Banning Bikes / Medical Marijuana

Missoulian: Bill banning bicyclists on highways without shoulders to be re-drafted after negative feedback
Restrict bicycle, pedestrian travel on certain rural highways

Missoulian: Bill would fix start-date of medical marijuana initiative

Eliminate workers' compensation evidentiary presumption regarding physicians

State Social Media / Right to Know in Montana

Missoulian: Montana lacks consistency across state offices in managing, retaining social media

Montana Code Annotated: Public records
Montana State Library: State publications
“The Montana State Library collects and provides permanent public access to state publications produced by state agencies.” Including archive websites.

Missoulian: Right to Know in Montana: State struggles to comply with open government law, constitution in the digital age

Right to Know and Right of Privacy Laws
“Right to Know – Article II, section 9 of the Montana Constitution provides that:
“No person shall be deprived of the right to examine documents or to observe the deliberations of all public bodies or agencies of state government and its subdivisions, except in cases in which the demand of individual privacy clearly exceeds the merits of public disclosure.”

Right of Privacy –Article II, section 10 provides that:
“The right of individual privacy is essential to the well-being of a free society and shall not be infringed without the showing of a compelling state interest.”

Presidential Inaugurations

U.S. Presidential Inaugurations: Resource Guides

“The Library of Congress digital collections include a wide variety of primary source materials documenting presidential inaugurations. This Web guide includes diaries and letters written by presidents and those who witnessed the inaugurations, handwritten drafts of inaugural addresses, broadsides, inaugural tickets and programs, prints, photographs, and sheet music.”

The Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies: Home

Bison Range Transfer / Medical Marijuana

Missoulian: New twist in efforts to transfer Bison Range to Indian tribes

Notice of Intent To Prepare a Comprehensive Conservation Plan for the National Bison Range, Moiese, Montana

“We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), intend to gather information necessary to prepare a draft Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP) for the National Bison Range (NBR), a unit of the National Wildlife Refuge System. We are furnishing this notice in compliance with Service Refuge Planning policy to advise other agencies and the public of our intentions, and to obtain suggestions and information on the scope of issues to be considered in the planning process. Participation in the planning process will be encouraged and facilitated by various means, including news releases and public meetings. Notification of all such meetings will be announced in the local press and on the NBR Web site.”

Missoulian:  Lawmaker seeks to rebuke judge over marijuana ruling

SB 131: Revise the effective date provisions for the Montana medical marijuana act

Zinke Hearing / Yellowstone National Park

Missoulian: Zinke disputes Trump on climate, calls for parks spending in confirmation hearing

Nomination hearing of the Honorable Ryan Zinke to be the Secretary of the Interior

Missoulian: Yellowstone visitation tops 4.25M, another record year
2016 - A Year of Records
“Detailed park visitation information and additional information on how these statistics are calculated is available online at https://irma.nps.gov/Stats/Reports/Park .”
  

Selling Public Lands / Invasive Mussel / Supporting Coal Workers

Missoulian: Rule easing transfer of federal public lands to the states concerns hunters, others

H.Res.5 - Adopting rules for the One Hundred Fifteenth Congress.

(q) Treatment Of Conveyances Of Federal Land.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—In the One Hundred Fifteenth Congress, for all purposes in the House, a provision in a bill or joint resolution, or in an amendment thereto or a conference report thereon, requiring or authorizing a conveyance of Federal land to a State, local government, or tribal entity shall not be considered as providing new budget authority, decreasing revenues, increasing mandatory spending, or increasing outlays.

(2) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection:

(A) The term “conveyance” means any method, including sale, donation, or exchange, by which all or any portion of the right, title, and interest of the United States in and to Federal land is transferred to another entity.

(B) The term “Federal land” means any land owned by the United States, including the surface estate, the subsurface estate, or any improvements thereon.

(C) The term “State” means any of the several States, the District of Columbia, or a territory (including a possession) of the United States.

Missoulian: Invasive mussel response team lays out recommendations with $5M annual cost

Montana Mussel Response
“On January 16, 2017, Montana's Mussel Response Team announced its recommendations for containing and controlling invasive mussels in Montana.”

Missoulian: Keane introduces bills to preserve Colstrip power, aid workers

HB 22: Appropriate money to assist/intervene/plan for closure of coal-fired generation HB 60: Provide support for communities affected by closure of coal-fired generation

Cabinet Nominations

Cabinet Nominations

“The tradition of the Cabinet dates back to the beginnings of the Presidency itself. Established in Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution, the Cabinet's role is to advise the President on any subject he may require relating to the duties of each member's respective office.

The Cabinet includes the Vice President and the heads of 15 executive departments — the Secretaries of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Labor, State, Transportation, Treasury, and Veterans Affairs, as well as the Attorney General.”- From Whitehouse.gov. Please note this site will likely disappear after the new president takes office.

Learn more:

About Nominations by the U.S. President
“Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution grants the President of the United States the power to nominate, and with the advice and consent of the Senate, appoint individuals to certain positions laid out in the Constitution and in subsequent laws.”

How quickly do presidents make key appointments?

“Trump has already named a few key advisers, including his chief of staff, Reince Priebus, and Jeff Sessions, a U.S. senator from Alabama, for attorney general. He also selected South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

But President-elect Trump still has the rest of his Cabinet to fill.”