Good morning; on the Beacon today, Montana was one of seven states to raise its minimum wage, joining four other western states – Washington, Oregon, Arizona and Colorado – along with Vermont and Ohio. Employment and the economy might be on the minds of many Montana legislators and residents, but the 62nd Legislature will also see a host of bills dealing with the state’s approach to social issues. A Marion area couple are expected to be charged with animal cruelty after authorities last month seized 120 cats that were living in squalid conditions. Episcopal Church and Montana officials say a retired priest is facing child sexual abuse charges and is awaiting extradition to Maryland from his home in Yaak.

Republicans in control of the Montana Legislature are planning early votes next week in opposition to the new federal health care law, putting the spotlight on a major campaign theme for many in the GOP. Gov. Brian Schweitzer's education adviser has told lawmakers that another tuition freeze is in sight if they follow the governor's budget plan. Montana's Democratic secretary of state said Wednesday she's working with a Republican lawmaker to switch the state over to mail ballots for all elections. Ravalli County planning director John Lavey has resigned, saying his two-year effort to revise the county's subdivision regulations was a waste of time. Gov. Brian Schweitzer, in Seattle on Wednesday to press Washington state for approval of a port for Montana coal, said he wants a level playing field for permitting the project worth millions to Montana's economy. Gov. Brian Schweitzer says the 2008 ethics case against him should be dismissed for “inexcusable delay” — but the Montana Republican Party thinks otherwise, and says his request should be rejected. Montana's economy would lose 13,500 jobs and more than $1 billion in personal income if Montana State University didn't exist, says a new economic study.

 

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Good morning; on the Beacon today, Montana’s 62nd Legislature, commencing this week, has more lawmakers from Northwest Montana in leadership positions than any session in recent memory. A 36-year-old man who was arrested after a six-hour standoff at a Kalispell hotel in which he is accused of barricading himself in a bathroom with a 17-year-old boy has been charged with kidnapping and criminal endangerment. The "Crosstown Talkdown," scheduled for Jan. 7 at Glacier High School, is an exhibition speech and debate showdown between the two Kalispell high schools aimed at showcasing two of Montana's premier programs. Lake County commissioners were unable to reach an agreement on a replacement for a state senator serving the Polson area and are asking the Lake and Flathead County Republican central committees for three more names. Whether it’s the cold weather or a sudden pursuit of a healthier lifestyle, the beginning of the year is generally the busiest time for most fitness clubs in the Flathead.

A fractured Republican majority at the Public Service Commission on Tuesday reluctantly coalesced around firebrand Brad Molnar as the body's vice chairman — preventing a prolonged deadlock over leadership choices amid charges of backroom deals and undue influence of lobbyists and legislators. Freshman Republican commissioner Bill Gallagher of Helena was picked to lead the body after fellow freshman Travis Kavulla of Great Falls refused to vote for the veteran Molnar. Montana's governor is heading to Washington state to discuss a new Columbia River coal port being challenged by environmentalists over greenhouse-gas concerns. Montana wildlife officials are seeking approval to create a bison management plan and scope out sites that would be suitable to relocate dozens of bison from the genetically pure Yellowstone National Park herd. Buffeted by the recession and later the indoor smoking ban in taverns and casinos, video gambling revenues in Montana dropped 2 percent in fiscal 2009 over the previous year and then plunged by 16 percent in fiscal 2010, the state Gambling Control Division reported. It's been below zero, and the weather will likely dip down there a few more times this winter, but that won't freeze out western Montana's mountain pine beetle epidemic. And winter bicycling in Yellowstone is, apparently, not allowed.

 

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Good morning; on the Beacon today, 16-year-old Niclas Waeschle died after spending several days in the hospital in critical condition. He was discovered unresponsive in a tree well at Whitefish Mountain Resort on Dec. 29. Sergeant First Class Tavia Syme, of the Army National Guard's Kalispell recruiting office, was honored as the top recruiter in the country. Glacier National Park's centennial year was also its busiest as the park saw more than 2.2 million visitors and held more than 130 centennial events.

The Montana Legislature opened Monday the way it is likely to finish: with Republican lawmakers sparring with a strong-willed governor's office over budget priorities. The Montana Public Service Commission's first meeting stalled Monday over the new Republican majority's attempt to pick one of their own as a chairman — leaving the panel without a leader and the GOP with a very public internal fight on its hands. U.S. Sen. Max Baucus said Monday he plans to marry his girlfriend and former state director over the summer. Sen. Jon Tester plans to reintroduce his Forest Jobs and Recreation Act this year with no changes, but hopes to bring more Montanans to its support. A Republican senator on Monday accused Democratic Gov. Brian Schweitzer's budget director of cooking up inflated tax collection projections that don't reflect economic reality in Montana. Wildlife officials say a multiyear investigation into the illegal killing of elk in northcentral Montana's Phillips County has led to the convictions of 11 hunters from several states. A cable television company has returned nearly $24,000 to the campaign of a district judge after the company failed to air the judge's advertisements in the weeks leading to November's Montana Supreme Court election.

 

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Happy New Year! On the Beacon today, Mark Lorang, a research assistant professor for the University of Montana at the Flathead Lake Biological Station, heads an annual project in which Christmas trees are collected and then used to slow erosion in Flathead Lake and the lower Flathead River. In a story from our Escape Winter edition, we examine the legacy of Whitefish's skiing pioneers. Flathead Sled Dogs Days, held on Jan. 7-9 in Olney, was born out of a love for dogs. A Polson fire chief says he wants to start charging drivers responsible for accidents a fee when local fire departments are called to respond.

Authorities in Billings say the side of a waste water pond used by Western Sugar Cooperative has collapsed, flooding the factory and some downtown streets. Montana Republicans in dominant control of the Legislature start work this week on an ambitious plan to tackle everything from medical marijuana to the way the state takes federal money to run its programs. A Burlington Northern Santa Fe spokesman says icy weather has backed up trains on New Year's Day and forced it to halt Amtrak service on its tracks across Montana and North Dakota. Jason Christ, much in the news at the beginning of 2010 for his traveling "cannabis caravans" that signed up medical marijuana patients, ended the year entangled in lawsuits and facing a felony intimidation charge. A raft of fish- and wildlife-related bills will be making their way through the Legislature in the coming months. Charles Johnson looks at the debate over "structural balance" likely to consume much of the Legislature's budget negotiations. Lee also features profiles of Republican legislative leadership, with House Speaker Mike Milburn and Senate President Jim Peterson.

 

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Good morning; on the Beacon today, the USDA Wildlife Services bureau recently released statistics that show a huge increase in the number of livestock killed by all of Montana’s major predators, but the report has drawn skeptics. While Northwestern A basketball division has at least two boys teams that appear to be among the state’s elite, the girls are still waiting for their frontrunners to emerge. A man involved in a hit-and-run crash that killed a bicyclist on Highway 83 near Seeley Lake has been sentenced to five years with the Montana Department of Corrections. And Mark Riffey recommends small businesses expand their education.

The U.S. economy grew at a moderate pace last summer, reflecting stronger spending by businesses to replenish stockpiles. Gov. Brian Schweitzer said Tuesday that banning the contested oil company megaload shipments from state highways could hurt efforts to attract businesses to the state. Republican-leaning states will gain at least a half dozen House seats thanks to the 2010 census, which found the nation's population growing more slowly than in past decades but still shifting to the South and West. Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction Denise Juneau told the governor in a meeting Tuesday that she will ask the 2011 Legislature to increase the compulsory attendance age from 16 to 18 years of age. Only the most uncontroversial and cost-free ideas appear to have a chance of passage during the final days of congressional land policy legislation, and that doesn't include most Montana measures. A federal judge has given preliminary approval to a $3.4 billion settlement for Native Americans who say the government mismanaged their land royalties, paving the way to begin a search for hundreds of thousands of potential beneficiaries. Environmentalists said Tuesday they intend to sue the Obama administration to force it to restore gray wolves across the lower 48 states — even as Republicans in Congress sought unsuccessfully to strip the animals of protection. On Tuesday, airplane parts manufacturer Summit Aeronautics celebrated its first official day as Boeing Helena, one of now 11 sites worldwide that make up the Fortune 500 company’s fabrication division.

 

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Good morning; on the Beacon today, Flathead County commissioners voted to adopt changes to the county’s subdivision regulations, ending a two-year revision process by a specially appointed committee. Former NFL quarterback Ryan Leaf said he will write three books about his life, football career and addiction to painkillers. A stolen vehicle driven by a young woman being chased by officers narrowly missed crashing into the Montana Capitol on Monday, police said. A former Ravalli County sheriff's sergeant accused of stealing more than 40,000 rounds of ammunition from the department has been given a five-year suspended prison sentence and must spend 15 days in jail. The U.S. Senate has confirmed Darrell Bell as Montana's next U.S. marshal. Lance Cpl. Thomas Parker, the Marine from Ronan who lost both his legs in Afghanistan earlier this month, was awarded a Purple Heart in a ceremony Saturday.

 

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Good morning; on the Beacon today, city officials from Whitefish, Kalispell and Columbia Falls met with Flathead legislators last week to stake out their positions in advance of the 2011 session on a host of issues, from property taxes to the state public defender program. Montana legislators are introducing several new measures for the upcoming session with the intent of tightening enforcement and increasing punishment for drunken drivers. But for one freshman Flathead legislator, the cause hits closer to home. Local businessman Terry Kramer announced his candidacy for county commission at a recent Pachyderm Club meeting, which he described as a friendly environment to do so since he is running as a Republican for the District 3 seat. A Kalispell man pleaded guilty to bilking Flathead area investors of nearly $200,000 through felony embezzlement and securities fraud by Ponzi scheme on Dec. 16 in District Court. A 22-year-old Evergreen man who killed a woman before shooting himself in the face will be re-sentenced after the state Supreme Court ruled the original term was not in line with a plea deal signed with prosecutors. The holidays offer a chance to catch up with old friends, and fans of the Flathead music scene are going to have the opportunity to reunite with Bettreena “Betty” Jaeger and Josh Harvey once again.

Potential jurors staged a "mutiny" during a felony drug case, a Missoula County prosecutor says, and authorities worry the result will be viewed as a game-changer when it comes to future attempts at prosecuting drug cases in Montana. Quarterback Gary Wagner had an 83-yard touchdown run, Tom Yaremko kicked a 22-yard field goal midway through the fourth quarter and Carroll College beat Sioux Falls 10-7 on Saturday in the NAIA championship game, snapping the Cougars' winning streak at 42 games. When the U.S. Census Bureau releases its first 2010 population figures on Tuesday, Montana will once again miss a chance to recover its second congressional seat. The Cascade County Zoning Board of Adjustment has approved a special-use permit to Invenergy to build a 16-turbine wind farm about 20 miles southeast of Great Falls. The Montana Supreme Court is considering restrictions to public access of certain information now available throughout the court system, including a proposal to seal all documents filed in family law cases except for final orders.

 

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Good morning; on the Beacon today, we feature the valley's top athletes in our fall 2010 Best of Preps. As part of an effort to court an industry with enormous potential for growth, Whitefish state Sen. Ryan Zinke is co-director of a project focused on bringing unmanned aerial systems, or drones, to Montana for testing and research. An 18-year-old Polson man has pleaded not guilty to stabbing his mother's boyfriend to death during an argument. And Whitefish Rep. Mike Jopek cautions against plans to encourage nuclear power development in the upcoming Legislative session.

Gov. Brian Schweitzer said Wednesday the state budget picture already looks rosier since last month, using the news to needle Republicans who have taken a more pessimistic outlook. University of Montana cornerback Jimmy Wilson has pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of disorderly conduct for biting a woman's leg over the summer. Montana's two Democratic U.S. senators voted Wednesday with the 81-member Senate majority that approved the tax cut package negotiated by President Barack Obama and leading Republicans. But Montana's sole U.S. House member, Republican Denny Rehberg, said he plans to vote against the deal when it hits the House floor this week. County commissioners with federal land slated to be designated wilderness in Sen. Jon Tester's controversial forest bill blasted his move to insert the measure into a massive spending bill this week. Bozeman's Bridger Bowl has been a successful ski resort, in part because it's a nonprofit. DirecTV Inc. has settled a consumer protection dispute about how it tells customers about cancellation fees and other contract terms.

 

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