The new year begins with the prospect of big changes to the Montana state Constitution that have been drafted by GOP lawmakers and opposed by conservation groups and others.

The Republican-controlled Legislature has already introduced almost four dozen measures to change the document, which dates to the early 1970s. It's the first GOP super-majority in a half-century, and seems determined to change what has long been considered a "progressive" document that protects the state's natural resources.

Jeanne Marie Souvigney, treasurer of the Montana Conservation Voters Education Fund, said lawmakers are irritated that the state Supreme Court found two laws unconstitutional, which she said could have allowed pollution to degrade the Blackfoot River and Paradise Valley.

"In both cases," she said, "the environmental damage could have been irreversible and the remedies too late to make a difference, threatening both those landscapes."

While close to 50 constitution related bill requests have been made before the Legislature even gavels in next week, typically only a third of them become bills that can be debated by lawmakers. But it is still nearly four times the number of similar requests made in the last session. In addition to environmental policy, there are measures that would change policies on college campuses, gender identity and abortion.

The Conservation Voters group has launched an effort to teach the public and lawmakers about the uniqueness and importance of the document.

Mae Nan Ellingson, who was one of the original delegates to the Montana Constitutional Convention and is one of only ten remaining, called the move to make major changes, including giving the Legislature more power than the courts, dangerous.

"The proposals that I have seen go a long way to destroy the integrity of this notion of three equal branches of government," she said, "with separation of power and checks and balances."

The Montana Legislature convenes next Monday.

Tennesseans aren't the only ones mourning the tragic loss of three children and three adults at this week's shooting at Nashville's Covenant School.

Columbia Mayor Chaz Molder found out about the shooting while attending the National League of Cities Conference in the nation's capital. Molder has a personal connection to Pastor Chad Scruggs, whose 9-year-old daughter Hallie was one of the three children who lost their lives. Molder said the tragedy overshadowed the conference. He said First Lady Jill Biden was the keynote speaker and let the crowd know what had happened.

"There was a very large vigil to honor all of the six victims, and to just know that these events should not become a part of our normal daily life, and unfortunately, that has been the case," he said. "And so hopefully, this will serve as a wakeup call to all of those who have the ability to impact a change on these events."

The K-12 School Shooting Database has recorded 90 gun-related incidents at schools so far this year. Including the deaths in Nashville this week, 75 people have been killed or injured in 2023, not including the shooters.

Columbia is 40 miles south of Nashville, with a population of about 40,000.

Molder said one theme of the National League of Cities Conference was making sure that leaders are using every available resource from the federal government, including American Rescue Plan Act funds. He said ARPA money is being put to use in his city.

"Columbia, specifically, is in the process of its largest capital infrastructure project in history for the city. That's a $60 million wastewater treatment plant expansion and improvement project," he said. "And fortunately for us, approximately $5 million flowed down from ARP funds to allow us to sort of jumpstart that project."

Molder said the conference provided the opportunity for mayors to visit Capitol Hill, where he met with Tennessee senators and heard from Cabinet secretaries and other federal leaders.

An Arkansas mayor joined city leaders from across the country for the National League of Cities Congressional City Conference in the nation's capital this week, and discussed some of the most pressing issues facing communities, from transportation to public safety.

Jonas Anderson, mayor of Cave City and president of the Arkansas Municipal League, focused on education, cybersecurity, and workforce training, but said infrastructure took the spotlight. He pointed out federal funding from the American Rescue Plan Act is being put to use at home in Cave City.

"And we were able to utilize those funds to make some major improvements in our water and sewer system," Anderson explained. "We've actually been doing that the last couple of years, we just wrapped up one project on that we're looking forward to doing another one this summer"

The American Rescue Plan Act allocated nearly $2.6 billion to Arkansas for COVID-19 response needs, fill revenue shortfalls, and address the unequal impact of the pandemic on certain populations. The money must be used by Dec. 31, 2024.

As a rural community with fewer than 2,000 residents, Anderson acknowledged Cave City faces funding challenges based on its small population and added he is working with area partners to seek additional money for a revitalization project.

"We've purchased a few historic properties in our old downtown section," Anderson outlined. "We're actually going to renovate those and convert those into City Hall offices, police department building for them to utilize, and then we're going to use one as a kind of a public space pocket park area."

Anderson added Cave City and its partners are also seeking local and federal funds for other projects, and applying for recreation and tourism grants.


get more stories like this via email

Idaho students are not letting their right to vote with a school ID go down without a fight.

Earlier this month, state lawmakers passed legislation to prohibit the use of student IDs as a valid form of identification when voting.

Matt Gordon, an attorney representing the groups Babe Vote and March for Our Lives Idaho, which filed suit to challenge the law, said it is a direct attack on Idaho students' ability to vote.

"When you remove a form of identification that students have and that they can show at the polls for voting, that does make it harder for some students to vote, particularly students for whom that is the only form of acceptable identification that they might have to show at the polls," Gordon contended.

Gordon noted the legislation comes at a time when youth voter registration has surged. An analysis of 2022 compared with 2018 found registration for people ages 18 and 19 in the state jumped 81%, the highest in the nation. Lawmakers who supported the bill said it is needed to counter voter fraud.

However, Gordon noted lawmakers, as well as the Secretary of State, could not cite any cases to support this claim.

"The evidence just isn't there," Gordon argued. "They presented no evidence of any fraud associated with the use of student IDs to vote."

Gordon added the aim is to have this case resolved before the 2024 election, so students understand what kind of identification they need, or need to obtain, to vote next year.

Support for this reporting was provided by The Carnegie Corporation of New York.


get more stories like this via email