Letters to the Editor
Want to read a letter to the editor of The Western News? See below to view their letters.
Battling substance abuse requires collaborative effort
Two and a half years ago, Attorney General Tim Fox and I stood on the steps of the state capitol with other lawmak…
Auto insurance requirements, pricing out of sync
Montana law requires auto insurance.
Bureau not protecting consumers from lenders
Despite its name “Consumer Financial Protection Bureau”, this agency seems interested in protecting industry rather than fulfilling its mission. CFPB recently announced their proposal to gut protections that helped…
Something simple to do about climate change
Climate change! What can we do about this overwhelming problem? There is something remarkably simple and feasible that we can do.
Show your community some love this Valentine's Day
Most of us love our community and want the best for it. It’s our home. It’s where we live, work, learn, play and raise our families. And yet, it’s easy to go about our daily lives without ever stopping to think, Wh…
Rural communities in the face of climate change
Climate change can be difficult to fully wrap your mind around. My fear is that more people will engage only after facing a crisis themselves — losing a home due to flooding, markets upended by multi-year droughts …
Auto insurance required, but not fair pricing
State law requires auto insurance, but not fair policy pricing.
It's not safe to be an Indian woman in Montana.
These words come as no surprise to many of us. It is our lived experience that Native American women are more likely to go missing, more likely to be murdered, and less likely to have justice in our state.
Notes from Helena: Life is busy at the Capitol!
Senate Joint Resolution 6 asks Congress to delist the Grizzly statewide, and I will present SJR 6 to the Senate Fish and Game Committee on Thursday, Feb. 14 at 3 p.m.
Support HB 287 for Mandatory Daily Trap Checks
Traps are indiscriminate, excluding no species. Montana has no required timeframe a trapper must check his or her traps.
Through with Chew Week! Lincoln County Health Department encourages area residents to quit smokeless tobacco
Montana’s smokeless tobacco rates are twice as high as the national average for both male youth (13.8 percent) and male adults (14 percent). The week of February 17 through 23 is “Through with Chew Week,” and is an…
Daines fighting for rural broadband
More than 40 percent of rural Montanans lack access to broadband internet. This phenomenon, known as the digital divide, holds rural America back by not allowing millions of people to take advantage of the basic on…
National School Choice Week in the Treasure State
Parents, students, and teachers are celebrating the education options available in Montana during School Choice Week, Jan. 20-26.
What is a market-based approach to water quality?
Last month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. EPA released a joint letter encouraging market-based, collaborative approaches to reduce excess nutrients in waterways. But, few other details were offere…
We can lower medication costs in Montana
Everyone agrees that the high cost of prescription medications is a huge issue, but there hasn’t been a serious attempt to solve the problem in Montana. We’re changing that by bringing forward legislation we estima…
Senate Democrat's outlook for legislative session
The 66th Montana Legislative Session began Jan. 7, and based on the 3,101 bills that have been submitted so far, lawmakers will be working in overdrive. For Democrats, top priorities include keeping health care acc…