Category: News Article

A successful haymaker has just been thrown in the funding fight for the Sidney ARS unit.  The  2017 Ag Appropriations Bill is headed to the floor of the U.S. Senate for a vote with language that ensures the Northern Plains Research Lab in Sidney will remain fully staffed and operational. Senator Jon Tester, who is a member of the subcommittee that authored the bill, said the language should guarantee that the lab in Sidney can continue to research the impact of the wheat stem sawfly, which annually causes more than $250 million in crop damage every year across the nation,

Montana Senator Steve Daines was in Missoula Saturday morning to speak to a gathering of the Montana Loggers Association at the Holiday Inn, downtown.  During his one term as a Montana Congressman and now as the state’s junior Senator, Daines has been meeting with representatives of the logging and timber industries on a regular basis. On Saturday, Daines told KGVO News that the federal government continues its dismal performance in managing forest lands in the west. “The federal government is doing a terrible job of managing our national forests,” Daines began. “That will be the most important topic I’ll be

Forty years after the Montana Logging Association was founded, the group met Saturday morning to look at an industry in limbo and what needs to change so it will thrive. U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., addressed the MLA attendees, hopeful that a bill containing forest management reform that passed the U.S. House recently would soon make it through the Senate, into a conference committee and onto President Barack Obama’s desk before the end of the year. Either that, he said, or the Senate would try to pass a standalone bill. “I just got news last night (Friday) of positive discussion

Forty years after the Montana Logging Association was founded, the group met Saturday morning to look at an industry in limbo and what needs to change so it will thrive. U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., addressed the MLA attendees, hopeful that a bill containing forest management reform that passed the U.S. House recently would soon make it through the Senate, into a conference committee and onto President Barack Obama’s desk before the end of the year. Either that, he said, or the Senate would try to pass a standalone bill. “I just got news last night (Friday) of positive discussion

May is a month to recognize what those who don the uniforms of the country give to their nation. May 8 is the date that marks the Allies’ acceptance of the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany. May 21 is Armed Forces Day, created in 1949 to replace separate patriotic days for individual branches of military service. May 30, Memorial Day, is a day of remembrance for those who died in service to the nation. These aren’t the only significant dates during the month that recognize and pay homage to those in service. But in 1999, Congress set aside May for

Female World War II pilots can now be buried at Arlington National Cemetery. On May 20, President Barack Obama signed a law clarifying the eligibility of these women for such honorable burial. In the past, Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) were denied the honor of having their remains interred in the said famous cemetery. The White House said the move of the president is necessary to give honor to the survivors of the Greatest Generation, including the first pilots, who were on active duty during WWII. Daines’ Bill U.S. Senator Steve Daines authored the bill to allow female WWII pilots to be

A bipartisan Senate coalition led by Democrat Ron Wyden and Republican Rand Paul wants to block efforts to make it easier for the government to search computers across multiple jurisdictions.   The Justice Department is proposing rule changes that would allow it to use a single warrant to search far and wide, a move the government says is designed to deal with technology. But some senators see the change to criminal procedure rules, which has already been blessed  by the Supreme Court, as opening the door to a vast expansion of surveillance by the FBI. And on Thursday, they introduced legislation to

Miners and Western Republicans are lining up against the Obama administration and environmentalists in what some consider the next front in the “war on coal.” Interior Secretary Sally Jewell announced a three-year moratorium on new coal leases on public lands in January, launching a review that could potentially result in mining companies paying  higher rates. “It fits tidily into their overall view of coal,” said Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), the chairwoman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee. “You can call it a ‘war on coal,’ you can call it whatever you want. It is a policy directive coming out of this administration that

Congress on Thursday gave veterans the right to discuss medical marijuana as a treatment option with their Veterans Affairs doctors in states where it is legal. The House and Senate approved bills that include amendments forcing VA to lift restrictions that prohibit doctors from talking about medical marijuana or recommending it to their veteran patients. The legislation, tacked onto bills funding military construction and VA, prohibit the department from using funds to enforce the VA’s policy that limits doctors from recommending medical marijuana. The House voted 233-189 on the amendment offered by Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., on Thursday morning; the House later approved the

In April, Wyatt Zylawy was recognized by Montana Senator Steve Daines for his outstanding achievements in his recent Coast Guard training. Through Daines “Montanan of the Week” initiatives, the Senator recognizes an individual in the official Congressional Record, the document that reflects the official proceedings of Congress. Two weeks ago, Daines was in St. Regis and presented Wyatt’s father, Roman, with the Congressional Record. Roman said that he’s very proud of Wyatt’s accomplishments and that he is the second family member to be recognized in the Congressional Record. Wyatt’s namesake (Wyatt Augustus Zylawy), August William Lauterbach, was Wyatt’s great-grandfather. He