The construction season typically peaks during the summer in Montana, and so far this year has been no different.

Road crews began a new project Monday on Benton Avenue.

The work crews will rebuild the street's intersection with Custer Avenue and extend Benton Northward about a half a mile.

Director of Public Works, John Rundquist says, "it will fufill an important need in the city in terms of connecting some streets that needed to be connected and allowing for a smoother flow of traffic through town."

The $980,000 dollar project should be completed by the end of September and will benefit four subdivisions in the area.

In Helena, Erin Yost, Beartooth NBC.
[Posted:   5:27 PM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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City commissioners held a public hearing Monday night on a new chapter in the Helena city code that will issue civil fines to those who allow underage drinking parties at their homes.

Commissioners supported the 'social host ordinance' by a vote of 4 to 1 with an amendment issued.

Originally, landlords were subject to fines if their tenants allowed underage drinking on their properties, but an amendment to the ordinance only allows them to be fined if they knew about the party and didn't do anything about it.

Supporters of the ordinance say underage parties are something that needed to be dealt with.

2008 Capital H.S. Graduate, Kelsey Fanning says, "I feel that in or community, the signs are there. We all have a personal experience with underage drinking and it's time for us to start as adults, as rolemodels, as community members to be proactive."

The maximum fine per incident under the ordinance will be $300.

In Helena, Erin Yost, Beartooth NBC.
[Posted:   10:23 PM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- A federal judge has declined to dismiss charges against a Montana woman accused of stealing a missing South
Carolina woman's identity to get into an Ivy League school.
Esther Reed was indicted last year on federal charges that she used Brooke Henson's personal information to get an Ohio identification card and gain acceptance into Columbia University.
The judge also declined a motion by Reed's attorney that the trial be moved to Columbia or Atlanta. Ann Fitz had argued that Reed couldn't get a fair trial in Greenville because of local news coverage.
Authorities have said they do not think Reed, a native of Townsend, Mont., had anything to do with Henson's disappearance.
She was last seen in 1999.
Prosecutors have said that Reed juggled six false identities and used Henson's name to get student loans when she began attending Columbia in 2004.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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[Posted:   3:14 PM, Tue Jul 8  ]    Back to top

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HELENA, Mont. (AP) -- State Auditor John Morrison says a hearings examiner has ruled in favor of Montana's Securities Department in its case against a Roundup couple and their two companies.
Hearing examiner Michael Rieley also ordered Gordon and Ann Walters and their companies -- Cascade Water Holdings and Cascade Exploration -- to pay $300,000 in fines and $52,000 in restitution.
The department alleged the Walters took money from Montana investors without making honest disclosures about the two Nevada companies and their ability to perform as promised.
According to Morrison's office, Cascade Exploration claimed to be a mineral exploration company while Cascade Water produced "energized water" for consumption.
Rieley concluded that Gordon and Ann Walters issued fake surety bonds, and that neither was properly registered or licensed to sell securities.
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On the Net:
Montana state auditor's office, http://sao.mt.gov/
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
APNP-07-08-08 1239MDT

[Posted:   3:16 PM, Tue Jul 8  ]    Back to top

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A 53-year-old Butte man is in stable condition after being wounded in a drive-by shooting over the weekend.
Butte-Silver Bow Sheriff John Walsh says two suspects were jailed on $250,000 bail each.
Jail records show 21-year-old Robert A. Taylor and 20-year-old
Woody J. Campbell were in custody on suspicion of attempted murder.
The shooting happened around 2:30 a.m. Saturday. Walsh says it stemmed from a dispute between one of the suspects and another man over an ex-girlfriend of the suspect.
Walsh says the victim heard a noise outside and when he opened the door was shot in the arm and upper torso with a .22-caliber weapon. Another shot grazed his neck.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
[Posted:   2:10 PM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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Five days a week, Corina Horstman catches a round-trip commuter van from her home in Ronan to her job in Missoula.
She spends about $108 for a monthly van pass instead of $320 to fill up her Dodge Neon to drive to her job as an administrative assistant at the University of Montana.
With escalating gas prices, people are examining alternatives to driving their cars alone.
Some employers, such as The Resort at Paws Up in Greenough, offer a free commuter shuttle for employees in the Missoula area.
Horstman and others catch one of 12 commuter vans organized by the nonprofit Missoula Ravalli Transportation Management Association.
Several employers, including GlaxoSmithKline in Hamilton, Smurfit Stone Container Corp. in Frenchtown and the University of Montana's Flathead Lake Biological Station in Yellow Bay run free or subsidized commuter vans using the nonprofit's fleet.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[Posted:   11:15 AM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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HELENA, Mont. (AP) -- Carroll College women's basketball coach Shawn Nelson has announced the signing of two recruits.
Miles Community College player Sarah McNamee of Miles City and guard Kirstin King of Anaconda have signed with the Saints.
McNamee averaged 15.6 points, four rebounds and three steals per game, earning honorable mention All-America honors. Miles Community College posted a 31-2 record and advanced to the Region IX
championship game.
King received second-team all-conference honors as a member of the state Class A championship team and holds the school record for the most 3-pointers made in a game. King also played volleyball and
softball at Anaconda.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
APNP-07-07-08 1540MDT

[Posted:   4:11 PM, Tue Jul 8  ]    Back to top

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Ownership of the Yellowstone Club, a mountain residential retreat for the ultra-rich in southwestern Montana, will pass to club co-founder Edra Blixseth as part of a divorce settlement with her estranged husband and co-founder Tim Blixseth.
The Wall Street Journal reported Saturday that Edra Blixseth will take over her husband's 50 percent ownership stake and become sole owner of the club.
The Journal reported the deal is part of the Blixseths' divorce settlement, expected to be finalized soon.
Tim Blixseth declined to comment on the news; and both he and Edra declined to give specifics of the agreement because it is part of a confidential settlement.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[Posted:   11:11 AM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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An 18-year-old Great Falls man faces felony charges for shooting his friend in the leg with what he believed was an unloaded gun.
Great Falls police Lt. Tito Rodriguez says Kirk Jordan was arrested Sunday evening on suspicion of felony criminal endangerment after allegedly shooting his 17-year-old friend that afternoon.
Lt. Tito Rodriguez says the 17-year-old's injuries appear to be non-life-threatening.
The victim, whose name hasn't been released, told police that Jordan pointed the pistol at the victim's leg over his objections and then pulled the trigger. The bullet hit the victim's left leg and then went into his right foot.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
[Posted:   12:02 PM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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Yesterday, Airman Mitchell Fields prepared himself for what he said was just another day of running.
Fields runs from Malmstrom Air Force Base to the airport here in Great Falls and back almost every day...at a distance of twenty miles.
His goal yesterday, however, was thirty-two miles from Great Falls and eventually, all the way to Billings in order to raise awareness and funds for the Red Cross' Disaster Relief Fund.
This is the first time Fields has run for a cause and says his choice of charity was an easy one for him to make.
"Well recently, the last year, my sister had a flood in South Dakota, my brother was at the bridge collapse in Minnesota, and my Mom and Dad had landslides in Wisconsin. Each time, the Red Cross was there to help out the communities. So this is a way for me to kind of pay them back."
Local sponsors such as Albertson's and Scheels have donated plenty of goods to help him along the way.
Both Fields and the Red Cross are pleased with the amount of local support they have gained.
"I'd say the community in Great Falls is just immensely supportive of the Red Cross right now in their time of need."
Airman Fields says he aspires to do many more fund raising runs in the future.
For more information on how you can donate to the Red Cross, log on to www.montanaredcross.org or call the chapter headquarters at 727-2212, and be sure to mention Airman Fields' run.
[Posted:   10:48 AM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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HELENA, Mont. (AP) -- Advocacy and special interest groups pushing politicians to embrace universal access to medical coverage are targeting Montana.
Health Care for America Now says it will challenge political candidates to embrace affordable health care coverage for all. The campaign will spend at least $60 million in at least 40 states.
Former congressman Pat Williams is leading the effort in Montana. He says the next president and Congress will be pushed by public demand to confront the issue.
U.S. Sen. Jon Tester says he looks forward to working with the group.
The group says they will be talking to Tester, Sen. Max Baucus, Rep. Denny Rehberg and Gov. Brian Schweitzer.
A top goal is to encourage lawmakers to devise a plan to either let consumers keep their current private coverage, choose a new insurance plan or join a government-run plan.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
APNP-07-08-08 1440MDT

[Posted:   4:09 PM, Tue Jul 8  ]    Back to top

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FORSYTH, Mont. (AP) -- A spokesman for BNSF Railway says it will take about a month to clean up spilled coal and other materials, from a site where ten coal cars and a locomotive derailed early Monday near Forsyth.
One coal car and the locomotive were partially submerged in the Yellowstone River, which runs next to the tracks along Interstate 94.
BNSF spokesman Gus Melonas says all the derailed equipment has
now been moved to higher ground. He says a temporary track around the derailment site allowed train traffic to resume at about 8 this morning.
A new track will be built, and Melonas says engineers are looking at building it farther from the river, away from areas of potential erosion due to high water.
He says the ten derailed cars will be cut up for scrap at the site and hauled away. The locomotive will be taken to a railway shop for further inspection and any necessary repairs.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
APNP-07-08-08 1437MDT

[Posted:   4:08 PM, Tue Jul 8  ]    Back to top

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HELENA, Mont. (AP) -- Republican U.S. Rep. Denny Rehberg says the House Appropriations Committee has passed a measure to keep the
phrase "The Last Best Place" from being trademarked.
Rehberg says he included language in the House Commerce, Justice and Science appropriations bill. Democratic Sen. Max Baucus included identical language in the Senate funding bill in mid-June.
The trademark battles dates to 2002, when Las Vegas businessman David Lipson tried to gain exclusive rights to the term for his Resort at Paws Up in the Blackfoot Valley, as well as other businesses.
The language in the bill prohibits the U.S. Department of Commerce from spending funds to approve a trademark. Each request is effective for only a year because it is tied to the department's
budget.
"The Last Best Place" is a well-known Montana slogan first popularized as the title of a 1988 anthology co-edited by Missoula writers William Kittredge and Annick Smith.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
APNP-07-08-08 1432MDT

[Posted:   4:07 PM, Tue Jul 8  ]    Back to top

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WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Senate has unanimously confirmed the dean of the University of Montana School of Law to serve on the oversight board of the Internal Revenue Service.
E. Edwin Eck II was nominated by the president to serve a five-year term and was confirmed by the Senate on Monday night.
An expert in tax law, Eck began teaching at the University of Montana in 1981 and was appointed dean in 1995. He was raised in Lewistown, Montana.
The oversight board is made up of nine members who supervise the agency, including the secretary of the treasury and the commissioner of internal revenue.
Montana Sen. Max Baucus is chairman of the Senate Finance Committee and helped create the IRS oversight board in 1998.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
APNP-07-08-08 1342MDT
[Posted:   3:19 PM, Tue Jul 8  ]    Back to top

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BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) -- Billings police are investigating a series of fires in a two-block area on the city's south side and a marijuana growing operation found in a house damaged by fire.
Detectives confiscated about 50 marijuana plants and thousands of dollars in equipment Tuesday.
The first fire was reported shortly after 4 a.m. A large shed was destroyed and a house was damaged.
Sgt. Jason Gartner says rags were stuffed into the gas tanks of five vehicles and set on fire. One of the cars was damaged.
Two males in the area ran when they spotted officers. They have been detained and were being questioned as was another suspect possibly involved in the drug operation.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
APNP-07-08-08 1243MDT

[Posted:   3:17 PM, Tue Jul 8  ]    Back to top

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COLUMBIA FALLS, Mont. (AP) -- Columbia Falls Aluminum expects to lay off about 125 hourly workers when it shuts down a pot line later this month.
Soaring power prices are the main reason that CFAC officials announced a curtailment in aluminum production at the plant this spring. The company gave a 60-day notice of pending layoffs on May 21 and plans to start laying people off over an 11-day period
starting on July 21.
CFAC spokesman Haley Beaudry says salaried workers will also be laid off.
Beaudry says shutting down one pot line can leave between 120 and 160 people out of work.
Beaudry says when the layoff decision was made in May, electricity had been predicted to be near $100 per megawatt hour by August. But one quote Monday morning put national markets at $110 per megawatt hour.
Those laid off will be eligible for 26 weeks of unemployment benefits. It's unclear how long the layoff will last.
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(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
APNP-07-08-08 1255MDT

[Posted:   3:18 PM, Tue Jul 8  ]    Back to top

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FORSYTH, Mont. (AP) -- BNSF Railway says its rail line in the Forsyth area has been reopened.
Spokesman Gus Melonas says a temporary track around a derailment site allowed train traffic to resume about 8 a.m. Tuesday.
A locomotive and 10 coal cars plunged about 50 feet early Monday from a track undermined by high water flow on the Yellowstone River near Forsyth, about 100 miles northeast of Billings.
By Monday night, crews had pulled all 10 of the cars and the trailing locomotive up the bank. They also had pumped about 2,500 gallons of diesel fuel from the locomotive, which was about one-third submerged.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
APNP-07-08-08 1138MDT

[Posted:   3:15 PM, Tue Jul 8  ]    Back to top

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HELENA, Mont. (AP) -- U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will speak at a July 26 brunch in Missoula on behalf of the group Western Progress.
Pelosi is a California Democrat and the first woman elected U.S. House speaker.
Former Montana Congressman Pat Williams says Pelosi will be in Montana to attend a wedding and wanted to help Western Progress, a nonpartisan, eight-state group that advocates "progressive
solutions in the Rocky Mountain states."
The group has offices in Phoenix, Denver and Missoula. The brunch will be at the Hilton Garden Inn. Tickets are $15 apiece and reservations can be made by calling (406) 829-6603.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
APNP-07-08-08 0827MDT
[Posted:   3:13 PM, Tue Jul 8  ]    Back to top

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A legislative committee will meet July 16 in Helena to review public comments on carbon sequestration and publicly owned power.
Additional comments will be accepted during the meeting.
The Energy and Telecommunications Interim Committee will meet at 9 a.m. in Room 102 of the state Capitol.
In June, the committee asked for public comment on two draft reports, one dealing with public power and the other with carbon sequestration, the storage of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in underground geological formations, cropland and forest land.
The committee will review those comments at the July 16 meeting.
The panel is considering two draft bills related to carbon sequestration and will hear public comment on those also.
------
On the Net:
The draft reports and legislation are available on the committee
Web page at:
www.leg.mt.gov/etic
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
[Posted:   2:11 PM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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A Yellowstone County sheriff's deputy has been placed on routine administrative leave after shooting a man who authorities say tried to run officers over with his car.
The man was hospitalized with gunshot wounds to his hand and
forearm. Undersheriff Jay Bell didn't release the man's name, but said he is a 25-year-old Billings man with an extensive traffic and criminal record.
Law enforcement reports say deputies tried to pull the man over
at about 11:30 p.m. Saturday. The man drove off and lost control of his car during a chase through Lockwood.
Deputies say when they approached his vehicle, the man drove his car toward them. Deputy Clay Hackbarth fired two shots at the car, hitting the driver.
The man has not been charged.
Hackbarth is on administrative leave, which is standard after an
officer-involved shooting.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[Posted:   12:38 PM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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At a meeting next week in Kalispell, Montana's Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission will make final decisions on fishing access sites in eastern Montana, upland game bird seasons and hunting access agreements.
Up for tentative approval are the early season migratory bird
regulations, elk plan objectives adjustments and other items.
The commission will meet Thursday, July 17, at Kalispell's Red Lion Inn beginning at 8:30 a.m.
At 8:45, the Commission will consider a status update on the
Westslope Cutthroat Conservation Project in the South Fork of the
Flathead drainage. The project seeks to remove hybrid trout from 21 lakes in the drainage and replace them with native westslope cutthroat trout.
The public will be invited to comment on the project.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
[Posted:   12:04 PM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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As of July 1, Congress is providing the nation's neediest college students with more federal financial aid and greater access to federal loans than ever before.
Mick Hanson is director of the University of Montana's financial
aid office. He says the increase in available aid for students is unprecedented.
Hanson says Congress voted to increase the money for Pell Grants, and the borrowing capabilities available with Stafford loans. He says that, in his 38 years in the business, this is the biggest increase he's seen in student financial aid.
This past spring, the nation graduated 3.3 million high school
students, the highest number in its history; and a record number of college students -- some 18.3 million -- are projected to enter college during the 2008-09 academic year.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[Posted:   11:18 AM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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The earth underneath railroad tracks gave way early today, derailing several freight cars and spilling an unknown amount of coal into the Yellowstone River.
No injuries were reported, and the coal was not believed to pose a health risk.
It's unknown if any diesel fuel spilled into the river.
A spokesman for BNSF Railway -- Gus Melonas -- says ten of the train's 123 coal cars and its trailing locomotive derailed at about 1:15 this morning, four miles west of Forsyth.
One coal car and the locomotive are partially submerged in the river, which runs next to the tracks along Interstate 94.
The railroad has cleanup and construction crews on the scene.
The train originated in Decker and was headed to Superior, Wisconsin.
Melonas says the derailment will not affect Amtrak rail passenger traffic.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
[Posted:   11:16 AM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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Over the past two decades, government agencies killed more than 6,000 wild bison leaving Yellowstone National Park. The goal is to contain a serious livestock disease the bison carry.
But the crosshairs are shifting to a new target -- elk -- as the disease infects cattle in parts of Wyoming and Montana where bison haven't roamed for decades.
The disease brucellosis causes pregnant cattle to abort their young. State officials say elk from infected herds around Yellowstone must be culled.
It's a prized big game species, and outfitters and hunters are digging in against the idea. They're concerned that too much hunting could shrink elk herds. They argue that wildlife managers should focus on vaccinating cattle or eradicating the disease in
bison -- not on capturing and killing elk.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
[Posted:   11:05 AM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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Montana's senior U.S. Senator was on hand to celebrate the 4th of July in Butte alongside Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama, and says it was a good day for all Montanans.
Obama spoke briefly to crowds Friday during Butte's annual 4th of July celebrations, stating, among other concerns, his hope for change in America.
Senator Max Baucus says he is reminded of former President John F. Kennedy, and his consistent strive for change in the country.
"Barack Obama, who he is and what he represents, tapping into a desire for change in America, I think is on the cusp, the threshold of helping lead our country to a whole new era. So it's exciting on a lot of levels and we're very lucky to have him here in Butte.”
Senator Baucus says voters typically have to work to find out who a candidate really is and what they are about.
He says Montanans are very fortunate to hear from a candidate on such a personal level.

[Posted:   11:03 AM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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The Montana Highway Patrol is running more than $330-thousand over budget on its annual gasoline bill this summer and is using money for gas that had been earmarked to hire more officers.
To save money, the Highway Patrol is slowly phasing out its V-8 Ford Crown Victoria cruisers and replacing them with V-6 Chevrolet Impalas.
The patrol is one of many state agencies struggling to absorb higher gasoline prices.
The agency is struggling under the same weight as all Montanans.
Triple A says gas prices are 33 percent higher this summer in many Montana cities than a year ago.


[Posted:   10:58 AM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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The Fort Peck Tribal Executive Board has declared a healthcare emergency on the reservation, and has asked Congress to look into delivery of medical care by the Indian Health Service.
Tribal medical director James Melbourne says the crisis has been building for years, due to a lack of funding and a lack of leadership in the IHS.
He says the tribe has spent $16 to $20-thousand dollars to provide kidney dialysis machines and replace them every couple of years.
Melbourne says the IHS lacks ultrasound machines and other diagnostic equipment and doesn't have a nurse to assist in childbirths.
Senator Max Baucus of Montana says he hopes the Indian Healthcare Improvement Act will resolve the problems.
It was passed overwhelmingly by the Senate in February and is pending in the House.

[Posted:   10:54 AM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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Montana law enforcement agencies have another tool to find missing children and adults, thanks to a new program in the Division of Criminal Investigation at the Montana Department of Justice.

The new program is called the Missing and Endangered Person Advisory, or MEPA.

It's an alternative to the better-known Amber Alert Program.

But, this program differs in the fact that it tracks run-aways, missing children, children involved in custody disputes or missing adults... something Director of Criminal Justice Investigation Mike Batista says Amber Alert does not do.

"Law enforcement had wanted something like this because they do, they get a lot of reports about missing children, missing adults and don't know whether the circumstances are of a criminal nature or it's just a situation where somebody is unable to be located."

An MEPA has not yet been issued... However Batista says there have been situations in the Flathead Valley and Missoula that could have benefitted from one.

In Helena, Erin Yost, Beartooth NBC.
[Posted:   6:56 PM, Mon Jun 30  ]    Back to top

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The number of salmonella cases keeps growing.
The government says the record outbreak has now sickened 943 people, putting at least 130 in hospitals.
Tomatoes are still the leading suspect -- but other types of fresh produce are being tested as well.
Investigators aren't saying exactly what vegetables are getting tracked but that they're looking at items commonly served with fresh tomatoes.
The Food and Drug Administration is looking at several possibilities. Maybe tomatoes and other produce shared a common packing or shipping site where both might become contaminated. Or multiple foods might have been tainted while being grown on
adjoining farms or with common water sources.
Officials say some patients have told the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention they ate raw tomatoes in fresh salsa and guacamole.


On the Net:
Food and Drug Administration: http://tinyurl.com/45gsfx
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
http://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/saintpaul/

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[Posted:   11:20 AM, Mon Jul 7  ]    Back to top

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