valley County Community Foundation awarded over $34,000 to 9 projects around the community. A few of those included installing new lighting at the Northeast Montana Veterans Memorial in Fort Peck, reroofing and insulating the Boy Scout food booth at the fairgrounds, upgrades school garden at the Glasgow Middle School, and new team tents for the Glasgow Kiwanis Swim Team.

The Valley County Community Foundation is a steward of a community savings account through which private assets, entrusted by donors, are invested to meet the challenges of contemporary life. The Foundation is the guardian of a permanent endowment where the income is used to help fund economic, cultural and charitable projects in Valley County.

Deadline for applications is March 31 , 2024.

Results are in from State BPA (Business Professionals of America) Convention in Billings:

Glasgow High School State Placers:

Top B Special Olympics Donation (tied with Colstrip High School)

BPA Silver Chapter Award

Connor Whitmer. 10th place. Banking and finance

Rowen Kloker 1st place Payroll Accounting

Riley Clampitt 8th place Business Law and Ethics

Daniel Berry 9th place Business Law and Ethics, 1st Place Server Admin Using Microsoft, and 1st Place Computer Security

Mary Dykema 5th Place in Meeting and Event Planning, 5th Place in Economic Research Project

Riley Evenson-Glasoe Recruitment Award

Eli Feezell Recruitment Award

Press Release from City of Glasgow:

The City of Glasgow Public Works Department would like to notify users of the City’s bulk water fill station that the fill station is back online. The station became inoperable on January 14, 2024; however, the station has been repaired and bulk water users are now able to use their swipe cards to acquire water from the station as normal.

We apologize for any inconvenience caused while the station was out of service. If bulk water users experience any ongoing issues with the functionality of the station please contact the City office at 228-2476 Extension 2.

The Montana Community Foundation, Inc. (MCF) announces the opening of a grant cycle to benefit communities and residents of Valley County. Grants will be made from the Valley County Masonic Endowment Fund, established at MCF by the Nemont Manor Foundation, Inc. Grant applications will be accepted from March 1 – March 31, 2024.

Applicants must be either a 501(c)(3) nonprofit or an exempt governmental unit. Grants will be up to $5,000. While grants must be used for projects benefiting communities or residents in Valley County, the grantee organization does not need to be based in Valley County. Only one application is allowed per organization.

Eligible projects must be within the following areas of interest: arts and culture, basic human needs, economic development, education, and natural resources and conservation. Ineligible projects include annual or capital campaigns, endowments, debt retirements, and religious, partisan, or sectarian activities. Grant requests are reviewed by the Nemont Manor Foundation.

The Valley County Masonic Endowment Fund was established with proceeds from the sale of Nemont Manor, an affordable housing facility in Glasgow was built more than 40 years ago and managed by the Valley County Masons. The Nemont Manor is now owned by Silver Tree Residential, a group that acquires, rehabilitates, and permanently preserves affordable housing units which were originally developed under HUD programs. Their goal is to ensure the long-term affordability of units for current and future residents.

In 2023, the Valley County Masonic Endowment Fund awarded $50,000 in grants to 10 organizations that benefit Valley County. These grants ranged from funds for the City of Glasgow for the new swimming pool to the Hinsdale School District to improve their outdoor recreation space.
“Last year, we provided $50,000 for organizations and projects in our community that spanned from Glasgow to Nashua to Opheim,” says James Rector, secretary and treasurer of Nemont Manor Foundation. “We look forward to doing the same this year and supporting our community forever in this way.”

Learn more and apply at https://mtcf.org/grants/apply-for-a-grant/valley-county-masonic-endowment . Only online applications will be accepted. For questions, please contact Local Community Foundations Program Officer, Taylor Crowl at (406) 603-4913 or taylor@mtcf.org.

Monday was the final day to file for political office in Montana and Valley County.

There are three candidates for Valley County Commissioner District 3, Michael Carney, Mitchell Willett, and Jeff Alsberg. All three will go to the General Election.

Shelley Bryan will retain her position as Valley County Clerk of District Court; she was the only person filing for that office.

Voters still have until March 28, 2024 at 5 pm to file for positions on School Boards.

School district and special district elections, except for Frazer School, on May 7, 2024, will all be mail-ballot elections.

Glasgow School Superintendent Wade Sundby was offered the Cut Bank Superintendent position and has accepted according to the Clerk of the Board for the Cut Bank School District.

Lindsey Milender told Kltz/Mix-93 that Sundby was offered and accepted the position. Sundby interviewed for the superintendent position on March 4th and was one of two candidates interviewed by the Cut Bank School Board.

Sundby has been the Superintendent in Glasgow since 2019. He will start his new job in Cut Bank on July 1st.

Farmers not yet enrolled in the Agriculture Risk Coverage or Price Loss Coverage programs for the 2024 crop year have until March 15, 2024,to revise elections and sign contracts. Both safety net programs, delivered by USDA’s Farm Service Agency, support to farmers who experience substantial declines in crop prices or revenues for the 2024 crop year.

Producers can elect coverage and enroll in ARC-County or PLC, which provide crop-by-crop protection, or ARC-Individual, which protects the entire farm. Although election changes for 2024 are optional, producers must enroll, with a signed contract, each year. If a producer has a multi-year contract on the farm, the contract will continue for 2024 unless an election change is made.

If producers do not submit their election revision by the March 15, 2024,deadline, the election remains the same as their 2023 election for eligible commodities on the farm. For more information on ARC and PLC, contact your local USDA Service Center.

The Valley County Community Pool Campaign has announced that Corland Construction has mobilized and construction of a new pool will begin this spring. The new pool is set to open in May of 2025.

A golden shovel was used to start the process today by members of the Glasgow City Council, Valley County Community Pool Campaign, Glasgow Kiwanis Swim Team, Corland Construction and Interstate Engineering.

Press Release From Valley County Community Pool Campaign:

Today, Corland Construction began the demolition process of the pool site, including the bathhouse. Additionally, we're proud to confirm that the designs for the new bathhouse have reached 100% completion.

However, before proceeding with the bidding phase, it's imperative that we secure additional funds to ensure the successful completion of the bathhouse. We urge our generous community members and diligent supporters to join us in this crucial, final phase of our campaign. While we will continue to apply for grants, we can’t finish this project without you!

Over the past 5+ years, this project has signified more than just a recreational area for Valley County; it symbolizes the unwavering spirit and commitment of our community to create a vibrant and welcoming space for everyone. Together, we will witness this much awaited pool and bathhouse become a reality.
For further inquiries or to learn how you can contribute to the Valley County Community Pool Campaign, please visit www.valcopool.com or contact any Board Member.

GLASGOW, MONTANA – March 1, 2024 –The Middle of Nowhere Music Fest is pleased to announce that they have secured Wyoming country artist Chancey Williams to join them in Glasgow on August 17, 2024.

Saddle bronc rider turned country music sensation, Chancey Williams, has gone from competing on horseback to headlining fairs, festivals, and venues across the country. With hits like, "Rodeo Cold Beer," "The World Needs More Cowboys," and "One of These Days," this cowboy is sure to have the whole town dancing and singing along. Chancey's last single, "A Cowboy Who Would" has already been added to more than 150 radio stations nationwide, including a launchpad feature on country music's biggest and longest-running countdown show in North America, Country Top 40 with Fitz! Chancey's 2024 Tour includes his debut performance at Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado, a headlining spot at the Black Hills Stock Show, and a return to The Grand Ole Opry.

Also taking the stage is Tigirlily Gold, a sister duo from our neighboring state North Dakota with songs like “Shoot Tequila”, “Somebody Does” which topped the iTunes chart in 2021 and their newest hit single “I Tried a Ring On”.

32 Below, a local crowd favorite, will be opening and again we will be hosting the widely enjoyed after-party in the beer gardens following the main concert.

Vouchers will be available March 4 at the Glasgow Area Chamber of Commerce and Agriculture. Adult tickets are $50. Children ages 12 and under will receive free admission.
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For more information…
Lisa Koski or Morgan Ellis, Glasgow Area Chamber of Commerce and Agriculture, 406-228-2222

A warm February led to increased snowmelt and runoff in the Missouri River Basin above Sioux City, Iowa. February runoff was 1.8 million acre-feet, 161% of average with above average runoff in every reach except Sioux City, which was near average. However, the updated 2024 calendar year runoff forecast for the basin continues to be below average.

“Despite the increased runoff in the month of February, and improved soil moisture conditions, we expect 2024 runoff to remain below average,” said John Remus, chief of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’, Missouri River Basin Water Management Division. “The much warmer-than-normal temperatures led to an early melt of the lower-than-average plains snow. In addition, mountain snowpack is lower than average, resulting in the low annual runoff forecast.” Soil moisture conditions are near or above normal across most the basin with below-normal soil moisture conditions spanning eastern portions of the basin.

The 2024 calendar year runoff forecast above Sioux City is 17.0 MAF, 66% of average. The runoff forecast is based on current soil moisture conditions, plains snowpack, mountain snowpack, and long-term precipitation and temperature outlooks.

System storage is currently 53.9 MAF, 2.2 MAF below the top of the carryover multiple use zone.
“The System will continue to serve all Congressionally authorized purposes during 2024,” said Remus.
Basin and river conditions continue to be monitored, including plains and mountain snow accumulation, and
System regulation will be adjusted based on the most up-to-date information.

Navigation:
Beginning in mid-March, releases from Gavins Point Dam will be adjusted to provide flow support for Missouri River navigation. Navigation flow support for the Missouri River is expected to be at 500 cubic feet-per-second below full service for the first half of the 2024 season, which begins April 1 at the mouth of the river near St. Louis, Missouri. The actual service level will be based on the total volume of water stored within the System on March 15, in accordance with the guidelines in the Master Manual. Flow support for the second half of the navigation season, as well as navigation season length, will be based on the storage in the System on July 1.

Mountain and Plains Snowpack:
Mountain snowpack in the upper Missouri River Basin is accumulating at below average rates. The March 3, mountain snowpack in the Fort Peck reach was 73% of average, while the mountain snowpack in the Fort Peck to Garrison reach was 78% of average. By March 1, about 80% of the total mountain snowfall has typically accumulated. Mountain snow normally peaks near April 17. The mountain snowpack graphics can be viewed at: http://go.usa.gov/xARQC.

The plains snowpack, which typically melts from mid-February into April, is almost nonexistent in the Basin. Trace to 1” of snow water equivalent is modeled in eastern North Dakota.

Monthly Water Management Conference Calls for 2024:
The March 2024 monthly conference call will be held Thursday, March 7, to inform basin stakeholders of current weather and runoff forecasts and the planned operation of the reservoir system in the coming months. Presentation materials will be available via webinar. The call is intended for Congressional delegations; Tribes; state, county and local government officials; and the media. It will be recorded in its entirety and made available to the public on our website at https://go.usa.gov/xARQv.

Spring Public Meetings:
The Northwestern Division, Missouri River Basin Water Management Division will host a series of public meetings the week of March 25. Dates and locations are listed below. Additional information, with specific times and venues, will be provided in a future news release and will also be posted to the website at: https://www.nwd.usace.army.mil/MRWM/Public-Meetings/.

Tuesday, March 26 – Fort Yates, North Dakota
Wednesday, March 27 – Fort Pierre, South Dakota
Thursday, March 28 – Poplar, Montana

Reservoir Forecasts:
Gavins Point Dam
o Average releases past month – 13,000 cfs
o Current release rate – 13,000 cfs
o Forecast release rate – 20,600 cfs
o End-of-February reservoir level – 1206.6 feet
o Forecast end-of-March reservoir level – 1206.0 feet
o Notes: The Gavins Point release will be increased around March 15 to begin providing minimum service navigation flow support on the lower Missouri River.

Fort Randall Dam
o Average releases past month – 7,100 cfs
o End-of-February reservoir level – 1352.1
o Forecast end-of-March reservoir level – 1354.8 feet
o Notes: Releases will be adjusted as necessary to maintain the desired reservoir elevation at Gavins Point and to back up the Gavins Point release increases. The reservoir will refill to near elevation 1355 by the end of March.

Big Bend Dam
o Average releases past month – 12,400 cfs
o Forecast average release rate – 20,600 cfs
o Forecast reservoir level – 1421.0 feet

Oahe Dam
o Average releases past month – 10,800 cfs
o Forecast average release rate – 21,100 cfs
o End-of-February reservoir level – 1603.6 feet
o Forecast end-of-March reservoir level – 1603.3 feet

Garrison Dam
o Average releases past month – 24,900 cfs
o Current release rate – 16,000 cfs
o Forecast average release rate – 16,000 cfs
o End-of-February reservoir level – 1835.1 feet
o Forecast end-of-March reservoir level – 1834.6 feet
o Notes – Releases were gradually reduced from 25,000 cfs to 16,000 cfs near the beginning of March.

Fort Peck Dam
o Average releases past month – 5,400 cfs
o Current release rate – 5,000 cfs
o Forecast average release rate – 5,000 cfs
o End-of-February reservoir level – 2230.4 feet
o Forecast end-of-March reservoir level – 2230.9 feet

The forecast reservoir releases and elevations discussed above are not definitive. Additional precipitation, lack of precipitation or other circumstances could cause adjustments to the reservoir release rates.

Hydropower:
The six mainstem power plants generated 467 million kWh of electricity in February. Typical energy generation for February is 618 million kWh. Forecast generation for 2024 is 8.3 billion kWh compared to the long-term average of 9.4 billion kWh.

Glasgow High School student Eva Stone designed a sticker for the Reach Higher Montana scholarship competition. Out of 351 entries, she is now in the top 20.

The designs have been released and people can vote for their favorites until March 11th. You can vote at the link below: eight scholarships will be granted.

The link to vote is here and Eve's sticker is number 16.

Following a slow start to winter, recent precipitation has been welcomed across Montana. “February kicked off with a region-wide winter storm that brought one to two inches of precipitation to the region, and while there were a couple periods of warm and sunny weather, precipitation was relatively consistent last month,” said Eric Larson, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Water Supply Specialist. Precipitation totals for the month of February were as high as 150-200% of normal at various SNOTEL sites in Montana. Overall, basin-wide precipitation ranged from about 110% of normal in Bitterroot and Lower Clark Fork to 170% in the Upper Missouri. The northern Bighorn Mountains were the exception receiving slightly below-normal precipitation last month.

“The good news is widespread precipitation brought an increase in snowpack percentages in all of Montana’s river basins from last month,” said Larson. The largest increase occurred in the Upper Clark Fork and Upper Missouri River basins which improved from about 40% to 70% of normal snowpack conditions. As of March 1, snowpack percentages are about 65-75% of normal across the state. The Rocky Mountain Front snowpack has improved, but overall is the lowest percentage at about 50% of normal. The Bighorn River basin-wide snowpack is about 90% of normal which is higher than the rest of the region because of the snowpack in the southern Absaroka and Wind River Range.

Other good news is that the first week of March has brought additional precipitation to the region. Several inches of snow water equivalent have accumulated at upper mountain elevations since March 1. “Monthly snowpack percentages are derived from a combination of data from automated SNOTEL sites and manually measured snow courses, and don’t reflect the most recent storm,” said Larson. The snowpack has continued to improve during the first days of March, but widespread snowpack deficits still exist. High-elevation SNOTEL sites across Montana were still 10-12 inches of snow water equivalent behind normal on March 1. Recent precipitation has only begun to make a dent in the upper-elevation snowpack deficit, but lower mountain elevation conditions are starting to look better.

With one to two months remaining in the normal snowpack accumulation season, more snow is needed. The snowpack at most SNOTEL sites is only about 50-60% of normal peak seasonal levels, which ideally occur mid-April to mid-May. “March, April, and May can be a very active time of the year for winter weather in Montana, which is good because winter weather needs to continue for a couple more months,” said Larson. In 2014, 2017, and 2018, March and April brought more than normal snow accumulation. In 2015, 2020, and 2021, March and April brought less than normal snow accumulation. A normal amount of precipitation over the next couple of months would be helpful, but above-normal precipitation would be better. A return of the warm and sunny weather experienced earlier this winter would result in a well-below-normal snowpack when it matters most. Hopefully the recent snowy weather is a sign of what is ahead.

Water supply forecasts are published in the March 1 Water Supply Outlook Report and provide an initial outlook of what spring and summer snowmelt might entail this year. “The recently published forecasts trend with water year precipitation and the ensuing snowpack. Given both are currently below normal in most locations, so are most forecasts,” said Larson. April-July streamflows are forecasted to be about 60-80% of normal in Montana. However, forecasts are near to above normal in a couple pockets of the Pend Oreille, Kootenai, and Bighorn River basins where water year precipitation has been closer to normal. Forecasts published on April 1 and May 1 generally provide a better indication of what the upcoming season will bring. While a full recovery to 100% of normal snowpack would be welcomed, below-normal snowpack conditions on May 1 could be supplemented by above-normal spring and summer precipitation if snow deficits aren’t too large this spring.

Two $1,000 Scholarships will be awarded to Glasgow High School 2024 Graduating Seniors through the Glasgow Scottie Booster Club.

One Scholarship will be awarded to a student attending a 4-Year College or University.

One Scholarship will be awarded to a student attending a 2-year Community College or Trade School.

Applications can be picked up at the Glasgow High School.

Mail to:
Glasgow Scottie Booster Club
P.O. Box 735, Glasgow, MT 59230

The application due date is April 8, 2024.

Brown trout and westslope cutthroat trout habitat will be improved and angler opportunities will increase near Anaconda when Fifer Gulch is reconnected to Warm Springs Creek. A landowner will repair riparian fence and water gaps on Marshall Creek, which has been protecting quality westslope cutthroat trout habitat near Missoula. These projects are two of 19 that recently received funding by the Fish and Wildlife Commission through the Future Fisheries Improvement Program (FFIP). In all, more than $1.1 million in funding was approved to improve Montana fisheries.

The fisheries improvements include restoration of streams to a natural condition, installing riparian fencing, improving lake habitat, restoring streambanks, improving fish passage through culvert replacement, creating spawning habitat, keeping fish out of irrigation diversions, leasing water for instream use and more. Projects will help both native and non-native fish, including Arctic grayling, bull trout, mountain whitefish, westslope cutthroat trout, Yellowstone cutthroat trout, brook trout, brown trout, rainbow trout, largemouth bass and bluegill.

This year's funding was matched by $6.5 million from outside sources. Landowners, watershed organizations, county governments, federal agencies and nonprofits submitted a total of 21 proposed projects. Nineteen projects were approved across Montana, including nine that are west and 10 that are east of the Continental Divide.

The lone project approved in the Glasgow Area:

Paulo Reservoir storage and habitat (Glasgow, Valley County)

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks will be hosting a public meeting to gather input for the 2025-26 fishing regulations, followed by an informational discussion on area fisheries, at the FWP Quonset meeting room in Glasgow on Wednesday, March 13, from 6-8 p.m.

--Fishing regulations scoping--

Fishing regulations are now under a process like hunting regulations, going through a comprehensive public review every two years. Fishing regulations are printed during odd numbered years.
FWP’s proposed regulation changes will be posted online later this month. FWP will also accept and review fishing regulations changes proposed by the public during the initial review time period.

Some of the proposals pertaining to Region 6 that will be discussed at this meeting include:

• Addition of green tag for paddlefish from Ft. Peck Dam to the North Dakota border. This tag will allow harvest seven days/week.
• Change that would allow anglers to clean fish on the water. Fish would need to be identifiable, requiring anglers leave full skin attached and countable fillets.
• Limiting take of shortnose gar.

Staff will use public input to refine regulation proposals to the Fish and Wildlife Commission. The final fishing regulations proposals will be available for public comment in August, and the commission will adopt, modify or reject the proposals at its October meeting.

--Informational discussion on area fisheries--

Following the fishing regulations discussion, regional fisheries biologist Jared Krebs will provide an overview of recent Glasgow-area fisheries sampling, including yellow perch, rainbow trout, largemouth bass, and panfish fisheries, an overview on the Fort Peck Dredge Cut paddlefish archery fishery, and current status of Missouri and Milk River sport fisheries.

This portion of the meeting provides an opportunity for the public to be involved in open discussions and ask questions of the FWP fisheries staff concerning fisheries management in northeast Montana.
FWP ensures that its meetings are fully accessible to persons with disabilities. To request special accommodations for this meeting, please contact 406-228-3700.

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks will be hosting a public meeting to gather input for the 2025-26 fishing regulations, followed by an informational discussion on area fisheries, at the FWP Quonset meeting room in Glasgow on Wednesday, March 13, from 6-8 p.m.

--Fishing regulations scoping--

Fishing regulations are now under a process like hunting regulations, going through a comprehensive public review every two years. Fishing regulations are printed during odd numbered years.
FWP’s proposed regulation changes will be posted online later this month. FWP will also accept and review fishing regulations changes proposed by the public during the initial review time period.

Some of the proposals pertaining to Region 6 that will be discussed at this meeting include:

• Addition of green tag for paddlefish from Ft. Peck Dam to the North Dakota border. This tag will allow harvest seven days/week.
• Change that would allow anglers to clean fish on the water. Fish would need to be identifiable, requiring anglers leave full skin attached and countable fillets.
• Limiting take of shortnose gar.

Staff will use public input to refine regulation proposals to the Fish and Wildlife Commission. The final fishing regulations proposals will be available for public comment in August, and the commission will adopt, modify or reject the proposals at its October meeting.

--Informational discussion on area fisheries--

Following the fishing regulations discussion, regional fisheries biologist Jared Krebs will provide an overview of recent Glasgow-area fisheries sampling, including yellow perch, rainbow trout, largemouth bass, and panfish fisheries, an overview on the Fort Peck Dredge Cut paddlefish archery fishery, and current status of Missouri and Milk River sport fisheries.

This portion of the meeting provides an opportunity for the public to be involved in open discussions and ask questions of the FWP fisheries staff concerning fisheries management in northeast Montana.
FWP ensures that its meetings are fully accessible to persons with disabilities. To request special accommodations for this meeting, please contact 406-228-3700.

Filing for County Offices closes at 5pm on Monday, March 11, 2024.

Clerk of District Court-Shelly Bryan

Valley County Commissioner District #3:

Michael Carney
Mitchell Willett
Jeff Alsberg

Jerald "Juice" Fischer withdrew as a Valley County Commissioner candidate.

Special District filings closed February 12, 2024 at 5pm. The only contested Special District race is for the two open positions for Director of the Fort Peck Rural County Water District Director. Four individuals have filed to run for the two seats:

Josh Kittleson
Samuel Morehouse
Mary Kaercher
Debra Steffani

The Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) and its partners, Sletten Construction and Morrison-Maierle, plan to replace up to eight timber bridges in the Glasgow area during the 2024 construction season. These bridge replacements are part of the Timber Bridges – Glasgow Area project, which replaced seven timber bridges last year.

“We've collaborated closely with our partners and implemented innovative programs to expedite the design and completion of these bridge replacements,” said MDT Glendive District Administrator Shane Mintz. “It is a large task replacing so many timber bridges in such a short period. However, it is a priority for MDT and vital to keep Montana moving forward.”

The timber bridges to be replaced this year include bridges on US Highway 2 (US 2), six miles northwest of Glasgow, seven miles northwest of Glasgow, and 12 miles northwest of Glasgow; Montana Highway 24 (MT 24), 18 miles south of Opheim, 25 miles southwest of Opheim, and 6 miles north of Glasgow; MT Highway 248 (MT 248), half a mile west of Four Buttes; and Montana Highway 251 (MT 251), 20 miles northeast of Poplar.

“We're excited to begin work on replacing these timber bridges,” said Russell Robertson, Bridge Division Manager of Sletten Construction. “We thank area communities for their continued support and encourage residents to stay informed and reach out with any questions or concerns.”

All work is dependent on weather and other unforeseen factors. Construction of the detour at the East Fork Cherry Creek Bridge, six miles north of Glasgow, is underway. The single-lane detour is next to the current structure. Traffic will be moved onto the detour beginning the second week of March and a width restriction of 19 feet will be in place.

Replacement of Buggy Creek Bridge, 12 miles northwest of Glasgow, will begin March 3. Traffic will be moved onto the single-lane detour constructed last fall. The detour has a width restriction of 16 feet.

At both locations, large vehicles must find an alternate route. Traffic control will be on-site, and reduced speed limits and shoulder closures will be in place throughout the construction zones.

For a tentative schedule and map of the timber bridge replacements, visit mdt.mt.gov/pubinvolve/glasgowtb/. Regularly scheduled email and text updates are available during construction. To sign up for updates, or if you have questions or concerns, email Sloane at sloane@bigskypublicrelations.com or call the hotline at 406-207-4484, operated during business hours. Text message* updates are also available. Subscribe by texting “TIMBERBRIDGES” to 41411.

The Montana Community Foundation, Inc. (MCF) announces the opening of a grant cycle to benefit communities and residents of Valley County. Grants will be made from the Valley County Masonic Endowment Fund, established at MCF by the Nemont Manor Foundation, Inc. Grant applications will be accepted from March 1 – March 31, 2024.

Applicants must be either a 501(c)(3) nonprofit or an exempt governmental unit. Grants will be up to $5,000. While grants must be used for projects benefiting communities or residents in Valley County, the grantee organization does not need to be based in Valley County. Only one application is allowed per organization.

Eligible projects must be within the following areas of interest: arts and culture, basic human needs, economic development, education, and natural resources and conservation. Ineligible projects include annual or capital campaigns, endowments, debt retirements, and religious, partisan, or sectarian activities. Grant requests are reviewed by the Nemont Manor Foundation.

The Valley County Masonic Endowment Fund was established with proceeds from the sale of Nemont Manor, an affordable housing facility in Glasgow was built more than 40 years ago and managed by the Valley County Masons. The Nemont Manor is now owned by Silver Tree Residential, a group that acquires, rehabilitates, and permanently preserves affordable housing units which were originally developed under HUD programs. Their goal is to ensure the long-term affordability of units for current and future residents.

In 2023, the Valley County Masonic Endowment Fund awarded $50,000 in grants to 10 organizations that benefit Valley County. These grants ranged from funds for the City of Glasgow for the new swimming pool to the Hinsdale School District to improve their outdoor recreation space.

“Last year, we provided $50,000 for organizations and projects in our community that spanned from Glasgow to Nashua to Opheim,” says James Rector, secretary and treasurer of Nemont Manor Foundation. “We look forward to doing the same this year and supporting our community forever in this way.”

Learn more and apply at https://mtcf.org/grants/apply-for-a-grant/valley-county-masonic-endowment . Only online applications will be accepted. For questions, please contact Local Community Foundations Program Officer, Taylor Crowl at (406) 603-4913 or taylor@mtcf.org.

The new license year opens March 1, which means that is the day you can buy your 2024 hunting, fishing and conservation licenses and begin applying for permits and special licenses. The deadline to apply for deer and elk permits is April 1.

Applications for most species – deer, elk, antelope, deer B licenses, elk B licenses, antelope B licenses, moose, sheep, goat, bison, bear, turkey – can be made beginning March 1.
A new online feature this year is the option for applicants to reapply for the same offerings as last year with just a simple click, eliminating the need to search through previous applications.

Hunters and anglers can buy licenses and apply for permits on the FWP website beginning at 5 a.m. on March 1; click on “Buy and Apply.” Most FWP offices will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

The licensing call center will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. from March 1 through April 1;after April 1, the hours will return to 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The call center can be reached at 406-444-2950.

This year FWP produced clearer information for hunters on bonus points and how they are used. Remember:

• A bonus point is an extra chance for a hunter to draw a license or permit in a Montana drawing.

• Preference points are used only for drawing Nonresident Combination Licenses. Preference points move you ahead in line for the drawing. If you are a Montana resident, preference points don’t apply to you.

• For more information on bonus points, preference points and other important licensing topics, go to fwp.mt.gov/buyandapply/hunting-licenses.

Hunters and anglers can also take advantage of the MyFWP mobile app. The app holds and displays licenses, permits and E-Tags, which can be downloaded and used in the field without cell service. To create a My FWP account, visit the MyFWP login page.

Tips and reminders

• Don’t wait until the last day to apply.
• If you’re applying for a special license or permit, you will need to have a valid email address.
• Make sure to doublecheck the regulations before applying. Some permit/licenses have changed.
• The Online Licensing System is available from 5 a.m. to 11:45 p.m.
• Everyone 12 and older needs a Conservation License to access most state lands, including?fishing access sites, wildlife management areas and wildlife habitat protection areas (WHPA). Montana State Parks do not require a Conservation License.?
• A separate and rotating moose, bighorn sheep or mountain goat SuperTag lottery for resident hunters will be conducted annually. Montana residents will receive one free chance in the lottery for every General Elk or General Deer License purchased.

Application deadlines?
• Smith River Super Permit – March 22
• Paddlefish (white tag) – March 22
• Deer and Elk
o Special Permits – April 1
o Special Licenses – June 1
• Bighorn Sheep – May 1
• Bison – May 1
• Moose – May 1
• Mountain Goat –May 1
• Antelope – June 1
• SuperTags
o Antelope, Bighorn Sheep, Bison, Deer, Elk, Moose, Mountain Goat, and Mountain Lion –July 1
• Mountain Lion Special Licenses – July 22

For more information on Montana hunting licenses and permits, go to fwp.mt.gov/buyandapply/hunting-licenses.

The Montana Lottery has awarded $480,798 in high-tier prizes since February 26.

A high-tier prize is any prize of $600 or more. Winners of $5,000 or more are listed below and on our website.

• A Browning winner, playing $175,000 Frenzy, claimed their prize of $175,000 on February 26. The winning ticket was purchased at the Town Pump of Great Falls on 401 10th Avenue South.

• A Black Eagle winner, playing Powerball, claimed their prize of $150,000 on February 27. The winning ticket was purchased at the Mountain View Co-Op in Black Eagle.

• A Missoula winner, playing Lotto America, claimed their prize of $40,000 on February 28. The winning ticket was purchased at the Town Pump of Missoula on 3420 Mullan Road.

• A Red Lodge winner, playing Big Sky Bonus, claimed their prize of $34,685 on February 26. The winning ticket was purchased at the Albertsons on 205 South 1st Avenue in Laurel.

• A Great Falls winner, playing Big Sky Bonus, claimed their prize of $16,594 on March 1. The winning ticket was purchased at the Town Pump of Great Falls on 1411 10th Avenue South.

• A Havre winner, playing Happy Dance Crossword, claimed their prize of $12,000 on February 29. The winning ticket was purchased at the Holiday on 200 West First Street in Havre..

• A Helena winner, playing Mega Millions, claimed their prize of $10,000 on March 1. The winning ticket was purchased at the Town Pump of Helena on 1822 East Custer Avenue.

• A Glasgow winner, playing $500,000 Jackpot Multiplier, claimed their prize of $10,000 on February 29. The winning ticket was purchased at the Agland Co-Op in Glasgow.

• A Great Falls winner, playing MT Slots, claimed their prize of $5,133 on February 28. The winning ticket was purchased at the Classic 50’s Casino in Great Falls.

The Montana Lottery was created by a citizen's referendum in 1986. Since then, it has paid over $853 million in prizes and returned approximately $320 million to the State of Montana and $90 million in sales agent commissions.

The Montana Department of Commerce is awarding $320,000 in grant funding to 26 Native American-owned small businesses across the state.

The funding comes from the Indian Equity Fund (IEF) Small Business Grant Program, and it’s meant to help businesses grow. This year, businesses in Helena, Browning, Billings, Box Elder, Ronan, Polson, Crow Agency, Harlem, Ekalaka, Wolf Point, Floweree, Butte, Great Falls, Lame Deer and Busby will get grant funding.

Businesses can get up to $14,000 in funding through the grant program with a minimum dollar-to-dollar or in-kind match. Funding can be used for a variety of activities, including the purchase of new equipment or the development of new product lines.

The IEF grant program is one of four financial assistance programs offered by the Montana Department of Commerce’s Office of Indian Country Economic Development, and a total of $320,000 in funding is available each year through the program. Eligible applicants include enrolled members of the eight federally recognized tribes in Montana.

Businesses awarded grants on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation:

Hi-Line ATM in Wolf Point will receive $14,000 to purchase and install machines.
G10 Enterprises in Wolf Point will receive $14,000 to purchase building materials to improve real estate.
Nakoda Direct in Wolf Point will receive $12,000 for the purchase of furnishings, technology and selected working capital.

There are two positions open for the Glasgow School District Board of Trustees this year. Ryan Fast’s and Chrissa Nelson’s terms are set to expire. Ryan Fast has indicated he will not seek reelection. Chrissa Nelson has filed as an incumbent and Derek Beadle has also declared his intent to run. The annual school election will be held Tuesday, May 7, 2024 by mail ballot.

For anyone else wishing to run for the Glasgow school board, the Trustee Declaration form is located on the school board page of the district website at www.glasgow.k12.mt.us and is also available at the School Administration Office located at 229 7th Street North. The deadline to apply is Thursday, March 28, 2024 at 5:00 p.m. For further information regarding the election, contact Kelly Doornek at 228-2406.

The Lewistown News-Argus is reporting that the Lewistown Public Schools Board of Trustees voted unanimously to recommend Brad Moore as the district's next superintendent at a special meeting Tuesday night.

Moore currently serves as the Assistant Superintendent and Business Manager for Havre Public Schools. Prior to his time in Havre, Moore was the Superintendent of the Stanford School District.

There were 3 candidates interviewed for the position including Wade Sundby the current Superintendent of the Glasgow School District.

The Lewistown School Board authorized the Kaleva Law Firm to negotiate a contract with Brad Moore. The board had authorized an annual salary of $115,000 to $125,000 for the next superintendent.

Sundby has been the Superintendent in Glasgow since 2019.

An ongoing project that aims to help Indigenous people prosper alongside buffalo at the Fort Peck Indian Reservation has received a four-year, $5 million grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to the Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes. The grant was awarded by the America the Beautiful Challenge program, with funding support from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Robert Magnan, director of the Fish and Game Department of the Fort Peck Tribes and grant leader, said he is thrilled with what this award will generate in improved herd and grasslands health, as well as expanded acreage and workforce for the Fort Peck Turtle Mound Buffalo Ranch.

The award also supports an ongoing, comprehensive, grassroots effort to engage members of the tribes in community-building initiatives intended to rejuvenate connections with buffalo. With Magnan’s support and leadership, part of those efforts has led to the establishment of a trail on the southern end of the ranch that is home to transferred Yellowstone National Park buffalo; the new grant will expand the existing .6-mile trail to nearly 11 miles.

Montana State University is one of a number of a collaborators on the project. MSU’s portion of the grant, which will go toward trail design and buffalo and native plants science education, is approximately $1 million. Other core partners include Fort Peck Community College and Defenders of Wildlife.

The project originated through discussions by and with the Pté Group, a grassroots organizing initiative at Fort Peck that includes Magnan and a dozen other community leaders, said Elizabeth Bird, principal investigator at MSU and project development and grants specialist in the College of Education, Health and Human Development.

“When the Pté Group formed, one of the themes that came out fairly early in discussions was that they and other tribal members needed ways to connect with buffalo physically,” Bird said. “(They needed to) be in their presence, see them, smell them, hear them, pick up sloughed fur.”

A couple of years later, MSU architecture professor Michael Everts was looking for a project for his students to work on designs integrating environmental, public health and socioeconomic issues, Bird recalled. MSU colleagues soon connected him with the Pté Group, and in the spring of 2016, Everts and the first group of MSU architecture students to work on the project were able to speak with members of the Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes, tour the area and discuss potential projects.

“Fairly early in those conversations, the idea of a trail emerged as something that would be a really good way to connect people to the land and the buffalo up there,” Bird said. With broader community input, the Pté Group named the trail Pté Bahá Oc??gu. (In Nakoda, Pté Bahá Oc??gu means “buffalo hills,” and in Dakota, Wamákhaška?ška? means “all that moves on the land.”)

In addition to the trail itself, the group also discussed plans to place interactive story poles – or structures that visitors can engage with in culturally meaningful ways – along the trail, and the School of Architecture organized several independent design courses for students to collaborate with community members to design the story poles. Bird said one story pole is currently in place, and four or five more will be added. The first pole is designed to catch fur that comes off buffalo when they rub against the pole, so that people can gather the fur. A second story pole will channel the wind to make tones, and people will be invited to place their hands over apertures to generate different sounds. A third story pole will feature an internal stairway that children can climb to gain a different perspective on the surrounding area. A fourth story pole may be related to stargazing, Bird said.

The group has received several smaller grants since 2018 that enabled the work to begin, resulting in trail design and environmental and cultural review, development of roughly a half-mile of completed ADA-accessible trail, along with a parking lot, toilet, picnic and bench facilities and the first two story poles. The new grant will not only lengthen the trail but also help restore the buffalo ranch grasslands, expand the Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes’ capacity to manage buffalo herds through increased wildlife-friendly fencing and workforce development and expansion; fund educational programs to foster a deeper connection between tribal youth, buffalo and their culture; increase eco-tourism capacity, including dark-sky programming, led by Jonny Lee Bearcub Stiffarm; and enhance Fort Peck Community College science faculty Steven Coon’s and Joanne Stewart Kloker’s and their students’ collaborations with the ranch. The education and eco-tourism initiatives are also key Pté Group aspirations, Bird said. Stiffarm has advocated for the Pté Group aim of buffalo-related educational programming for all ages. Another partner, Kai Teague, will help lead access to augmented native plants along the trail.

An overarching goal is to strengthen ecosystem and community resilience and support tribally led conservation and restoration.

Bird, who has collaborated with partners at Fort Peck for more than a decade, is leading MSU’s involvement with the project. She will engage citizen science experts with Fort Peck partners in developing lessons for K-12 students, and she will help Everts and students in MSU’s School of Architecture deliver planning and constructability services for the trail, as well as design and fabrication of story poles.

Other MSU collaborators include Suzi Taylor, director of the Science Math Resource Center, and Jill Falcon Ramaker, assistant professor in the Department of Food Systems, Nutrition and Kinesiology and director of the Buffalo Nations Food System Initiative.

Bird hopes that by the time the grant concludes in 2027, more people – especially youth – will be involved and that infrastructure will be in place to enable the work and connections to continue.

“My hope is that by the time this grant ends it will be multi-generational and robust and those people will be able to carry the work forward,” she said. “To me the goal of this grant is to firmly establish the infrastructure for achieving the intentions of the Pté Group. If we can establish strong infrastructure and a set of lessons for and connections to (Fort Peck Community College) and (local) schools, that will go a long way.”

Turnbull, co-chair of the Pté Group and key partner for the grant, said that all the proposed work “helps ensure that our wonderful, restored Yellowstone buffalo herd also advances the cultural, physical and economic health of our Fort Peck communities.”

The Glasgow Ice Dawgs High School hockey team will be playing in their state tourney this weekend in Billings. Good Luck!

With a regular season record of 15-3-0, they secured the 2nd seed in the East Division. First game is Thursday at 6:15PM

The Lewistown News-Argus in Lewistown is reporting that Glasgow Superintendent Wade Sundby is one of three finalists for the Superintendent position in the Lewistown School District.

Last week the Lewistown School Board chose 3 finalists including Sundby. The other two finalists are Gerald Chouinard, Superintendent of Hot Springs School District and Brad Moore, Assistant Superintendent and Business Manager of Havre Public Schools.

A forum and meet and greet with the three candidates took place Monday at the Fergus Center for the Performing Arts.

Tuesday, the three candidates will participate in walk throughs at each of the district’s buildings and meet with district staff. That same day, the board will conduct candidate interviews beginning at 5 p.m. before closing with its hiring decision.

Sundby has been the Glasgow Superintendent since 2019.

The Valley County Community Foundation would like to announce to the community that the 2024 grant application is currently open until March 31st. New this year, organizations can apply online at our website at valleycountycf.net, or paper applications can still be mailed to PO Box 304, Glasgow MT 59230.

Community groups, such as 501c(3) organizations, schools, and government entities, who are working to complete a project and looking for capital funds to assist in their project are encouraged to apply.

In 2023, the Valley County Community Foundation awarded over $34,000 to 9 projects around the community. A few of those included installing new lighting at the Northeast Montana Veterans Memorial in Fort Peck, reroofing and insulating the Boy Scout food booth at the fairgrounds, upgrades school garden at the Glasgow Middle School, and new team tents for the Glasgow Kiwanis Swim Team.

The Valley County Community Foundation is a steward of a community savings account through which private assets, entrusted by donors, are invested to meet the challenges of contemporary life. The Foundation is the guardian of a permanent endowment where the income is used to help fund economic, cultural and charitable projects in Valley County.

Deadline for applications is March 31 , 2024.

Story credit to Northern Plains Independent in Wolf Point:

At an initial appearance Feb. 15 in 15th Judicial District Court, Jennifer Leischner (formerly Cromwell) of Scobey pleaded not guilty to 111 felony counts. Stemming from her term as an employee at Nemont Telephone, she is charged with multiple alleged offenses of defrauding the company within nine defined felonies.

Present in the Daniels County Courtroom were Daniels County Attorney Logan Olson representing the State and Leischner. Present via Zoom were Judge Cybulski and attorney for the defendant, Terry Toavs.

Also representing the State, as a Special Deputy County Attorney is former Assistant United States Attorney, W. Adam Duerk of Missoula. He was not present for the initial hearing.

The court was reminded the defendant’s surname had been restored to Leischner in court proceedings on Feb. 14.

Toavs asked that the defendant be released on her own recognizance. Olson requested $75,000 bail be imposed. After considering arguments and testimony presented by the State, defendant and her attorney, Judge Cybulski agreed to her release on her own recognizance subject to conditions requested by Olson and agreed upon by all parties.

The 111 individual felony counts (offenses) are the sum concerning the following.

Count 1: Theft (Conspiracy); Count 2: Deceptive Practices (Conspiracy); Count 3: Deceptive Practices (Conspiracy); Count 4; Money Laundering

(Conspiracy); Count 5; Theft (Common Scheme); Count 6: Deceptive Practices (Common Scheme); Count 7; Deceptive Practices (Common Scheme); Count 8: Deceptive Practices (Common Scheme); Counts 9 through 111, Money Laundering (Common Scheme).

When asking Olson for clarification, “It might be confusing, but charges are for 111 separate felony counts,” he said.

The allegations cover a period from 2014 to 2020 while Leischner was a marketing specialist employed by Nemont Telephone.

During that time period, ostensibly under her direction, Nemont’s funds were intended to be used for advertising and marketing services provided and/or acquired by M.C. Marketing of Billings. Charges claim a large portion of the Nemont funds earmarked for these purposes (approximately $646,000) was funneled to the defendant individually and to Leischner’s shell company, JC Media Group, with the assistance of an uncharged co-conspirator of Billings, with M.C. Marketing.

Investigators believe that between May 2018 and January 2020, on average over $18,000 per month from Nemont’s marketing budget was going to Leischner in the form of kickbacks and fictitious advertising purchases.

Charges allege Nemont was never advised by Leischner that cooperative funds had been routed into individual bank accounts and put towards credit card payments for her personal benefit.

Included in Leischner’s 12 conditions of release include that she obey all orders of the court; she shall not engage in the sale of any property, real or personal, without prior permission of the court if the property is worth more than $1,500, except to pay attorney fees; not engage in any business transactions except those associated with her job in Scobey; supply detailed information and notification to Daniels County Sheriff’s Department if leaving the county; shall not leave the State of Montana unless receiving prior permission from the court, excluding trips to Williston, N.D.; surrender her passport; sign a waiver of extradition; appear at all proceedings in this matter; submit to any search of her home, vehicle, or person upon the request of law enforcement or officer of the Court; have no contact with any victims or witnesses; check in with the Daniels County Dispatch Center every Monday morning with a current phone number and physical address.

Two co-conspirators remain unnamed and uncharged.

A case management hearing has been scheduled for May 15.

A Chicago-to-Seattle passenger rail route that passes through some of Montana’s most populous counties has been included in a list of 15 long-distance routes tapped for restoration by the federal government.

The development marks the second time federal regulators have spotlighted the Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority’s efforts to bring additional passenger train service to Montana.

During a meeting on Feb. 8, the Federal Railroad Administration also provided a bit more detail on where the North Coast Hiawatha service might stop if Amtrak ultimately restores the route, landing on service through Helena rather than Butte.

Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority, which was formed in 2020 under an obscure, century-old piece of Montana law to advocate for expanded passenger rail service through southern Montana, said the development is a “very strong signal” that federal authorities are invested in a restoration of the North Coast Hiawatha route.

“There’s a lot of momentum building behind restoring this route,” BSPRA vice chair and Dawson County Economic Development Council member Jason Stuart told Montana Free Press. “We’re really excited about where we’re at.”

Stuart said the North Coast Hiawatha Route was one of the strongest candidates for restored service because it stands to benefit sparsely populated communities with few options to connect with hospitals, colleges, urban centers and veteran services beyond “getting in a car and driving hundreds of miles.”

“In terms of connecting rural, disadvantaged communities and tribal communities, it shows the best performance metrics of any of the routes in achieving those goals,” Stuart said. “This is going to be such an enormous boost for rural communities to have this service restored.”

Stuart, who also serves on the Glendive City Council, noted that the North Coast Hiawatha route was the only one identified in the long-distance study that was also chosen for the FRA’s Corridor Identification and Development Program, which came with $500,000 of initial funding that will enable BSPRA to start getting a handle on the logistical, financial and ridership details required to restore the route, which was discontinued in 1979. Stuart said the BSPRA’s inclusion in that program puts BSPRA in the funding pipeline for millions of dollars of funding as the project advances.

Put those two developments together, he said, and “it means a lot.”

Stuart said he anticipates that the FRA will present its report on the long-distance study to Congress by the end of the year.

“That’s very important because this is the Federal Railroad Administration — the agency that handles both passenger and freight rail traffic — telling Congress, ‘We think you should restore this route,’” he said.

Both the Amtrak Daily Long-Distance Service Study and the Corridor ID program are funded by the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which included more than $8 billion for passenger rail projects.

Once completed, the report will demonstrate the economic and social benefits of new and restored Amtrak service and provide guidance on implementation, according to FRA spokesperson William Wong.

There’s been some uncertainty as to the precise location the North Coast Hiawatha route might take as it travels between Glendive and Missoula, and that piece of the puzzle is coming into focus. Per the FRA’s presentation, which includes a further-analysis-is-needed disclaimer, the preferred route will pass through Helena rather than Butte. The line east of Butte, over Homestake Pass, has been out of service for decades, meaning it would be a heavier lift to get that section of railroad in shape for regular use.

Stuart said BSPRA intends to continue to advocate for rail service to Butte as part of a larger goal to “bring passenger rail service to as many Montana communities as possible.”

“At the end of the day, we won’t consider our work completed until both Helena and Butte have access to rail service, and we would even include Great Falls and Shelby on that list, as well,” Stuart said.

The North Coast Hiawatha route isn’t the only proposal expanding Montanans’ access to passenger rail that was incorporated in the FRA’s presentation: a route between Billings and El Paso, Texas, also made the cut.

Stuart said he anticipates that the Long-Distance Service Study Working Group will meet again within the next four months. The FRA is taking comments on its list of preferred routes through March 8 at contactus@fralongdistancerailstudy.org.

Zachary Silflow was sentenced in State District Court in Glasgow on a charge of Felony Sexual Abuse of a Child.

Judge Yvonne Laird sentenced Silflow to 20 years in the Montana State Prison system with 15 years suspended. He also received a parole restriction of requiring the first phase of any sex offender treatment program before consideration for release.

A second count of Felony Sexual Abuse of a Child was dismissed as per a plea agreement.

In Gallatin County, the 34-year old Silflow was sentenced to 5-years in prison with 15 years suspended on 2 counts of felony arson after two attempts at burning down the Heritage Christian School in Bozeman. The sentencing occurred in 2015.

Silflow admitted to attempting to burn the school down in 2012 and again in 2014.

He was also ordered to pay $4.6 million in restitution for the arson crimes.

The Felony Sexual Abuse of a Child sentence will run concurrently with the arson sentences.

Fort Peck Summer Theatre will be holding auditions for local actors on Sunday, March 17, 2024 from 10 a.m. –12:00 p.m. at the Glasgow Middle School, Room 310. A variety of opportunities are available in all shows, especially:

The large, multi-aged ensemble of Joseph & the Technicolor Dreamcoat
Great acting roles and two leading roles for kids in Bonnie & Clyde
An extravagant dance ensemble and young puppeteers for the animals in Cinderella.

JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT
Rehearsal begins May 25 / Performances June 14 – June 30
Directed by Danny Durr
An international hit, this modern entertaining and inspiring spectacle musical tells the age-old Biblical story of Joseph and his coat of many colors. As young dreamer Joseph rises from being outcast by his jealous brothers to becoming advisor to the Pharoah, a kaleidoscope of song and dance bursts onto this stage.

BONNIE AND CLYDE
Rehearsal begins June 15 / Performances July 5 – July 21
Directed by Andy Meyers
The tale of Bonnie Elizabeth Parker and Clyde Chestnut Barrow, two of the most infamous criminals of America’s Great Depression and the subject of much speculation and fascination. The couple took the country by storm, reaching celebrity status as they robbed banks, shops, and even funeral homes. This is their rebellious love story, complete with a suite of stunning, jazz-and-gospel-infused show tunes.

CINDERLLA
Rehearsal begins July 6 / Performances July 26 – August 11
Directed by Rob Watson
The treasured fairytale comes to life in this magical stage production. Featuring all the famous songs from the televised specials, originally starring Lesley Ann Warren and later Whitney Houston, including: ‘Impossible’, ‘My Own Little Corner’, ‘Do I Love You?’ and ‘A Lovely Night’. Full of special effects and beloved characters, it is perfect time to share this ageless story and music with a new generation.

Please note: if you will be participating in JJMT that weekend and cannot attend audition in person, please contact Kari at 406.228.9216 by March 10, 2024.

Also a Reminder: The 27th Annual Performing Arts Camp will be held July 30 – August 8, culminating in a showcase performance. Registration is now open on the website: Fortpecktheatre.org

The Montana Motor Vehicle Division (MVD) has served over 75,000 customers since the launch of the new driver services system in November, Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen announced today. Same-day appointments are available at most exam stations across the state for Montanans who cannot complete their appointment online. Previously, it could take almost two months to get an appointment.

The new system increased the number of online services offered and significantly decreased the overall appointment times for customers, expanding in-person appointment availability across the state. Since the implementation of the new Credentialing and Registration System (CARS), MVD has served 76,349 customers, including over 58,000 appointments and over 18,000 walk-ins.

“The new system has far surpassed our expectations. At most exam stations, Montanans can walk in without an appointment and be done in about 10 minutes,” Attorney General Knudsen said. “I’m proud of what MVD has accomplished and the excellent customer service our examiners are providing to make everyone’s MVD experience as pleasant as possible.”

“The results following the transition have been overwhelmingly positive,” MVD Administrator Laurie Bakri said. “We are making it easier than ever for Montanans to take care of their business at MVD. On January 1 alone, a day that MVD offices are closed to the public, 77 customers were able to complete their transactions online – just one example of how we are moving to make MVD a user-friendly experience.”

Nearly one-third of the customers served were able to complete their transaction online. Online transactions at MVD have increased by 750 percent and appointment times have been cut by 68 percent. Customers also receive their credentials within seven to ten days compared to the four to six weeks with the previous system.

Efficiency has improved for in-person visits as well. The time between a customer entering and exiting any given exam station has decreased from an average of 22 minutes to less than seven minutes per transaction. The wait time to schedule in-person appointments has gone from an average of 48 days to less than two weeks, with many locations having next-day availability. In the state’s larger offices, availability for written-test appointments or driver examinations has decreased 92 percent, from 79 days to six. For individuals needing to renew their driver license or ID card in person, wait time has decreased 93 percent, from 45 days to three.

CARS is part of a multi-phase, multi-year effort to improve customer service and efficiency for Montanans at MVD exam stations across the state. The third phase, which is expected to launch in March 2025, will overhaul the title and registration process, improving functionality for law enforcement, car dealerships, insurance companies, and simplifying county operations.

There are 2 positions up for election this year on the Glasgow School Board and two candidates filed the necessary paperwork this week to stand for election.

Incumbent Chrissa Nelson and Derek Beadle are the 2 candidates who have filed paperwork to be School Trustee candidates for the election set for May 7th of this year. Ryan Fast is an incumbent and has indicated he will not be a candidate for re-election to the Glasgow School Board.

The Glasgow School Board on Wednesday passed a resolution calling for the May 7th election. The purpose of the election is to elect two trustee's, for 3-year terms and to seek approval of additional levies to operate and maintain the District. Those levies could include a general fund levy, safety levy and building reserve levy. The School Board will decide which if any of those levies will be put forth for the voters approval.

The resolution passed by the school board appointed Lynne Nyquist, Diane Peterson and Sandra Swenson as election judges. The Valley County Election Office will conduct the school election for the Glasgow School District.

Press Release from Roosevelt County Sheriff's Office:

At approximately 17:00 hrs on February 20th, 2024, RCSO K9 Hati and her handler assisted the McCone County Sheriff's Office, Montana Highway Patrol, and the Wolf Point Police Department with apprehending two suspects who allegedly stole a vehicle from a Wolf Point business.

The suspects fled Wolf Point to Hwy 528 in McCone County where they traveled west for several miles before abandoning the vehicle after crashing through two fences. The two suspects then reportedly fled in different directions.

K9 Hati was deployed and successfully tracked one of the suspects for nearly a mile. Once the suspect was in view, she surrendered and was taken into custody without incident.

The suspects were eventually identified as Wolf Point residents Coreen Smith and Jalen Robinson.
Robinson and Smith are currently being held in the Roosevelt County jail on several charges related to the alleged vehicle theft. The charging agencies in this case are the Wolf Point Police Department and the McCone County Sheriff's Office.

Story credit to Montanafreepress.org

A highly public child protection case involving a transgender teenager that has stirred up online conservative outrage, created blowback for Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte and sparked legal challenges at the Montana Supreme Court was dismissed on Tuesday.

The decision on Feb. 20 to dismiss the case by state district court Judge Yvonne Laird, a copy of which was reviewed by Montana Free Press, comes after the child’s placement earlier this month with their biological mother in Canada over the objection of their father and stepmother, Todd Kolstad and Krista Cummins-Kolstad. MTFP is withholding the teen’s name out of respect for the minor’s privacy.

The order also vacated a Feb. 21 contempt hearing over the Kolstads’ repeated public comments about confidential proceedings in violation of Laird’s orders, bringing immediate Montana state agency involvement with the fraught situation to an apparent end.

“[T]he contempt by the father and the stepmother is undeniable. However, the damage and harm inflicted by their actions cannot now be undone and is therefore moot,” Laird wrote in her Tuesday order. “Given the mootness of the contempt, and the unlikelihood of self-reflection and self-accountability or repentance by either father or stepmother, proceeding to a contempt hearing would be an exercise in judicial futility and most likely bring further negative attention to the Youth.”

In Facebook comments about the latest installment in the case, the Kolstads lamented the placement of their 14-year-old but claimed victory over escaping fines and potential jail time related to the contempt proceedings. The couple also continued to link their battle with state child protection workers to the Gianforte administration, which had previously defended the state’s handling of the case in an online response to critics.

“The Governor’s corrupt system backed down. We are continuing to fight for all families’ rights and for our [child] to be returned home. We can not as a community allow this overstep of the government to ruin the nuclear family, violate our first amendment rights, and the right to choose our religion,” Cummins-Kolstad wrote Wednesday morning.

While confidential under state law, details and allegations about the Glasgow-based child protection case and related court proceedings shared by the Kolstads have created a public firestorm in recent months. Critics in Montana and nationwide have accused state workers with the Department of Public Health and Human Services of wrongly taking the 14-year-old into custody because the teen’s father and stepmother did not support their child’s transgender identity.

That narrative has been promoted by the Kolstads in several interviews with national and international outlets about the case. But according to court records shared with MTFP over the course of several months, state workers emphasized that the removal hinged on the parents’ resistance to sending their teen to an out-of-state psychiatric facility last August to be treated for suicidal thoughts. The parents feared, the records show, that the minor could access gender-affirming medical care upon leaving Montana’s borders.

As MTFP has previously reported, the Kolstads’ concern was based on an inaccurate understanding that a Montana law barring gender-affirming care for transgender minors was in effect. That law, Senate Bill 99, was not slated to take effect until Oct. 1, a typical effective date for many pieces of legislation passed in the most recent legislative session. The law was temporarily blocked in court in September while litigation over its constitutionality continues.

After spending a month in the Wyoming Behavioral Institute at the recommendations of Glasgow medical staff, the teenager in the case was transferred to a group home in Montana while custody negotiations with the Kolstads continued. There, the Kolstads took issue with the teen being able to “socially transition” by using their chosen name and pronouns and wearing preferred clothing and hairstyles.

Court filings and email correspondence between the Kolstads, state child protection workers, and attorneys on the case show that these fights and other disputes over a state-issued treatment plan for the family derailed the family’s reunification, with the Kolstads claiming they were being forced to accept their child’s gender identity and the state contesting that the parents were being uncooperative.

The state made a motion to dismiss the case in mid-February, weeks after the minor was transferred to the biological mother’s home. In that filing, Valley County Attorney Dylan Jensen reiterated the state’s interests and sought to create more distance between the state health department and the minor’s transgender identity.

“The youth’s gender identity has not, and is not, of any concern to the department. The department was only involved because the youth was deemed to be acutely suicidal and in need of care [the youth] was not receiving. The youth is no longer at risk of self-harm or suicide, and in placing the youth with [their] Mother the emergency situation giving rise to the department involvement has been resolved,” Jensen wrote.

Laird reinforced that stance in her Tuesday order dismissing the case.

“Unfortunately, during the pendency of this matter, the youth’s father and stepmother chose to focus on the youth’s struggle with gender identification rather than addressing the issues in the family home and ensuring a safe and supportive environment for the youth to return to after receiving necessary mental health services to address the youth’s suicidal ideation,” the order stated.

In the weeks leading up to Wednesday’s scheduled contempt hearing, the Kolstads repeatedly appealed to the Montana Supreme Court to override Laird’s order prohibiting them from speaking about private aspects of the case. In those filings, the couple claimed they would be penalized for publicly responding to the Gianforte administration’s comments on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. The state Supreme Court denied and dismissed those appeals, later applying the same treatment to another effort by the Kolstads to stay the Wednesday hearing altogether.

Reached through her court assistant Wednesday, Laird declined to comment on the case. The youth and the biological mother have not replied to requests for comment from MTFP.

Jensen, the county attorney, declined to speak about the specifics of the case Wednesday morning but noted that such heightened attention about any child welfare proceedings, such as what state workers have experienced in recent months, is far out of the ordinary in Montana proceedings.

Asked if he would like to reply to any of the comments the Kolstads have publicly made about the case, Jensen said no, citing a desire to avoid what he described as the couples’ “provocation.”

“Even if I could comment on it, I would resist the impulse to go point for point with them on anything,” he said.

Glasgow resident Todd Kolstad is suing the City of Glasgow along with Glasgow Police Officers Robert Weber and Tyler Edwards and former Glasgow Police Officer Josh Nolan.

The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Billings and according to court documents is a civil rights action arising from the GPD’s use of excessive force, violation of policies and procedures, assault and battery, negligence, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

The court documents filed by Kolstad’s attorney claim the allegations occurred on or about December 4, 2021. The allegations state that Kolstad was at his home in Glasgow with wife and daughter when his daughter called 911 and reported her parents were fighting and that she was scared.

Documents state that Officer Edwards and Officer Nolan arrived at the home approximately 2 minutes after the 911 call. Kolstad claims he was put in handcuffs and the placement of the handcuffs was too tight and caused Kolstad to suffer extreme pain and numbness. Kolstad also claims that Officer Nolan forcefully slammed him to the ground causing him to fall on his head and face. The documents state that he was helped to his feet and spit blood out of his mouth as officers moved him to the front door. He was put in the police car and transported to Valley County Detention Center where he was booked into the jail. Kolstad claims he received no medical treatment in jail and sat for at least two days covered in blood from his injuries.

The lawsuit also states that Kolstad was charged with Partner Family Member Assault and Resisting Arrest and Kolstad is still awaiting trial for the resolution of the criminal charges. Kolstad claims he suffered injuries because of the brutal attack and excessive use of force on him by members of the Glasgow Police Department.

Kolstad claims his constitutional rights protected by the fourth and fourteenth amendments were deprived because of the incident. Those rights include the right to be free from unreasonable seizure, excessive and unreasonable force, and unlawful deadly force.

The court documents allege negligence, assault and battery, and intentional infliction of emotional distress by members of the Glasgow Police Department.

Kolstad is asking the court to rule in his favor and award all past and future medical expenses, all past and future physical and mental pain and suffering, all out of pocket expenses, all past and future wage loss, punitive damages, plaintiff’s cost of suit, and reasonable attorney fees. The lawsuit is asking for a trial by a jury.

The lawsuit was filed in December of 2023 and as of February 20th none of the defendants in the case had filed any court documents in answer to the charges.

During the week of February 5, 2024, the National Park Service (NPS) and the U.S. Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) moved 116 bison from Yellowstone National Park to the Fort Peck Indian Reservation in Poplar. The bison transferred to the Fort Peck Indian Reservation included 108 males, four females, and four calves.

The NPS said in a news release: “The Bison Conservation Transfer Program continues to make history, having relocated the largest number of live Yellowstone bison to American Indian Tribes in the world.”

Since 2019, a total of 414 Yellowstone bison have been transferred to the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes at Fort Peck. The tribes started their Yellowstone herd by accepting bison that completed the 2005-2012 pilot study. The number of bison transferred each year includes:

2019: 93 bison
2020: 11 bison
2021: 50 bison
2022: 28 bison
2023: 116 bison
2024: 116 bison

Nearly all of those bison and their offspring have then been further distributed to 26 Tribes across 12 states in partnership with the InterTribal Buffalo Council.

This recent transfer is the result of several agencies working together, including the NPS, Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Indian Reservation, APHIS, the State of Montana, InterTribal Buffalo Council, Yellowstone Forever, Defenders of Wildlife and the Greater Yellowstone Coalition.

The Glasgow City Council will meet on Tuesday in the council chambers of the Glasgow Civic Center. The meeting will be on Tuesday due to the President's Day Holiday.

The Glasgow School Board will have their regular February Board meeting on Wednesday at 6pm. Following the regular meeting will be a negotiation session with the School Superintendent.