Local News
News from the Montana Department of Administration HELENA — On Friday, June 21, the Department of Administration (DOA) announced its intent to award the medical Third-Party Administrator (TPA) contract for the state’s health plan to the incumbent provider, BlueCross BlueShield of Montana (BCBSMT). In March 2024, the DOA released a Request for Proposal (RFP) to solicit competitive bids to provide the state with TPA services for the state’s medical plan for employees and retirees. The RFP required a modernized approach with cost-saving measures while maintaining full services for employee and retiree populations. After a diverse evaluation committee reviewed and scor...
News from MT Dept. of Commerce HELENA — The Montana Department of Commerce announced recently that eight Montana towns, cities and counties will share more than $317,000 of grant funding to help plan significant community development projects. The funding is through Commerce’s Community Deve...
News from USDA WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is accepting applications for Composting and Food Waste Reduction (CFWR) pilot projects for fiscal year 2024. The cooperative agreements, using remaining funds from the American Rescue Plan Act, are jointly administered by USDA&...
ST. IGNATIUS — The St. Ignatius Firefighters annual fundraising picnic and auction took place for the 26th year on Saturday, June 15, at Old Town Field from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. According to St. Ignatius Fire Chief Paul Adams, the goal for their annual fundraising picnic is to “beat it out of the...
PABLO — A man from Utah began a 1,200-mile bike ride in Pablo last Saturday to bringawareness to the issue of climate change. Combining advocacy for the planet with his personal passion for adventure and cycling, Bill Barron, the Mountain West regional director of Citizens’ Climate Lobby, began h...
HELENA — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is advising people to not eat, sell, or serve any flavor of Diamond Shruumz-brand chocolate bars, cones, or gummies, and that consumers should discard any previously purchased product immediately. Diamond Shruumz-brand products can be purchased onlin...
News from Sloane Stinson, On behalf of MDT RONAN — The Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) and Riverside Contracting Inc. have the following work planned for the week of June 17: Crews are continuing to install streetlights along US Highway 93 and complete site cleanup throughout t...
News from Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen HELENA — Superintendent Elsie Arntzen is pleased to announce that 12 Montana school districts will receive $424,800 in reallocated funds from the American Rescue Plan Homeless Children and Youth (ARP-HCY) program through the U.S. Departm...
News from Carrol Colleg e HELENA — Carroll College named local area students listed below to its 2024 spring semester dean’s list. To be included on the dean’s list, a student must receive a 3.5 grade point average or higher on a 4.0 scale and take at least 12 graded credits in a semest...
