Montana News
Comprehensive coverage of Montana’s statewide news—politics, environment, communities, and culture—delivered with trusted reporting and a local lens.
Judge blocks Election Day voter registration changes
Late voter registration, allowing Montanans to sign up to vote so long as they’re in line before polls officially …
Dems want details on federal wildland fire service
A group of Democratic congressional leaders on Wednesday asked Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to halt creation of a consolidated federal wildland fire service …
Court throws out judgment blaming Montana asbestos deaths on BNSF railroad
BILLINGS (AP) — A federal appeals court has overturned a judge's finding that BNSF Railway contributed to the deaths of two people in a Montana mining town whe…
Many Montana landlords haven’t filed to avoid second-home tax
With a March 1 deadline looming, data from the Montana Department of Revenue indicates that landlords for as many as three-quarters of the state’s rental housing units haven’t applied for an exemption that would sh…
Keep ‘roadless rule’ in place, say former Forest Service officials
ROCK CREEK — Punch more roads through the forest, and you’ll get more people starting fires, fewer bull trout and an even heftier maintenance bill.
Montana business leaders react as Supreme Court nixes many Trump tariffs
As the U.S. Supreme Court declared many of President Donald Trump’s import tariffs unconstitutional Friday, business leaders reached by Montana Free Press were…
Split on property taxes deepens in state GOP
In a visual representation of a deep split among conservatives in Montana, four chairs were laid out on the stage at the Montana GOP kickoff event in Great Fal…
UM’s spring enrollment is up for 5th consecutive year
Spring 2026 enrollment numbers are in, and for the fifth consecutive year, the University of Montana reported more students than the previous year.
Essex ‘blindsided’ by looming closure of historic Izaak Walton Inn
ESSEX — Over the winter, those in the tiny mountain hamlet of Essex, on the southern edge of Glacier National Park, said something felt amiss around LOGE Glaci…
Gianforte reminds Montanans to claim lower property tax rate by March 1
Gov. Greg Gianforte reminded Montana homeowners that they have until March 1 to apply for the 2026 “Homestead Reduced Rate” for property taxes on their primary…
Montana State marks record spring enrollment of 16,373 students
When Cedar Stellon O'Donnell was in high school in Fairbanks, Alaska, she visited Montana State University as part of a tour of colleges she was considering. S…
Montana schools are struggling to pass funding levies
It's getting harder for Montana schools to win voter approval for discretionary funding levies, according to an analysis by the Montana School Boards Association.
Daines gains federal support to strip wilderness potential from Montana sites
Senator Steve Daines received federal agency backing on Thursday for his bill to downgrade three remote Montana landscapes from potential wilderness to regular…
Trump nominates a hospitality executive to lead the National Park Service
President Donald Trump has nominated for director of the National Park Service an executive from a hospitality company that holds extensive contracts with the …
Glacier officials remain mum on plan to end ticketed entry
Five years after Glacier National Park first introduced a ticketed-entry system to handle ever-increasing summer crowds, the park plans on eliminating the at-t…
State to investigate Helena over noncooperation with federal immigration agents
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen said he will investigate the city of Helena for stating that it will not assist U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcemen…