Montana
Montana has an official state sport — rodeo – East Idaho News
HELENA, Montana (Daily Montanan) — Once Gov. Greg Gianforte affixes his signature to House Bill 190, Montana will become the fourth state to adopt American Rodeo as the official state sport.
Other states have adopted official sports representing a facet of their heritage, ranging from the common – baseball in New York — to the increasingly popular — pickleball in Washington — to the less traditional — pack burro racing in Colorado, and dog mushing in Alaska.
During the last week the Legislature took its final votes on HB 190 and the bill will head to the governor’s desk for a signature.
Sen. Wendy McKamey, R-Great Falls, carried the bill in the Senate and wore her paisley scarf on the floor last Saturday when she spoke about the bill, because “this is more rodeo than almost anything else.”
“I don’t know that I can convey, really, how fun rodeo is here in the Senate chamber,” McKamey said.
“This is very unique in that it represents our heritage, the outdoors, and it’s an opportunity to have have a really unique statement about our state,” she added.
Some senators voiced their opposition to the bill — Sen. Daniel Emrich, R-Great Falls, said that more Montanans hunt than rodeo, and Sen. Susan Webber, D-Browning, objected to the bill not specifically including Native American components.
“I just had hoped that they would have included the Indian Relay, which is a few centuries old here as part of this bill,” Webber said. “But we do have an Indian rodeo circuit that goes along with the National Rodeo Association. I just wish they would have done a little bit more.”
The bill was supported by the Montana American Indian Caucus, as well as by the congressional delegation and all six of Montanan’s statewide elected officials.
“There’s nothing better than a good rodeo all summer long. And the fine senator in the back near Kalispell said they have it all winter long going there,” Sen. Butch Gillespie, R-Ethbridge, said. “And as far as the Indian rodeos … nothing’s better than their rodeos and and the relay races, and they happen all over the place also. So let’s not let the other western states get the drop on us here.”
The Senate passing the measure 40-9, with an amendment making the law effective immediately. The House on Wednesday concurred with the amendment with only two votes in opposition.
Five colleges in Montana, including Montana State University, have rodeo clubs or teams. MSU hosted the collegiate rodeo finals for 24 years, until they moved briefly to South Dakota in the 1990s and then to Casper, Wyoming where they are still held.
At the high school level, Montana qualified 100 contestants to the National High School Rodeo Finals from the state championships held in Kalispell last J—une.
American Rodeo now joins the pantheon of state symbols, next to the duck-billed dinosaur (state fossil), Scobey soil (state soil), bitterroot (state floral emblem), blackspotted cutthroat trout (state fish), bluebunch wheatgrass (state grass), grizzly bear (state animal), and “Montana Melody” (state ballad) among others.
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MISSOULA — Here’s a look at Western Montana’s top news stories for Thursday.
A South African family labeled as refugees by the U.S. Department of State arrived in Missoula on Monday, aided by the International Rescue Committee and Soft Landing Missoula. The family’s arrival follows an expedited immigration process stemming from an executive order that claims Afrikaners face violence and property seizures in South Africa. (Read the full story)
Therma Wood Technologies in Polson offers an eco-friendly heat and pressure process to treat wood, eliminating harmful chemicals while enhancing durability. This method provides treated wood with a lifespan of about 20 years, significantly exceeding the typical seven to eight years of chemically-treated wood. (Read the full story)
Polson wood treatment company provides eco-friendly option
Flathead High School students showcased their heavy equipment skills on Wednesday through a hands-on program in partnership with the Montana Contractors Association. The Build Montana Initiative allows students to gain practical experience operating machinery, preparing them for future careers in construction while reinforcing the importance of a skilled workforce in Kalispell. (Read the full story)
Kalispell students showcase heavy machinery skills
Montana has done something that many states and the United States Congress have debated but failed to do: it has just enacted the first attempt to close the dreaded, invasive, unconstitutional, but easily fixed “data broker loophole.” This is a very good step in the right direction because right now, across the country, law enforcement routinely purchases information on individuals it would otherwise need a warrant to obtain.
What does that mean? In every state other than Montana, if police want to know where you have been, rather than presenting evidence and sending a warrant signed by a judge to a company like Verizon or Google to get your geolocation data for a particular set of time, they only need to buy that same data from data brokers. In other words, all the location data apps on your phone collect —sometimes recording your exact location every few minutes—is just sitting for sale on the open market. And police routinely take that as an opportunity to skirt your Fourth Amendment rights.
Now, with SB 282, Montana has become the first state to close the data broker loophole. This means the government may not use money to get access to information about electronic communications (presumably metadata), the contents of electronic communications, contents of communications sent by a tracking devices, digital information on electronic funds transfers, pseudonymous information, or “sensitive data”, which is defined in Montana as information about a person’s private life, personal associations, religious affiliation, health status, citizen status, biometric data, and precise geolocation. This does not mean information is now fully off limits to police. There are other ways for law enforcement in Montana to gain access to sensitive information: they can get a warrant signed by a judge, they can get consent of the owner to search a digital device, they can get an “investigative subpoena” which unfortunately requires far less justification than an actual warrant.
Despite the state’s insistence on honoring lower-threshold subpoena usage, SB 282 is not the first time Montana has been ahead of the curve when it comes to passing privacy-protecting legislation. For the better part of a decade, the Big Sky State has seriously limited the use of face recognition, passed consumer privacy protections, added an amendment to their constitution recognizing digital data as something protected from unwarranted searches and seizures, and passed a landmark law protecting against the disclosure or collection of genetic information and DNA.
SB 282 is similar in approach to H.R.4639, a federal bill the EFF has endorsed, introduced by Senator Ron Wyden, called the Fourth Amendment is Not for Sale Act. H.R.4639 passed through the House in April 2024 but has not been taken up by the Senate.
Absent the United States Congress being able to pass important privacy protections into law, states, cities, and towns have taken it upon themselves to pass legislation their residents sorely need in order to protect their civil liberties. Montana, with a population of just over one million people, is showing other states how it’s done. EFF applauds Montana for being the first state to close the data broker loophole and show the country that the Fourth Amendment is not for sale.
The Montana Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at May 13, 2025, results for each game:
Winning Mega Millions numbers from May 13 drawing
06-29-33-47-68, Mega Ball: 20
Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Lucky For Life numbers from May 13 drawing
04-14-17-43-44, Lucky Ball: 12
Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Big Sky Bonus numbers from May 13 drawing
08-15-19-22, Bonus: 04
Check Big Sky Bonus payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the Montana Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 9 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky For Life: 8:38 p.m. MT daily.
- Lotto America: 9 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Big Sky Bonus: 7:30 p.m. MT daily.
- Powerball Double Play: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Montana Cash: 8 p.m. MT on Wednesday and Saturday.
Missed a draw? Peek at the past week’s winning numbers.
Winning lottery numbers are sponsored by Jackpocket, the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network.
Where can you buy lottery tickets?
Tickets can be purchased in person at gas stations, convenience stores and grocery stores. Some airport terminals may also sell lottery tickets.
You can also order tickets online through Jackpocket, the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network, in these U.S. states and territories: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Puerto Rico, Washington D.C., and West Virginia. The Jackpocket app allows you to pick your lottery game and numbers, place your order, see your ticket and collect your winnings all using your phone or home computer.
Jackpocket is the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network. Gannett may earn revenue for audience referrals to Jackpocket services. GAMBLING PROBLEM? CALL 1-800-GAMBLER, Call 877-8-HOPENY/text HOPENY (467369) (NY). 18+ (19+ in NE, 21+ in AZ). Physically present where Jackpocket operates. Jackpocket is not affiliated with any State Lottery. Eligibility Restrictions apply. Void where prohibited. Terms: jackpocket.com/tos.
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