Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913
Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913
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FOR THE COURIER Gov. Steve Bullock was joined by representatives from natural resource industries, ranchers, wind power advocates, sportsmen, and conservationists, as he signed an executive order Tuesday establishing the Sage Grouse Habitat Conservation Program. The program, which was developed from the ground up and has broad support from a diverse group of interests, seeks to maintain state management of the sage grouse by protecting its habitat, while respecting the private property rights of Montanans. “Montanans recognize that it is in t...
Lt. Gov. Angela McLean speaks Tuesday with attendees at the Main Street Montana Project meeting at Fort Peck Community College. She hosted the meeting in Poplar to discuss economic development priorities between the state and the Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux tribes. Gov. Steve Bullock released the Main Street Montana plan this year to support business and wage growth while taking on challenges that slowed the economy. – Jim Orr...
Valley County’s unemployment rate in May dropped below 3 percent again, while Montana’s unemployment rate dropped 0.2 percentage points over the month for a rate of 4.6 percent in May. The U.S. unemployment rate held steady at 6.3 percent. Valley County’s labor force for the May was recorded at 4,144, with 4,031 employed. “Montana’s unemployment rate continues to drop due to strong employment growth in 2014,” Gov. Steve Bullock said. “Montanans can enjoy these summer months with confidence in a growing economy and a state government th...
Gov. Bullock's office released this memo May 23 from him to Jan French of the Board of Livestock, with his directive for bison management as hazing operations begin around Yellowstone National Park, including on private property. • As provided by Section 81-2-120, MCA, the management of buffalo or wild bison by the Department of Livestock is to be conducted pursuant to a plan that is approved by me. Under that statute, the Department may enter private property to remove bison if the bison are infected with a dangerous disease and that d...
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks will host a series of nine public meetings in May to review and discuss recent recommendations from an advisory council tasked with adjusting Montana’s hunting and fishing licenses and fees. The Fish & Wildlife Licensing and Funding Advisory Council spent the past eight months examining FWP’s current license system and funding cycle for fish and wildlife management. That work resulted in recent recommendations to FWP Director Jeff Hagener that would provide an additional $6.25 million a year to stave off deep bud...
While the news has been heard nationwide, Glasgow heard some of it from Bud Anderson, an independent contractor with TransCanada who works for Western Energy Planning and has been working on the Keystone XL Pipeline project. Glasgow and Valley County are in a position where the pipeline would directly affect the economy and services in the surrounding area. Benefits of the project have been put on hold as the Department of State has sent out a memorandum requesting for more time to allow federal agencies to review the route and as the Nebraska...
Gov. Steve Bullock, center, presents one of the 2014 Montana Neighbor Awards to Lee and Madylon Cornwell of Glasgow during an April 16 ceremony at the state capitol in Helena. The awards go annually to Montana landowners who exemplify the tradition of good-neighborliness through community leadership, cooperation, top-quality land stewardship and allowing public recreational access. Winners are decided by a team from Artemis Common Ground, Montana FWP, the Montana Association of Land Trusts, The...
With the changing of voter district lines, some legislative positions have shifted and some office holders have stepped down to take other positions appointed to them. It's an active campaigning season for the state legislature this year. From ballot issues to potential candidates on the ballots, it's a good idea for voters to get educated on the issues and understand who they might be voting for. Much of the information here comes from the Montana Secretary of State office. Montana State House...
With the departure of Senator Baucus from the Senate, Montana’s longest serving statewide elected official is Ed Smith. Never heard of him? Well, we have elected him Clerk of our Supreme Court five times. Ed served as Chief Clerk of the Montana House of Representatives three legislative sessions and was then appointed by the legendary House Speaker, Tip O’Neill, to be Chief Bill Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. He has also served as President of the National Conference of Appellate Court Clerks. His is a remarkable rec...
Eastern Montana has seen an increase in crimes and drug activity closer to the areas that have exploded in population and jobs near the oil fields. The Federal Bureau of Investigations currently has an office located in Sidney, and there have been comments about relocating the office to western North Dakota. While no decisions or statements have been released by the FBI on relocation, Gov. Steve Bullock has sent a letter to the Director of the FBI James Comey urging him to keep the location in Sidney. Bullock stated in the letter that Richland...
If you pay the propane man to heat the house you probably felt the pain that came with the price per gallon. While Glasgow isn’t feeling the pinch as much as other communities, the community is still seeing prices close to 30 percent higher. Currently Agland in Nashua and Ezzie’s West End are charging about $2.95 a gallon, compared to $1.85 last year. Prices have skyrocketed all over the state of Montana, with Culbertson and other towns paying around $5 a gallon, or more. The cold temperatures that have been felt all over the nation this win...
Here's a sampling of releases to The Courier on the appointment of former Lt. Gov. John Walsh to replace Max Baucus, the new ambassador to China, in the U.S. Senate. Sen. John Walsh Friend – I’ve answered many calls in my life and today I proudly answer one more. In 2004, I was asked to lead more than 700 of Montana’s finest men and women into combat in Iraq as the Commander of the 1-163rd Infantry Battalion. It was a tremendous responsibility. It took incredible courage for those men and women to do what our nation asked of them. They put s...
Kevin O'Brien, Gov. Bullock's deputy chief of staff, sent out this biography of new Lt. Gov. Angela McLean. Angela McLean, a native of Twin Bridges and an Anaconda resident, became Montana’s 31st Lieutenant Governor in February, 2014 when she was appointed by Governor Steve Bullock. McLean, an educator and classroom teacher, taught American History and Government at Anaconda High School prior to being tapped to serve as Lieutenant Governor. In 2003, McLean was named “Best High School Teacher” by the Montana Standard. She also served as the C...
Motorists driving into Montana from Canada, 10 miles north of Opheim, will be greeted by a brand new highway sign in the spring. The old signs welcoming visitors to Montana, which feature a big blue circle in the center with mountains in the background, were designed in the 1980s and will be replaced. The new signs, unveiled recently in Helena, will incorporate newer technology allowing for the inclusion of photographs. The sign coming to near the Opheim Port of Entry will feature a T-Rex – o...
Questions between bigger business and a healthy environment are at much of the controversy of the Keystone XL Pipeline that would come through Valley County and travel all the way to Nebraska and eventually the Gulf of Mexico. This past week the final supplemental environmental impact statement was released that could clear up some issues for the final approval of President Obama. The pipeline would come through Valley County and pass by Glasgow, and could create jobs and bring tax dollars to the county. Arguments on the dangers towards...
The past few days I have been besieged by phone calls on the price increase of propane. This past weekend this increase has been on the national news as well. There are many reasons for this terrible price hike and I am sure you have heard them all. But this cannot continue. I would urge you to call the governor’s office and our congressional delegation (see contact information below) to put pressure on the powers that be to roll back this intolerable increase. Is there price gouging going on? I do not know, but one could sure jump to that c...
This year is an election year for Valley County and for the state of Montana. Registration for candidacy opened up last week, starting Thursday, Jan. 9, and will remain open until March 10. While there might not be huge excitement in this year’s elections, there will be a county commissioner seat up for grabs. Valley County Commissioner Dave Pippin has announced that he will not be rerunning for his position as the commissioner for District 1. The county treasurer, attorney, sheriff/coroner, justice of the peace and the public administrator h...
January • The winter storm that hit northeast Montana on Thursday night, Jan. 10, wasn't a surprise. It had been making its way across the state, heralded by the forecasters. But its intensity on Friday brought on the winter grumbles. The storm deserved the term blizzard, with heavy snow that was blown by winds up to 41 mph, causing white-out conditions and drifts reported up to 9 feet deep. The low temperature of 1 degree above zero Friday night translated to about 29 below wind chill. A r...
Montana’s unemployment rate held steady at 5.2 percent in November, while Valley County’s unemployment rate hit a low 3.5 percent. The state’s rate has declined by half a percent over the last year. The national unemployment rate remains higher than Montana’s rate at 7 percent in November, down 0.3 percentage points from the prior month. “Montana’s economy continues to perform better than the rest of the nation, steadily adding jobs for our workers,” Gov. Steve Bullock said. Labor Commissioner Pam Bucy said, “Retailers hired more workers th...
In politics, timing is everything and that certainly appears to be the case with Lt. Gov. John Walsh and Congressman Steve Daines. A year from no one of them will likely be a U.S. senator, something unimaginable a year ago. Then no one imagined Sen. Max Baucus would announce his retirement, let alone that he would resign his seat before the end of his term so he could move to China of all things. Baucus will become ambassador to China at a challenging time, and we wish him well. The major beneficiary of Baucus’decision to retire was freshman D...
Appointments for the Glasgow Levee Safety Committee were finalized at the last city council meeting, and in the same week a local Glasgow rancher was reappointed to the state Private Land Public Wildlife Advisory Council (PLPWAC). Gov. Steve Bullock announced that Jack Billingsley would be appointed to the PLPWAC. His qualifications listed being that he’s a rancher in Valley County. Billingsley confirmed the appointment and said that the committee is looking at some possible changes. They will be addressing what the current goals will be and wh...
A state advisory council and the BLM are seeking public input to form a sage grouse habitat conservation plan that will prevent the bird's being listed as an endangered species. The governor-appointed Greater Sage-grouse Habitat Conservation Advisory Council will host seven public meetings to examine a draft sage grouse habitat conservation strategy. The meeting in Glasgow is Wednesday, Nov. 20, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Cottonwood Inn. The Malta meeting is Thursday, Nov. 21, from 12 to 2 p.m. at...
The flood waters of June having receded, the Valley County commissioners on Tuesday passed a resolution terminating the disaster declaration. The resolution states that the county has completed emergency repairs to infrastructure from the flood. Mark Gruener, the District 6 Disaster and Emergency Services representative, and Valley County DES Rick Seiler presented the draft resolution and also a draft letter for the commissioners to send to Gov. Steve Bullock in appreciation of his “timely efforts.” The spring floods were Bullock’s first exper...
The Montana Farm Bureau has expressed strong disappointment in Montana Governor Steve Bullock’s veto of several bills regarding wild bison The bills had easily passed the House and Senate, but met with the ‘veto’ stamp on the governor’s desk. “Montana Farm Bureau worked hard to protect family farms and ranches this session and agriculture’s voice was heard, so we were very dismayed that after all the work the legislature did to address the wild bison issue, the efforts ended up being vetoed,” noted MFBF Lobbyist Nicole Rolf. Rolf said that at...
A new advisory council appointed by Gov. Steve Bullock to develop measures to conserve Montana's sage grouse populations and sustain related land uses is set to meet in Helena, May 21-23. "The council will lead the effort to develop and carry out management options to ensure sage grouse are maintained as an integral part of Montana's wildlife heritage while still allowing other managed uses of the land," said Jeff Hagener, director of Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks. The group's first meeting is set to begin at 9 a.m. on May 21, and continue...
