Articles written by Eric Dietrich
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Governor focuses housing task force on regulatory relief
As Gov. Greg Gianforte described the job facing his newly convened housing task force Wednesday, he made a point of asking the group's 26 members to think outside the box as they spend the next... Full story
Tax-cap measure CI-121 and other initiatives will miss the fall ballot
A proposed property tax cap and three other ballot initiatives supporters had hoped to put before Montana voters in November's general election are dead in the water after failing to meet... Full story
¾ of Montana's return-to-work bonus funds went unclaimed
Gov. Greg Gianforte's Return to Work bonus program, announced last year as he scaled back expanded pandemic unemployment benefits, ultimately paid about one-fourth as many bonuses as the state initial... Full story
Research study shows rising housing costs driven by Montana home shortage
The root cause of Montana's increasingly stifling housing market? Too few homes to go around, a researcher told a legislative committee studying the state's economic condition Monday. "There is by any metric an enormous housing shortage in this... Full story
How Montana got its new congressional map
HELENA - With a final vote Friday, Montana's Districting and Apportionment Commission made it official: The state has a new congressional map, political lines drawn to define how Montanans are... Full story
Fire season 2021: Early to start, late to finish, and smoky in the middle
The state's first major winter storm dropped snow on parts of southern Montana early this week, signaling the final act of an active fire season that had prompted Gov. Greg Gianforte to issue a...
Nine ways to divide Montana
An effort to divide Montana into two districts for U.S. House elections over the next decade now has a set of nine finalist maps — and an unmistakable partisan divide. The maps were advanced this week by the Montana Districting and Apportionment...
Districting commission takes an initial look at public-proposed U.S. House district maps
HELENA - The commission tasked with dividing Montana into two U.S. House districts for the first time since the 1980s asked the public for input last month. Montanans responded with an earful, submitt... Full story
Stimulus infrastructure funds headed to water and sewer projects
An initial round of funding drawn from Montana’s share of the March federal coronavirus relief bill is heading toward 86 water and sewer projects around the state. The awards, totalling nearly $127 million, were formally announced Thursday by...
Gianforte budget director to step down after nine months
HELENA - State Budget Director Kurt Alme, Gov. Greg Gianforte's top fiscal adviser, will leave his position Oct. 1, less than a year after being named to one of the highest-profile roles in state...
Commission seeks suggestions for new U.S. House district maps
HELENA - The commission tasked with dividing Montana into two U.S. House districts for the first time since the 1980s has a Nov. 14 deadline to submit a final district map to Montana's secretary of st...
U.S. Census releases detailed 2020 counts -- with an asterisk
The U.S. Census Bureau released detailed statistics Thursday on the 2020 populations and racial compositions of Montana counties, cities, towns and neighborhoods, providing a once-in-a-decade look at demographic change across the state, and also... Full story
'Economic transformation' commission adopts priorities, seeks public input
HELENA — Officials serving on a commission tasked with helping Gov. Greg Gianforte spend $150 million of the state’s COVID-19 relief money to bolster Montana’s post-pandemic economy agreed Wednesday to consider proposals sorted into four...
Political district-drawing commission finalizes its sideboards
HELENA — Montana’s Districting and Apportionment Commission voted Tuesday to finalize the criteria it will use to draw Montana’s new U.S. House and state legislative districts using data from the 2020 census. The commission previously approved...
Federal spending drives Montana budget
HELENA - Montana lawmakers approved about $16 billion in spending during the 2021 legislative session, more than $17,400 per Montana resident. That's money for everything from plowing highways to...
Montana grows into a second U.S. House seat
Montana will gain a second representative in the U.S. House as seats are reapportioned according to population counts from the 2020 census, the U.S. Census Bureau said last week. The news means that, starting with the 2022 election, Montana will...
Multibillion stimulus bill aims to spur Montana into post-COVID prosperity
HELENA — Racing to beat a procedural deadline, Montana lawmakers have advanced a first-draft plan for spending billions of dollars in federal stimulus money through an initial vote in the state House less than three weeks after President Joe Biden...
New round of federal COVID-19 aid means billions for state of Montana
The $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, passed by U.S. Congress Wednesday and heading to the desk of President Joe Biden, will bring billions of stimulus dollars into Montana under the auspices of a wide-ranging effort to pull the...
Montana Legislature : How will the GOP spend its mandate?
On November 3, Montana voters gave the GOP unified control of state government, electing a Republican to the governor's office for the first time in 16 years, Republican candidates to all statewide offices, and expanding GOP majorities in the state...
When local news isn't local
A late July article from Big Sky Times looks at first glance like a piece of old-fashioned investigative journalism, published on what appears to be a modern news website. "Montana media, GOP failed to investigate Bullock's conduct," reads its...
High court avoids 'impermissible bias' question in solar utility ruling
HELENA - The Montana Supreme Court has upheld a ruling from last year in which a state District Court judge criticized the Montana Public Service Commission's handling of a rate contract dispute between a solar power developer and NorthWestern...
Analysts say state budget looks OK for next year
HELENA - State government is facing a $300 million-plus revenue cliff in the coming year as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, legislative analysts told lawmakers last week. Regardless, it's looking...
Counties will have option to conduct all-mail elections in November
HELENA - Gov. Steve Bullock issued a directive Thursday giving Montana counties the option of shifting to all-mail ballots for the November general election as they did for the June primary, saying the order gives local election authorities a way to...
Lagging rural census response could cost Montana second U.S. House seat
HELENA - Members of the commission tasked with redrawing Montana's legislative boundaries following the 2020 census expressed frustration over the state's dragging response rate in Native communities and other rural areas June 10, citing complication...
Familiar names headed to general election for Montana's federal seats
When it comes time for Montana voters to decide who they'll send to Washington, D.C., in November, the names on the ballot will be familiar. As U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, a Republican, looks to win his second six-year term, he'll be challenged by...
