Montana VA Health Care System encourages all Montana Veterans and non-Veterans to share the news — the Veterans Crisis Line is adding a new number. Veterans and their loved ones can dial 988 then Press 1 to reach the caring, qualified responders at the Veterans Crisis Line, 24/7. Even after the new number launches, Veterans will still be able to call 800-273-8255 and press 1, chat at VeteransCrisisLine.

Governor Greg Gianforte joined members of the Governor’s Housing Task Force last week for its first meeting. “Nationwide, we have seen prices soar in recent years as housing supply has sputtered, along with a confluence of other factors. Montana is not immune to those trends,” Gianforte said in opening remarks to the task force at the State Capitol. “When it comes down to it, the health

Visits with state Farm Bureau leaders, public policy staff and federal agencies highlighted the summer meeting season last week as Montana Farm Bureau President Cyndi Johnson and Senior Governmental Affairs Director Nicole Rolf attended the American Farm Bureau Council of Presidents and Public Policy Conference. Additionally, a group of western state Farm Bureau presidents met with officials from

More than half of American farmers will reach retirement age in the next 10 years, but the steep price of entry to start a farm, along with rising input costs and volatile markets, make it tough for young and beginning farmers to take their places. “Farming is inherently a risky business, but in the environment we are in right now, that risk is elevated,” Nathan Kauffman, vice president

Montana Farmers Union is issuing a call for candidates for its 2022 elections. “A contested election is healthy for the board and the membership. It encourages the debate of ideas and creates a better leadership group,” MFU president Walter Schweitzer said. The two-year vice president position, as well as three-year director terms for Districts 2, 6 and 5/6 at-large are up for grabs at

The Montana Supreme Court unanimously decided last week to void sanctions and a contempt order filed earlier this year against the Office of State Public Defenders by a Yellowstone County district judge. In the past year, Yellowstone County District Judge Donald Harris twice found OPD in contempt of court for not promptly assigning counsel to defendants, resulting in $24,000 worth of fines.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the U.S. District Court District of Montana welcomed 48 U.S. citizenship candidates when they were naturalized Thursday, July 21, at the Russell Smith Federal Courthouse during two ceremonies. This is the second of three naturalization ceremonies this year in Missoula. Judge Kathleen DeSoto presided over the 11 a.m. ceremony and Judge Donald W.

The Montana Historical Society Research Center, as well as some galleries, will close in the upcoming months in preparation for the 2025 opening of the Montana Heritage Center in Helena. The Homeland gallery, which examines life in Montana’s past, already is partially shuttered as artifacts are inventoried and stored before their eventual inclusion into expanded exhibits in the new Heritage

The number of Montanans employed grew in June 2022 for the 14th consecutive month, reaching a new alltime high, according to data from the Montana Department of Labor and Industry and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Also in the month of June, Montana’s labor force grew to its largest level on record, and the state’s unemployment rate remained near historic lows. “More Montanans