A group of Montana law students and young activists launched an organization last week to help facilitate freedom-of-information requests and to educate both the public and policymakers on the state Constitution’s right to know. The founders of the Montana Transparency Project, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, say they want to complement the state’s existing landscape of FOI resources — namely, attorneys — by helping everyday Montanans with the initial steps of requesting public information from their government. “We realized that it can be really hard to know what’s the best way to do this, what’s the timeline, will it cost money, wh...
ST. IGNATIUS — We hope that 2024 will be a gentle year to all. We appreciate all that support the St. Ignatius Senior Center. We invite anyone to come and enjoy one of our meals or call for a takeout meal. Call 406-745-4462 by 10 a.m. on Tuesdays and Fridays and by 2 p.m. on Wednesdays. Mealtimes ar...
POLSON — The banks, courthouse, USPS, county offices, etc. will be closed for the federal holiday honoring Martin Luther King Jr. on Monday, Jan. 15. We will be open. See below for the menu. Because of print deadlines, I am writing this ahead of the Jan. 7 National Championship (FCS) footba...
This story is excerpted from the MT Lowdown, a weekly newsletter digest containing original reporting and analysis published every Friday. In early December 2023, the Federal Railroad Administration announced that it awarded a $500,000 grant to the Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority to explore the feasibili...
RONAN — The Ronan town council met for their last meeting of 2023 on Dec. 27 with new members sworn in. Ellen Kaphammer was sworn in as the council president. She accepted and thanked everyone. “Ellen, you are a veteran council member now,” Mayor Chris Adler said. Lawrence Ra...
ST IGNATIUS — Wishing all a Happy New Year. May 2024 be kind to you and yours and hope the New Year started off gently for each of you. We invite anyone to come and enjoy one of our meals or call for a take-out meal. Call 406-745-4462 by 10 a.m. on Tuesday and Friday and by 2 p.m. on Wednesday. Meal...
RONAN — The Mission Valley Senior Center is located across from St. Luke’s Hospital. We are open Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays for lunch and other activities. Our menu is: Wednesday, Jan. 3: taco bar, salad, dessert Friday. Jan. 5: stew, cinnamon rolls, salad Monday, Jan. 8: ham-bea...
POLSON — It was good to see lots of smiles being shared in this joyous time of year. I’ll try to keep that Christmas spirit alive throughout the year. I have made another resolution to not make resolutions. That is the one I can keep. Off we go into the New Year! The days are getting lon...
POLSON — One local business collected four truckloads of toys and $900 for the Lake County Toys for Tots program on Wednesday, Dec. 20, just in time to provide Christmas gifts for children in need. Lake View Dining and Spirits, otherwise known as The Shoe, put together the fundraiser. Scott Biggs...
HELENA — Government transparency is getting another watchdog in Montana with the creation and launch of the Montana Transparency Project (MTP), a non-profit, nonpartisan initiative dedicated to helping organizations and individuals prepare and keep track of public information requests, educating local ...
