Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana
Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana
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Whitehall Indivisible (WI) discussed the five candidates from last week’s Meet & Greet and drafted a list of guest speakers we would like to hear from in the fall. We aim to be as informed as possible as we cast our ballots in November. More money has been paid to stop renewable energy projects mid-production, this time $734M in addition to the $2B that has already been spent in this manner. The Trump administration has also allowed only one permit (public and private land) for renewable energy projects since taking office. This tone-deaf a... Full story
The Montana-based group promoting a ballot initiative to make campaign finance more transparent obscures its own financial backers through a murky fundraising structure, according to publicly available campaign finance filings reviewed by Montana Free Press. The Transparent Election Initiative is a nonprofit organization pushing to “stop corporate and dark money cold” in elections. The group is currently aiming to pass a citizen’s initiative — known as The Montana Plan, or I-194 — that would prohibit political spending by “artifici...
SUNDAY, JUNE 21 00:19:24 Traffic Stop: I-90 01:00:13 Citizen Assist 01:51:52 Reckless Driver: I-90 06:49:33 Medical: Stanley St 11:12:37 Traffic Hazard 11:30:27 Medical: Coyote Trl 15:36:34 Traffic Hazard 17:08:22 Criminal Mischief: W Legion St 19:17:01 Trespass: E Legion St 20:02:08 Traffic Stop: N Whitehall St 20:21:07 Traffic Stop: W Legion St MONDAY, JUNE 22 08:03:46 Traffic Stop: Hwy 359 08:21:25 Traffic Stop: Hwy 359 08:33:11 Traffic Stop: Hwy 359 08:50:59 Citizen Assist: N Division St 09:...
Whitehall Indivisible (WI) attended one of several candidate Meet & Greets in lieu of our regular weekly meeting, held at the historic Whitehall Star Theatre on Wednesday, June 17th. Five candidates spoke briefly, then fielded questions from the audience. The candidates in attendance were the three sheriff candidates: Tom Grimsrud (incumbent), Dave Kosola, and Tom Voigt; District 2 County Commissioner candidate Richard Rhodes, and one HD 75 candidate, Pat Sullivan. Richard Rhodes is running against Cory Kirsch (incumbent), who was not present,...
SUNDAY, JUNE 14 07:31:38 Traffic Stop: Hwy 55 10:22:44 911: Hwy 2 W 14:27:24 Traffic Offense: I-90 15:26:19 Agency Assist: I-90 16:40:35 Dog at Large: Yellowstone Trl 17:04:25 Reckless Driver: I-90 17:05:48 Citizen Contact: W Legion St 17:31:22 Welfare Check: Hwy 2 E 17:47:12 Wildlife 19:20:22 Fire/Smoke Report: Cottonwood Rd 22:42:08 Vehicle Accident (Non-Injury): Hwy 2 W 22:46:31 911: Hwy 2 W MONDAY, JUNE 15 00:24:09 Agency Assist: Rolu Rd 01:23:43 Citizen Contact: W Legion St 09:42:09 Agency...
A 2026 Election Candidate Meet & Greet will be held at the Star Theatre (25 W Legion) in the upstairs Great Room on Wednesday, June 17th at 6:30 PM. This meet & greet is not a candidate forum, but an opportunity to meet the candidates personally, interact, and ask your questions in a public but personal setting. Light refreshments will be provided. Please enter through the Star Theatre’s main doors, then go up the stairs immediately to the right of the ticket booth. This event has been organized by DeDe Rhodes. The following candidates have bee... Full story
The Transparent Election Initiative announced Tuesday that The Montana Plan, Initiative 194, is set to qualify for the November ballot after an all-volunteer campaign collected nearly 50,000 signatures from voters in all 56 Montana counties in just 13 weeks — far surpassing Montana’s 30,121-signature statewide qualification threshold. To qualify for the ballot, I-194 must receive 30,121 verified signatures statewide and meet Montana’s geographic distribution requirement by collecting signatures equal to at least 5% of the vote cast for gover...
Whitehall Indivisible (WI) once again rolled its eyes as hand-breaking, cracked-wing Senator Sheehy referred to our group as a "Communist Insurgent Operation," while his faction continues to allow Putin and the Russians to bomb Ukraine, support Iran, and interfere in US elections. The primary action item of the week is to make phone calls to your Congressmen on the Major Richard Star Act Discharge Petition, urging them to force action. All four Montana delegates have supported the now-stalled...
Conservation groups have filed at least three separate appeals seeking to halt the Trump administration's decision to evict more than 900 bison from large swaths of federal land in central Montana. The administration's decision in early May to rescind American Prairie's bison grazing permits marked a victory for ranching groups who see the iconic native mammal as a threat to their livestock operations and way of life. Among those who advocated to remove the bison was the Montana Stockgrowers...
SUNDAY, JUNE 7 10:11:54 Reckless Driver: I-90 10:54:40 Reckless Drive: I-90 11:03:20 Reckless Driver: I-90 11:29:46 Suicide Threats: W First St 19:44:33 Hit & Run: Jewett Ln 22:10:27 Welfare Check: East St MONDAY, JUNE 8 04:56:41 Medical: Corbett Loop 06:27:51 Citizen Assist: N Main St 08:20:26 Suspicious: E Legion St 08:46:39 Citizen Assist: Holdsworth Rd 13:33:52 Traffic Stop: Pipestone Rd 15:03:36 Traffic Stop: I-90 15:39:52 Traffic Stop: I-90 16:01:18 Citizen Assist: W Legion St 16:54:19...
A 2026 Election Candidate Meet & Greet will be held at the Star Theatre (25 W Legion) in the upstairs Great Room on Wednesday, June 17th at 6:30 PM. This meet & greet is not a candidate forum, but an opportunity to meet the candidates personally, interact, and ask your questions in a public but personal setting. Light refreshments will be provided. Please enter through the Star Theatre's main doors, then go up the stairs immediately to the right of the ticket booth. This event has been...
M-44s are spring-loaded devices stuck in the ground and scented with decomposed animal tissue. They blast cyanide into the mouth of any creature that bites and pulls them. They were introduced in 1967, to replace gunpowder-driven Coyote Getters. M-44s are designed to kill coyotes, foxes and feral dogs that sometimes prey on sheep and newborn cattle. They also kill at least 150 nontarget species. This April 15, the Trump administration lifted former President Biden’s M-44 ban on the Bureau of Land Management’s 245 million acres, and once aga...
SUNDAY, MAY 31 06:46:04 Traffic Stop: I-90 07:34:25 Traffic Stop: Hwy 359 08:30:28 Found Property: Forcella Rd 08:48:00 Traffic Stop: W Legion St 09:06:39 Traffic Stop: Hwy 55 14:06:52 Trespass: Cold Springs Rd 16:46:44 Civil: Prospector Loop 17:35:40 911 18:40:11 Custodial Interference: N Whitehall St 19:54:24 Gas Leak/Odor: Capp Ln 21:15:55 Transport (Prisoner or Other) 21:47:33 Suicide Threats 21:57:21 Suicide Threats: Prairie Dog Ln MONDAY, JUNE 1 01:36:17 Traffic Hazard: I-90 09:56:03 Struc...
Whitehall Indivisible (WI) will continue to learn about residential solar installations at the June 3rd meeting at 6 PM in the Whitehall School Library. Backup power, net metering, off-grid, or partial supply are all options, with the latest technology and lower costs facilitating the process. WI continues to gather signatures in SW Montana for the Transparent Election Initiative. If you would like to sign, go to montanaplan.org and click “I want to sign.” The deadline for signatures is June 19th. In local data center news, Sabey has off...
Many Montanans are increasingly struggling to afford healthcare, fuel and groceries, according to a Montana Free Press-Eagleton poll of registered voters conducted in late April and early May. Jeffrey Michael, director of the University of Montana's Bureau of Business and Economic Research, explained that inflation is at the top of people's minds as prices increase and the cost of living remains high. The U.S. consumer price index jumped 3.8% last month from April 2025. "Housing continues to be...
SUNDAY, MAY 24 00:50:52 Traffic Stop: I-90 05:00:29 Medical: Hwy 359 06:43:35 Animal: Hwy 69 08:35:00 Traffic Stop: I-90 08:58:46 Traffic Stop: I-90 11:25:47 Citizen Assist: Kelly Rd 13:02:39 Reckless Driver: I-90 13:11:09 Citizen Assist: Hwy 2 W 13:24:58 Suspicious: Whitetail Rd 14:01:15 Parking: Yellowstone Trl 15:40:30 Traffic Stop: Commercial Way 16:05:37 Traffic Stop: W Legion St 16:17:38 Traffic Stop: Hwy 359 16:25:23 Traffic Stop: Hwy 359 16:33:05 Citizen Contact 16:41:13 Extra Patrol:...
Gov. Greg Gianforte announced on Tuesday, May 19 that the U.S. Department of Agriculture had approved his request to prohibit people from purchasing soft drinks, junk food and candy with SNAP, the food assistance program funded by the federal government. The state’s March waiver requesting the restrictions, circulated by Gianforte’s office Tuesday and signed by Department of Public Health and Human Services director Charlie Brereton, outlines the state’s goal to assess the impact of limiting “nutrient-poor food items on SNAP households in Mont...
SUNDAY, MAY 17 06:51:16 Traffic Stop: Pipestone Rd 08:20:44 Traffic Stop: I-90 08:32:12 Traffic Stop: E Legion St 08:52:12 Fire-Structure: Cedar Crest Rd 09:11:04 Traffic Stop 09:34:42 Animal 10:15:59 Traffic Stop: Hwy 359 10:32:30 Traffic Stop: Hwy 359 10:47:36 Fraud: Rustler Rd 10:50:36 Traffic Stop: Hwy 359 12:50:20 Civil Standby: Felswald Rd 13:46:42 Traffic Stop: Lower Rader Creek 13:52:20 Citizen Assist 14:08:38 Animal: Hot Springs Rd 14:13:52 Traffic Stop: Hot Springs Rd 14:57:59 Traffic...
At the May 18 meeting of the Whitehall Town Council, held in the Whitehall Town Chambers, discussion during a public hearing on proposed water reinstallation fees drew the most extensive public comment, while later in the meeting, former Deputy Clerk Sarah Unruh publicly explained her reasons for resigning from town government. The public hearing centered on a proposed resolution establishing modern water reinstallation fees for suspended water service accounts. During public comment, Whitehall resident Chris Rosa said, “I want to begin by m...
The Transparent Election Initiative (TEI) today launched sign.montanaplan.org, a website that guides Montana voters through submitting their own signatures for ballot measure I-194, also called “The Montana Plan,” which aims to eliminate corporate political spending and dark money influence in Montana elections. The “Print, Sign, Submit” process is designed to make signature gathering more accessible to rural voters & households across Montana. The new website provides a printable page and detailed instructions for signing and mailing signatu...
Whitehall Indivisible (WI) meetings have lately been dominated by conversation about power: the kind that keeps the lights on and the trucks rolling, and the kind that greases the wheels of the political process. Leonard Wortman resurrected the idea of "The Montana Energy Park" through Hydrogen Future Industries, a first-of-its-kind wind energy project with 1GW+ energy generation capacity and hydrogen energy storage proposed at the Sunlight Business Park. We will have a formal presentation in...
The dictionary definition of use is “to employ for some purpose.” The definition of conserve is “to keep from loss, decay or waste.” So is conservation a use? In the matter of managing 245 million acres overseen by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, the new answer is no. On June 11, the BLM will rescind the Conservation and Landscape Health Rule. That’s a change from just a year ago, when BLM declared that conservation was a co-equal option to uses such as mining, grazing or energy development on public land. Before that Biden-adm...
SUNDAY, MAY 10 00:32:56 Extra Patrol: N Whitehall St 02:48:48 Burglar Alarm: N Whitehall St 07:48:08 Traffic Stop: N Whitehall St 07:59:14 Traffic Stop: W Legion St 09:28:20 911: W Olive St 11:36:42 Wildlife 14:26:05 Domestic Violence: Robbins Ln 14:55:42 Medical: Stanley St 15:19:39 Protection Order Violation: Fish Creek Rd 16:39:56 Medical: Skyline Dr 20:34:07 Hit & Run: Piedmont Rd MONDAY, MAY 11 06:10:18 Traffic Stop: E Legion St 07:51:23 Traffic StopL: N Division St 08:47:44 911:...
Next Wednesday's agenda is designed to give an overview of our group's origin, focus, "funding," and reasons for meeting. If you've ever considered coming to see what we are about, Wednesday, May 20th, is designed for you. Last Tuesday, nine of us attended the Jefferson County Commissioners' meeting to discuss our concerns about data center development in Jefferson County. The interactions of the federal process, state permitting, and local control are a little muddy, but the conversation was...
In Montana, we are fortunate to have incredible access to our world-class waterways. This hard-fought public access is the result of decades of conflict, compromise and old-fashioned Montana values. In addition to having some of the best stream access laws in the West, Montana is exponentially privileged that thousands of landowners across the state allow public access for hunting and fishing. A huge thanks to the countless Montana families that have established generational public access on or across private lands because they believe it’s t...
