The State has Money for a Parenting Program at the Prison, But it’s not operating Yet

 After losing federal funding, the Department of Corrections hasn’t restarted a parenting program that state lawmakers put $120,000 toward earlier this year. The program had served roughly 160 fathers and 400 children during the program’s four-year tenure. By Zeke Lloyd

Frederick Maw VI was 14 months old when his father, Freddie J, received a 20-year sentence to Montana State Prison in 2018. Caterina Maw, Little Freddie’s grandmother, remembers driving alongside a “trembling and scared” child on a bus to a small red cabin in 2022 during her grandson’s first trip to meet his father. 

“He saw the swing set and he saw all the dads standing there with smiles on their faces — then he just got this huge smile and ran to his dad to give him a hug,” Caterina Maw said in a recent interview.

The pair reunited through a Montana Department of Corrections initiative called Connecting Adults and Minors through Positive Parenting, a multi-part program that included a three-month parenting course for incarcerated parents. Parents also were able to see their children in person and have dedicated video calls.

Montana to recognize Indigenous Peoples Day

Bill establishing Indigenous Peoples Day in Montana becomes law

After a decade-long fight between Republican state lawmakers and members of Montana’s American Indian Caucus, the state of Montana — home to 12 tribes and seven reservations — will now recognize Indigenous Peoples Day.  

Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte on May 9 signed Senate Bill 224 into law, making Indigenous Peoples Day an official state holiday, alongside Columbus Day, on the second Monday in October. 

Sen. Shane Morigeau, D-Missoula, the bill’s sponsor, said the bill’s passage is “good for Montana.”

“This is about learning from one another and bringing each other together,” he told Montana Free Press. “It’s something we can take pride in. … We’re going to have a day where we can empower our youth and future generations in a positive way.”

Bathroom Bill Clears GOP-led Legislature, Poised to Become Law

A bill that would require public and some private facilities to enforce sex-segregated spaces for multiuser bathrooms, dormitories and locker rooms cleared its final vote hurdle in the Montana Legislature on Tuesday. 

The measure, which received party-line Republican support and vocal opposition from Democrats and transgender Montanans throughout its lightning-fast path through the Legislature, is next expected to be transmitted to Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte’s desk. It would take effect immediately upon being signed into law.

Proponents touted the bill, House Bill 121, as a way to enforce the separation of men and women in public places and curb threats of harassment or assault from people of the opposite sex. 

Gov. Gianforte's Foundation Has Given Away $57 Million Since 2017. Here's Where It Went.

Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte is among the state’s highest-profile political figures. He’s also a major philanthropic force.  Nonprofit tax records indicate that his family foundation gave $57 million to charities and social issue nonprofits between 2017, the year Gianforte was first elected to public office as a Montana congressman, and 2022, the most recent year for which detailed data is publicly available. 

Global Warming Can’t Be Ignored, Montana’s Top Court Says, Upholding Landmark Climate Case

By Amy Beth Hanson 

Updated 3:26 PM MST, December 18, 2024

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Montana’s Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld a landmark climate ruling that said the state was violating residents’ constitutional right to a clean environment by permitting oil, gas and coal projects without regard for global warming.

The justices, in a 6-1 ruling, rejected the state’s argument that greenhouse gases released from Montana fossil fuel projects are minuscule on a global scale and reducing them would have no effect on climate change, likening it to asking: “If everyone else jumped off a bridge, would you do it too?”

The plaintiffs can enforce their environmental rights “without requiring everyone else to stop jumping off bridges or adding fuel to the fire,” Chief Justice Mike McGrath wrote for the majority. “Otherwise the right to a clean and healthful environment is meaningless.”

Only a few other states, including Hawaii, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and New York, have similar environmental protections enshrined in their constitutions.

Tax Cuts, Teacher Pay Boosts, Prison Expansion Shape Governor Gianforte’s Budget Proposal

By Eric Dietrich and Mara Silvers.

Fresh off a reelection win, Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte has proposed that Montana lawmakers adopt a two-year state budget that prioritizes further tax cuts alongside investments in public safety and education. The proposal represents a starting point for budget negotiations that will occur in and out of public view through the 2025 Legislature. 

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