Montana Public Radio News

In most states, people with Medicaid coverage will have to prove they're working, volunteering or studying, starting Jan. 1. But Montana is starting that early, and it's sowing confusion and anxiety.

Elections have consistently broken spending records in the state in recent years, largely due to corporate money. A ballot measure known as the Montana Plan aims to eliminate that kind of spending in Montana, sidestepping a controversial U.S. Supreme Court ruling. That would make the state a national legal test case.

Fourteen black bears were killed last week following an investigation at a Bozeman-area home. Game wardens say the bears had stopped relying on natural foods and were completely unafraid of humans.

“Unprecedented.” That's the word wildlife managers keep using to describe bear conflicts in Red Lodge. “This year has really been kind of off the charts in terms of conflicts,” says Chrissy Webb, a spokesperson with Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks.

As the next legislative session draws closer, leadership from the Mountain States Policy Center and Gov. Greg Gianforte's office are trying to gather support for a flat personal income tax for all Montana taxpayers. Advocates promoted the proposal and fielded questions from voters in Helena Thursday.

Montana's Democratic and independent Senate candidates take the gloves off. A TV ad smearing the Republican Senate candidate raises questions about accuracy. The Terminator endorses Montana's Seth Bodnar for Senate. A new billboard targets Republican House candidate Aaron Flint. And a new poll shows Montana gives Trump a lot higher approval rating than the country as a whole.

The independent and Democratic candidates for Senate went head-to-head on campaign funding, tax reform and other policy priorities on Sunday. Democrat Alani Bankhead and independent Seth Bodnar spoke to voters, answering questions from the hosting organization Indivisible Missoula and the crowd.

More than 900 bison owned by American Prairie are at the center of a national debate. The Bureau of Land Management wants them off of federal grazing allotments in northeast Montana. A judge says they can stay temporarily. MTPR's Caroline Weiss sat down with Montana PBS reporter Matt Standal to learn more.

State employees will see big changes to their health care coverage next year. That includes increases to monthly premiums, deductibles and what workers pay per visit to the doctor's office. The state needs to come up with roughly $70 million to cover state workers' health care through next year.

The Environmental Protection Agency announced changes to lead cleanup in Butte, as work continues to clean up toxic legacy mine waste in the city. The decision cut the threshold that triggers cleanup of lead in soils within priority residential areas by nearly a third.

Flathead County has warned of measles exposure in several public places. According to The Flathead City-County Health Department, a person with measles visited spots in the county while infectious earlier this month. Measles is very contagious and can spread through the air, even without direct contact with the inflected person.

Gov. Greg Gianforte Tuesday announced the director of the state health department is leaving for a job in the private sector. Charlie Brereton has led the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services for about four years.

More political action committee money is coming to Montana ahead of the November election. Two large organizations have announced endorsements for two candidates in the state's race for U.S. Senate.

The dangers of unregulated AI are a focal point in the 2026 campaign. Shooting things out of the sky has become a staple of Montana campaign ads. Republicans hope to to keep transgender issues front and center. And a new poll shows the Senate and western district House races tightening.

When kids in Montana experience a mental health crisis, it can be hard to find a facility that can help them. That's because many facilities that offered crisis care for kids have closed. A new youth home opening in Missoula may help fill that gap.

Wildlife officials killed a grizzly bear Tuesday evening near Augusta in response to livestock depredation. Three cattle carcasses were found in the area. Officials say all were killed by a grizzly bear.

Pollution from mining activity in British Columbia is ending up downstream in Montana and Idaho, threatening the health of these shared waterways. A new film by the Idaho Conservation League highlights Indigenous communities impacted by it and solutions in the works. MTPR's Caroline Weiss caught up with the director, Jennifer Ekstrom.

State wildlife officials Tuesday released more information on Montana's latest bear attack. According to Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, evidence collected at the site of the incident confirms a hunter was attacked by a grizzly bear Monday morning.

A Montana man was attacked by a bear Monday morning while he was archery hunting near Augusta.

Thousands more acres will now remain working forestland in northwest Montana, adding to the area's network of conservation easements. The largest piece helps fill in a gap in a string of easements, securing public access to the eastern edge of the Cabinet Mountains.

State health officials last week told lawmakers the rollout of work requirements for people on Medicaid is going well. Montana soft-launched Medicaid work requirements July 1, months ahead of the federal deadline to do so.

Two young adult grizzly bears euthanized in the Lincoln-area were quickly earning a reputation for getting into food-related conflicts. Fish, Wildlife and Parks spokesperson Vivica Crowser says the trouble started in late August. Bears are even more food-focused than normal heading into autumn this year.

Montana Democrats continue to bicker over which candidate to support in the U.S. Senate race. New campaign ads highlight the Iran war, taxes and women. And upcoming debates could be pivotal in that Senate race.

The National Museum of Forest Service History has a new center at its 31-acre campus in Missoula. It's an immersive "forest of stories" honoring the legacy of conservation in the U.S..

When the U.S. Supreme Court overturned federal protections for abortion access four years ago, Montana providers expected to serve more people from neighboring states with bans. But the ability to put medications in the mail upended that expectation and led to more Montanans getting abortions. A federal case in Louisiana could limit that access.

Rep. Ryan Zinke this week announced a proposal to conserve hundreds of thousands of acres in the Blackfoot Valley. The “A River Runs Through It Act” looks to bring together decades of local conservation work to shape the future of 430,000 acres.

The 2026 summer wildfire season continues, but conditions are starting to improve in parts of western Montana

Planned Parenthood of Montana announced this week it's opening a new clinic in Bozeman. The facility will open its doors next year and will provide reproductive health and abortion services. It's been more than 20 years since they've opened a new clinic.

The Trump Administration eliminated billions of dollars in available grants, and remaining funds are proving difficult to access. That includes for a Montana organization working to protect against invasive species. It's still waiting for federal money awarded eight months ago. If the money isn't approved soon, it could be gone for good.

Montana lawmakers have voted to subpoena the Secretary of State. They're ordering a record of what private voter information the office has sent to the federal government.

The search is on for a bear in the Columbia Falls-area that attacked a woman Monday. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks and U.S. Forest Service investigators say a woman who was walking her dog sustained significant injuries following the attack.

The lightning-caused Nature Grove fire, 13 miles east of Hamilton, has grown to nearly 900 acres. Fire managers say it's burning in steep, dense timber and understory vegetation. They're expecting that activity to increase over the next couple of days.

With all the wildfire smoke in Montana skies this summer, have you been surprised it doesn't always smell smokey? Or that it smelled like a campfire under clear skies? It turns out there's a lot that goes into our perception of smoke and how it squares with the Air Quality Index.

Montana's Capitol building is getting a refresh with funding appropriated by the state Legislature. The multi-million dollar restoration has started at the very top.

Montana's general election ballots are finalized, including three ballot initiatives for the November election.

Psychiatrists in Montana say a major insurance company is shortchanging them through a practice called “downcoding.” Psychiatric associations have filed two complaints with state regulators.

An atmospheric river swept across the Pacific Northwest last December, dropping more than a foot of rain – and tens of millions of dollars in damages – in portions of the Cabinet Mountains. Work repairing and stabilizing a stretch of northwest Montana's flood-damaged Libby Creek is now complete.

From special education programs to building renovations, commissioners approved a package of recommendations they believe will help patch holes in Montana's public education system; chief of which is a plan to simplify the schools budget.

A school in Beaverhead County is trying to keep its doors open because the county is struggling to pull in enough tax dollars. Part of the reason the county doesn't have enough money in its coffers is because the federal government stopped paying its full tax bill on public lands.

After Montana's Attorney General made an opinion that would kick two moderate Republican lawmakers off the ballot, a district judge has issued a restraining order on the decision – keeping both lawmakers in the race.

A Libby medical clinic that diagnoses and treats people with asbestos-related diseases abruptly closed this week. Congress set up the clinic and gave Libby-area residents Medicare benefits because exposure to asbestos in the community was so widespread.

Meagher County is experiencing a unique countertrend among Montana's rural counties. According to new research, it's become known for grassroots entrepreneurship and growth. One example, the Central Montana Food Hub, aims to improve the area's business infrastructure and local food access.