President Joe Biden’s administration has approved an increase in the levels of food aid available to needy families. It marks the largest single increase in the program’s history. Average benefits for food stamps will increase by more than 25 percent starting in October above pre-pandemic levels. The increased assistance will be available indefinitely to all 42 million SNAP beneficiaries.

Roosevelt County is slowly growing, according to population figures recently released by the U.S. Census Bureau. The county’s population is listed as 10,794 which is an increase of 369 people or 4 percent since 2010. Gallatin County was the Montana county with the largest gain as it increased by 33 percent or 29,447 people. The county’s population now is 118,960. Yellowstone County

The Fort Kipp Celebration is set for Aug. 27-29. Grand Entry is set for Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 1 and 7 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m. Dance categories will include golden age, adult, teen and junior grass, fancy, traditional and jingle, all with cash prizes. Numerous daily specials are scheduled as well. There will be an evening candlelight ceremony hosted by Spotted Bull Treatment Center

The Fort Peck Tribal Executive Board heard from Bureau of Indian Affairs Superintendent Anna Eder during this week’s Chairman’s Report. The BIA’s Wildland Fire Management Program noted that since Aug. 1 there have been 24 fires on the reservation that have affected a total of 424.4 acres of land. Currently, the tribal agency utilizes three fire engines for coverage. The Fort Peck Reservation

( Publisher’s Note: The following blotter includes the activities of the Wolf Point police and fire department Aug. 9-22. All those cited or arrested are presumed innocent.) Citations were issued to: August 9 Malachi Stops, 39, male, Trinity Hospital, criminal mischief less than $1,500, tribal court. Malachi Stops, 39, male, Trinity Hospital, aggravated disorderly conduct, tribal court.

A woman with Wolf Point connections was recently shot to death during a camping trip in Utah. Newlyweds Kylen Schulte and Crystal Turner were discovered dead last week at a campsite in the La Sal Mountains. According to KUTV, law enforcement believe that someone killed the woman and then left the area. Schulte, 24, of Billings recently married Turner, 38, from Hot Springs, Ark. They resided

( Publisher’s Note: Each week, the Roosevelt County Sheriff’s Office distributes an inmate roster with the names of everyone incarcerated and persons booked into the jail during the previous week and does not necessarily mean there is a new charge or conviction.) Prisoners housed in the Roosevelt County Detention Center over the past week included: Jittawee Bearcub, 35, Poplar, warrant.