USDA’s Farm Service Agency helped farmers, livestock producers and foresters weather a tough 2020, marked with a pandemic and natural disasters. During the COVID-19 pandemic, FSA continued to deliver farm programs to producers through phone and online tools, using social distancing guidelines. The agency also provided extra flexibilities to its programs, adjusting reporting dates and loan processing

After securing $1.5 billion for farmers facing crop losses due to extreme weather and pushing for more than a year to get the relief into the hands of Montana farmers, U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., has announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture Quality Loss Adjustment Program, which will finally provide relief to producers who suffered crop quality losses in 2018 and 2019. “I’ve been pushing

The fourth annual Mon-Dak Ag Research Summit has moved online due to COVID-19 and features a series of six webinars, each an hour and a half long, focusing on agricultural issues and research applicable to area farmers and ranchers. The 2021-webinar series kicks off on Thursday, Jan. 14, at 10 a.m. with a keynote presentation looking at appropriate fertilizer application decisions in the face

Northwest Farm Credit Services, the Northwest’s leading agricultural lending cooperative, has released its quarterly Market Snapshot reports covering the state of major agricultural commodities in the region. Northwest FCS teams throughout Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington monitor conditions and report outlooks for commodities financed by the co-op. Northwest FCS’ 12-month outlook

•Cancer •Chronic kidney disease •COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) •Down Syndrome •Heart conditions, such as heart failure, coronary artery disease, or cardiomyopathies •Immunocompromised state (weakened immune system) from solid organ transplant •Severe obesity (BMI ≥ 40 kg/m2) •Sickle cell disease •Type 1 & 2 Diabetes mellitus

The Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) recently issued a new load posting for the West Fork Poplar River Bridge located just northeast of Richland in Valley County. The posting is part of a multi-year effort to update load ratings and postings on Montana bridges as mandated by the Federal Highway Administration. In addition, the Montana Department of Transportation recently issued a new

To prepare for the rollout, Fourbear asked the board for security during the events. He said that in previous testing clinics, there were issues with angry individuals and he doesn’t want a repeat. Drivethrough testing clinics have ceased due to poor turnout. Runs Through asked if security was all he needed, or if there were additional staffing issues. The councilwoman was responding to the

U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., announced on Monday, Jan. 11, that Montana will receive more than $71 million from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to combat COVID-19 through large-scale testing and vaccination efforts. Tester secured the $61.5 million for COVID-19 testing and $9,6 million for vaccine distribution through the yearend bipartisan COVID-19 relief and stimulus package.

Jason Brock resigned as high school assistant track coach and Kennett Steele resigned as Southside principal. Trinity Whitmus was approved for hire as a teacher. Anthony Red Cloud was approved for head football coach at the high school. Eric Peterson was approved for assistant track coach at the high school and Joseph Raining Bird and Nick Page were approved for hire as game workers. Reports