Page 10 - John Esp News Today

Some private attorneys in western Montana said they would no longer accept cases until the state brought their pay in line with their counterparts in Yellowstone County.

Environmental nonprofit Upper Missouri Waterkeeper filed suit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency last week over its handling of a new Montana law that loosens nutrient pollution regulations in the

"We are never fully staffed in a shift," Montana State Prison Warden Jim Salmonsen said.

What remains unknown is what would occur if the EPA ultimately declines to accept Montana’s narrative rule package as sufficient to meet requirements of the Clean Water Act.

A group litigating variances to Montana’s water quality standards petitioned the Environmental Protection Agency Monday claiming a new state law runs counter to the agency’s authority to approve or disprove changes under the Clean Water Act and is a risk to the state’s waterways. Upper Missouri Waterkeeper filed the petition following the signing of Senate Bill 358 into law by Gov. Greg Gianforte. The new law repeals numeric standards for “nutrients,” namely nitrogen an...

The bills include: HB 66 Rep. Terry Moore (R – Billings) Reauthorize securities restitution fund HB 112 Rep. John Fuller (R - Whitefish) Require interscholastic athletes to participate under sex assigned at birth HB 233 Rep. Fred Anderson (R - Great Falls) Revise funding for students with disabilities HB 247 Rep. Marta Bertoglio (R – Clancy) Revise motor vehicle fleet registration HB 257 Rep. Jedediah Hinkle (R – Belgrade) Revise laws relating to government mandates and businesse...

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Capitol Talk: Guns, Voting And An Executive Power-up Gov. Greg Gianforte wants to increase the power of Montanas executive branch. Meanwhile, U.S. Congressman Matt Rosendale loses a battle with the national Republican leadership. And state Legislature moves toward making it harder to vote and easier to carry concealed guns. Listen now on  Capitol Talk with Sally Mauk, Holly Michels and Rob Saldin. Sally Mauk Holly, there are some bills in the hopper that would expand the power of the execut...

The Montana Senate on Tuesday endorsed legislation to expand where gun owners can carry a concealed weapon across the state, including campuses, bars and casinos. The bill passed on second reading in the Senate by a 30-20 vote which, while bipartisan, did not get uniform support from the GOP as it did in the House. Two Republicans, Sens. John Esp of Big Timber, who had voted against the measure in the Senate Judiciary Committee that sent HB 102 to the Senate floor, and Brian Hoven w...

A bill that would expand where and how people could carry firearms has cleared another state legislative committee, after an extensive discussion about proposed amendments.