Missoula County authorities have released the names of the two people who died in a shooting near Lolo. A yearlong federal review shows coal sales from public lands need to be modernized to deal with climate change and give taxpayers a fair return. The neo-Nazi website proposing an armed march through Whitefish on Martin Luther King Day now says it’s postponing its planned demonstration, after failing to submit a complete event permit application earlier this week.

Two bills in the Montana legislature that would regulate air ambulances got their first hearings today. Montana Republicans are tentatively targeting the first week of February to nominate a candidate for a special election to replace U.S. Representative Ryan Zinke. The U.S. Interior Department Today canceled the final two oil and gas leases in the Badger-Two Medicine area between Glacier National Park and the Blackfeet Reservation.

A bi-partisan task force of lawmakers is proposing a package of seven bills this legislative session aiming to improve the work of Montana’s Public Defenders Office. A 58-year-old Columbia Falls woman has reached a plea agreement in an investment fraud case. City managers in Whitefish say they’ve received an application for a special event permit from a neo-Nazi website.

A bill that would update Montana’s legal definition of rape got its first hearing in a Senate committee today. Students who were awarded a Montana STEM scholarship will have to find another way to pay their tuition this spring as the program that was to be funded by lottery proceeds doesn't have enough money to pay the awards. A fifth Democrat has expressed interest in replacing Congressman Ryan Zinke if he is confirmed as Interior Secretary. Bozeman attorney John Meyer announced today that he

Planned Parenthood of Montana says it won’t go away even if congressional Republicans follow through on their vow to defund the organization. And U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan made it clear this week; Planned Parenthood is about to lose its federal funding.

The Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks was found to have violated its hiring rules in passing over Warden Sgt. Dave Loewen when he applied for three different promotions within the agency. Some Montana government agencies are volunteering to return a total of $5.5 million that had been budgeted to them this year. Authorities are investigating the recent deaths of a man and woman on the Blackfeet Reservation.

Republican state lawmakers said today they will seek to reduce government agency spending by $120 million, with cuts that would go much deeper than what Democratic Gov. Steve Bullock proposes. The Montana Supreme Court has ruled that a voter-approved constitutional initiative known as Marsy's Law will take effect July first. The law is intended to expand crime victim’s rights. The U.S. House took a vote related to public lands yesterday that has Democrats and conservation groups crying foul. It

The longest-serving president of the University of Montana, George Dennison, died this morning. Two people have been hospitalized after surviving an airplane crash in Sanders County. Montana Senate Republicans are opposing efforts to give Commissioner of Political Practices, Jonathan Motl, a full six-year term in office.

Montana’s 65th legislative session opened today. Republican and Democratic leaders say they plan to strengthen Montana's economy by creating better jobs. The Missoulian reports that Montana does not store emails in state archives despite state laws that require emails of importance to be preserved. Wildlife advocates plan to challenge the approval of a new Yellowstone River dam that critics say could kill off a dwindling population of Pallid Sturgeon - an endangered fish species that has

Montana's commissioner of political practices Jonathan Motl will remain in office until a state judge rules on a lawsuit seeking to keep him there a full six-year term. The Bridger Bowl Ski Area near Bozeman is planning to complete a $5 million expansion by next summer to accommodate an increase in visitors. The National Weather Service has updated its forecast for the extreme cold temperatures coming next week. It’s now saying to expected higher wind speeds, mainly from Butte to Missoula Sunday