Comment on National Park Fee Increase

Missoulian: Comment period extended on proposed national park fee increase

Submit Comments
Fact Sheet and Current and Proposed Fee Rates
“This document contains a fact sheet about the National Park Service's targeted fee increase proposal and a spreadsheet showing the current and proposed entrance fee rates (regular season and peak season) for 17 national parks.”

Whitefish Energy

Missoulian: Whitefish halts power work in Puerto Rico over $83M owed

“Examining Challenges in Puerto Rico’s Recovery and the Role of the Financial Oversight and Management Board” –Memo

Oversight Hearing, "Examining Challenges in Puerto Rico's Recovery and the Role of the Financial Oversight and Management Board"

Nick Brown, Puerto Rico and Whitefish Energy defend controversial $300 million power contract, BUSINESS INSIDER, Oct. 25, 2017, http://www.businessinsider.com/puerto-rico-whitefish-energy-contract-hurricane-maria- 2017-10.

Frances Robles and Deborah Acosta, Puerto Rico Cancels Whitefish Energy Contract to Rebuild Power Lines, NYTIMES, Oct. 29, 2017, available at https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/29/us/whitefish-cancel-puerto-rico.html.

Beaver Creek Logging, Keystone Pipeline, Chronic Wasting Disease, North Korea

Missoulian: Conservation groups plan to sue Flathead Forest over road management
Beaver Creek Landscape Restoration Project
“Project will reduce the risk of uncharacteristic wildfire and reduce fuels; improve habitat for wildlife; improve forest health; improve watershed conditions; remediate invasions of exotic species; and provide wood products.”

Missoulian:  Nebraska panel approves alternative Keystone XL route
KXL Pipeline Final Order
KXL Pipeline Information

Missoulian:  Wildlife manager urges safe disposal of deer carcasses to keep CWD at bay
Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD)
“Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a prion disease that affects deer, elk, reindeer, sika deer and moose. It has been found in some areas of North America, including Canada and the United States, Norway and South Korea. It may take over a year before an infected animal develops symptoms, which can include drastic weight loss (wasting), stumbling, listlessness and other neurologic symptoms. CWD can affect animals of all ages and some infected animals may die without ever developing the disease. CWD is fatal to animals and there are no treatments or vaccines.”

Missoulian: Trump says US will declare NKorea a state sponsor of terror

North Korea Sanctions
Remarks by President Trump Before Cabinet Meeting
“One of the primary goals of our trip was to pursue the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. I want to begin this morning by meeting and by talking about the fact that we will be instituting a very critical step, and that will start right now. Today, the United States is designating North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism. It should have happened a long time ago. It should have happened years ago.”

U.S. Relations With North Korea

Montana special session, Tara's Law, US Budget, Puerto Rico, Hate crimes

Missoulian: Montana's special session starts today. Here's what you need to know

2017 November Special Legislative Session

Missoulian: Tara's Law: Montana OPI yet to develop curriculum for childhood sexual abuse prevention

Child Sexual Abuse Awareness And Prevention
“The office of public instruction shall make any model policies and procedures developed under subsection (1) available for voluntary adoption by school district trustees.”

Missoulian: US budget deficit up sharply to $63.2 billion in October

Monthly Budget Review: Summary for Fiscal Year 2017

“The government recorded a deficit of $62 billion in October, CBO estimates, about $17 billion more than the shortfall recorded in the same month last year. Both revenues and outlays were higher than they were last year, but outlays increased more. Shifts in the timing of payments affected the deficits in both years; if not for those shifts, the deficit in October 2017 would have been $19 billion more than it was in October 2016.”

Missoulian: Puerto Rico seeks $94 billion in federal aid after hurricane

Governor of Puerto Rico warns that American citizens residing on the Island need equal treatment in Congress
“The chief executive warned that if Congress does not consider Puerto Rico as a jurisdiction of the United States in tax matters, it will cause the exodus of companies that generate 42% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the loss of jobs on the Island, and therefore more Puerto Ricans moving to the mainland, causing an increase in the expenses to other states.

At the same time, Rosselló explained that the passage of hurricanes Irma and Maria devastated the public and private infrastructure of Puerto Rico, causing multi-million dollar losses estimated at 94 billion dollars.”

FBI bar graph showing Bias Motivation of crimes, 57.5% were race/ethnicity/ancestry based.

Missoulian: Hate crimes rose for 2nd year in a row in 2016, FBI reports

2016 Hate Crime Statistics Released
“The newest report—which provides information about the offenses, victims, offenders, and locations of hate crimes—reveals that for 2016, law enforcement agencies reported 6,121 criminal incidents that were motivated by bias toward race, ethnicity, ancestry, religion, sexual orientation, disability, gender, or gender identity.”
Full report: Hate Crime Statistics, 2016

Chronic wasting disease, Puerto Rico, Supreme Court opinions

Missoulian: FWP proposes proactive plan aimed at chronic wasting disease

FWP increases CWD surveillance efforts
“We know the best thing we can do is increase our surveillance efforts and help from our partners is critical. The Mule Deer Foundation and RMEF both recognize the importance of doing all we can to find CWD early, if it’s here,” said FWP Game Management Bureau Chief John Vore. “Our best chance of containing the disease once it is detected will be finding it early.”

Missoulian: Official says Puerto Rico needs 'unprecedented' federal help

Bishop: PROMESA's Oversight Board Needs New Tools to Ensure Puerto Rico's Recovery

“[W]e need dramatic action that creates a fast-moving, depoliticized entity driven by a compelling vision of an efficient, durable, sustainable and affordable power sector for the island,” Zamot stated.

Both Zamot and Jaresko stressed the need to further expedite permitting at every level for any private sector investment to aid recovery and rebuilding. Zamot noted that “economic growth and fast tracking projects is not inconsistent with being good stewards of the environment.”

Click here to view full witness testimony. 

Missoulian: 'Rapid Ruth' Ginsburg is quick with justices' first opinion

Hamer v. Neighborhood Housing Servs. of Chicago\

Opinions of the Court - 2017

Tintina copper mine, Trump in South Korea

Missoulian: DEQ hears concerns from public on Tintina copper mine

Proposed Black Butte Copper Mine in Meagher County
“Tintina Resources submitted on December 15, 2015 an application with the Department of Environmental Quality for a Mine Operating Permit for an underground copper and related minerals mine in Meagher County in west-central Montana.

Known as the Johnny Lee deposits, the proposed mine is expected to produce copper concentrate as well as cobalt and silver. The proposed mine is approximately 20 miles north of White Sulphur Springs, the Meagher County seat, and approximately 100 miles south of Great Falls. The deposits lie within the Belt Supergroup, an extensive sedimentary formation that extends from central Montana into northern Idaho.”

Missoulian: A year on, Trump makes election win a key topic on Asia trip

Remarks by President Trump and President Moon of Korea Before Expanded Bilateral Meeting
“It is interesting that it is one year, as of tomorrow, that we had our election victory. And it was great victory, and a victory that made a lot of people very happy. And our country is doing very well from the standpoint of the economy. It's doing record numbers, record stock market, 17-year low. We have the lowest unemployment that we've had in 17 years. And we've created trillions and trillions of dollars of value for our country. So we're very happy.”

Montana Budget Cuts

Missoulian: Governor calls lawmakers back for special session, releases list of cuts to state agencies

Governor Bullock Calls Special Session to Balance Montana’s Budget

Balancing Montana’s Budget