The Montana Supreme Court last week upheld Attorney General Austin Knudsen’s decision to block a proposed ballot initiative that could have asked Montana voters to place a hard cap on property tax collections next year. Modeled on California’s landmark Prop 13, the initiative would have capped property tax collections for specific properties at 1% of their assessed value. It would also

A Hardin man accused of selling methamphetamine as part of an investigation into large-scale drug trafficking based on the Crow Indian Reservation admitted to a distribution crime Thursday, Sept. 28, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said in a press release. Anthony Springfield, 22, pleaded guilty to distribution of meth. Springfield faces a mandatory minimum of five years to 40 years in prison, a

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks recently euthanized a female black bear and two cubs after they were found in a garbage dumpster in Zortman. “It’s an unfortunate circumstance, but once bears learn to get food from unnatural sources, the safety risk for people escalates greatly,” said Drew Henry, FWP supervisor in Glasgow. “Even though bears aren’t as common out here in eastern Montana,

Thousands of Montana taxpayers have successfully claimed and received property tax relief. Most qualified Montana taxpayers have already claimed their property tax rebate. The Montana Department of Revenue has approved over 150,000 claims or about 70% of estimated potential claims. Counties with a higher estimated percentage of claimed rebates are Hill, Pondera, Missoula, Silver Bow,

This story is excerpted from Capitolized, a weekly newsletter with expert reporting, analysis and insight from the editors and reporters of Montana Free Press. Kalispell Democrat and former firearms industry executive Ryan Busse launched his 2024 gubernatorial campaign Thursday, taking aim at Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte in a guns, trucks and mounted-bucks heavy campaign video that features

A vaccine to prevent overdosing on fentanyl and one for heroin are in the works at the University of Montana and partner institutions. Human trials are expected to start in early 2024 for both vaccines, according to UM. UM researcher Jay Evans, who leads a campus center working on the vaccines and co-founded university corporate partner Inimmune, said recently the vaccine is unusual in that

A Florida man accused in an India-based computer hacking scheme that stole $150,000 from an elderly Montana woman admitted to a fraud crime on Monday, Aug. 21. Eddly Joseph, 43, of Gainesville, Fla., pleaded guilty to wire fraud. Joseph faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen L. DeSoto presided. Sentencing

The State of Montana, through its Attorney General Austin Knudsen, called on a federal judge on Monday, Aug. 21, to keep Montana’s law banning TikTok in the state in effect while the case proceeds in federal court, citing well-documented concerns over the app’s massive data-harvesting practices and access to that data granted to Chinese Communist Party officials. The Montana legislature passed