Eric Dietrich
Legislator: Montana could pay college grads to settle in small towns
At a time when rural regions across the U.S. are struggling to attract young professionals, the states of Kansas and Vermont have used public dollars to fight “brain drain” by offering grants and tax breaks to professional workers who settle in small towns. If an eastern Montana lawmaker has his way, Montana could soon follow suit.
At its midpoint, 12 statistics help explain the 2019 Montana Legislature
This week's break represents one of the Montana Legislature’s key deadlines: transmittal, the point when bills that don’t propose new spending are considered dead if they haven’t passed the chamber where they were introduced. With that in mind, here are 12 key statistics to help you understand the 2019 session so far.
A look at 20 years of failed attempts to eliminate Montana’s death penalty
While legislators have considered bills to abolish the state death penalty in every legislative session since at least 1990, no such measure has ever made it to the governor’s desk.
Rule hiding legal notes on bills clears Montana House
A rule to keep the Montana Legislature website from publishing legal notes flagging potentially unconstitutional bills cleared the Montana House this week after a vote to strip the language from a broader rules package failed on largely partisan lines.
UM economists struggle to explain Montana’s skyrocketing home prices
Housing costs have risen across Montana in recent decades, to the point where residents are feeling the pinch between wages and their rent or mortgage payments, say economists with the Montana Bureau of Business and Economic Research. The unanswered question is: Why?
Affordable housing advocates look to Montana Legislature for help
With housing costs a burden for many modest-income Montanans, advocates and some lawmakers want to spend state money boosting affordable housing projects. A trio of bills are designed to make that happen.
Airport travel distances hinder economic development in rural Montana
Economists and civic boosters alike agree on one key piece of the economic development puzzle in rural Montana communities: The access that well-connected airports give residents to the rest of the world.
As state legislators begin budget work, here’s what Gov. Bullock wants to spend
At a total of $6.6 billion in agency spending in 2020 — plus another $439 million in infrastructure proposals — there’s plenty in Montana Gov. Steve Bullock’s proposed budget for legislators to work through as the 2019 session gets kicks into gear.
Can Montana Code School bridge the state’s tech talent gap?
The single biggest factor holding Montana’s tech industry back is talent: the skills gap between the jobs that companies will pay top-dollar salaries to fill, and the experience Montana workers can bring to the table. Can a Missoula-based boot camp bridge that gap?
Can teleworking bring Montanans big-city wages? Yes, for some.
On the list of ideas for tackling the twin challenges that plague Montana workers — scarce rural jobs and low wages even in cities — telework is close to the top. As better internet access connects even far-flung rural communities with the rest of the world, it seems to promise Montanans a way to have their cake and eat it too: a fulfilling career at a city wage without having to leave the Last Best Place.