Jordan Hansen

(Daily Montanan) As Montana celebrates St. Patrick’s Day, a new agreement would tie Ireland closer to the Treasure State.

Senate Bill 320, brought by Sen. Mike Cuffe, R-Eureka, which is awaiting the governor’s signature, will create the Montana-Ireland Trade Commission. Ireland has made an effort during the past few years to tie itself closer to American states and virtually identical bills have been brought in over a dozen other states, from South Carolina to Indiana.

“Some of the other states have created a Trade Commission, and I’m not sure how much follow through they’ve done,” Cuffe said in an interview with the Daily Montanan. “I intend for ours to hit the ground running.”

Montana has a significant Irish population, some of which stems from early mining activities in the state. Butte and Helena, for example, have a large number of residents with Irish heritage.

Cuffe also said he’s a direct descendant of Irish immigrants. But this isn’t a bill celebrating that, exactly, and Cuffe is serious about the partnership bringing more financial opportunities to the state.

“A lot of people, they think it’s funny, they think it’s cool,” Cuffe said of the partnership. “I happen to think it’s serious business. My goal is to make real things happen.”

Dublin, the capital of the Republic of Ireland, is a European tech hub. Major companies have facilities in Dublin, including Google, Microsoft, and eBay, among others. Notably, following Great Britain’s exit from the European Union, Ireland is also the only English-speaking country in the EU.

Bozeman has developed into a tech hub in its own right, with companies such as Oracle setting up shop in Gallatin County. The state of Montana was also designated a “Regional Technology and Innovation Hub” by the U.S. Department of Commerce in 2023.

There’s also an agricultural component too, and while there is a thriving beef industry in Ireland, the country imported 113 million pounds of beef in 2022. Cuffe also mentioned there are Montana companies looking to export hay machinery as well.

The cost for shipping the equipment is high, Cuffe said, and the hope is the trade commission will be able to connect buyers and sellers. Whiskey imports have also been mentioned.

Cuffe’s district is in northwestern Montana and the hope, too, is to be able to connect rural folks with more opportunities to move their product.

“If we can put together a bigger deal where they can ship, let’s just say, container loads that they share with other people, all of a sudden, what is impossible today becomes possible tomorrow,” Cuffe said. “That is my real inspiration, to try to help out the smaller hinterlands.”

The bill had very little opposition and through both the House and Senate, only two votes were cast against the bill — Rep. John Fitzpatrick, R-Anaconda, and Rep. Caleb Hinkle, R-Belgrade voted against the commission on its third reading.

Rep. Katie Sullivan, D-Missoula, carried the bill in the House. Leadership from both sides of the aisle signed on to the bill, which had which more than 100 sponsors across the two chambers.

No state money is being used for the commission, Cuffe said. Senate and House leadership — both majority and minority — will be able to appoint one person to the commission. The state’s directors of Commerce and Agriculture also will appoint a person to the commission and the governor will fill two slots. Appointments are for two years.

“I think the commission will be a really great opportunity to help facilitate business to business trade between Montana and Ireland,” Sullivan said in an interview with the Daily Montanan. “Operators and high tech businesses might have some exciting opportunities to learn how they can sell their goods into Ireland. And the commission will be a fun place to start helping facilitate those conversations.”

The Wisconsin men are back in the NCAA Tournament for the 28th time as they look for a fifth Final Four appearance and second national title.

Up first for the Badgers will be Montana on Thursday in Denver.

Led by All-American candidate John Tonje, Wisconsin reached the Big Ten Conference Tournament title game, falling to Michigan. The Badgers received by games from John Blackwell and Max Klesmit as Tonje struggled for the first time in a long time.

Wisconsin owns some impressive wins during the year, besting the likes of Arizona, Purdue and Michigan State, with the win over the Spartans coming in the conference tournament.

Montana captured the Big Sky Conference title, earning its first NCAA Tournament bid since 2019. The Grizzlies played the likes of Oregon, Tennessee and Utah State, ending the year having gone 14-1 down the stretch with the lone loss being in overtime.

Here are details on how to watch Wisconsin’s contest vs. Montana on Thursday, March 20:

Who: Wisconsin vs. Montana in men’s NCAA Tournament basketball action

When: TBA | Thursday, March 20

Where: Ball Arena | Denver, Colorado

Live Stream: Stream Wisconsin vs. Montana live on fuboTV (Start your free trial)

TV Channel: TBA

Our Prediction: Wisconsin 79, Montana 65

Live Updates, Highlights: Follow the game on Wisconsin on SI for live updates, in-game analysis and big-play highlights.

Twenty current and former federal workers gathered at state Department of Labor and Industry offices across Montana at 9 a.m. on March 12 for a “Rapid Response Event” aimed at “assist[ing] those impacted by federal layoffs.” Another 23 people attended virtually.

In all, they represented a negligible percentage of the 10,129 federal workers that live in Montana. 

The conference room at the back of the Job Services office in downtown Kalispell was nearly vacant. Dozens of folders stuffed with flyers advertising job services remained unopened. 

“It’s hard for people to seek [the department’s] support right now,” explained one of the two federal workers that attended the Kalispell event. 

The worker asked that their name and job title not appear in print. Despite being among 360 other Montana Forest Service workers fired in February, they had been temporarily reinstated to their job position and were not authorized to talk to the press.  

While thrilled to return to work, the Forest Service employee said that the reinstatement had also created more uncertainty. The future state of their employment hinges on the outcome of a federal lawsuit, alleging that the mass termination of probationary U.S. Forest Service workers was unlawful. A federal board is expected to hand down a verdict by April 18. 

Until then, their job is akin to Schrödinger’s cat, both existent and non-existent. That makes it hard to do things like file for unemployment or send out resumes. 

“It’s overwhelming for me still to try to look for a job,” they said. 

The Forest Service worker hoped the event might provide some answers. After a series of presentations from state staff, they typed a question into the chat, asking whether employees affected by the lawsuit should file for unemployment. A flood of similar questions filtered onscreen, asking about the language in termination letters, the documents required to file for unemployment and the impending threat of a government shutdown.  

Nearly all the inquiries were met with similar catechisms about reviewing things on a “case-by-case basis.” A morose sense of humor crept into the conference room. 

“It’s going to be years before this gets sorted,” said the second Kalispell attendee, an employee of U.S. Agency for International Development. 

The Department of Labor and Industry has helped workers navigate mass layoffs before. Last year, about 250 lumber workers found themselves unemployed after two mills shuttered in quick succession. Another 700 workers were laid-off a few months later when the Sibayne-Stillwater mill downsized. Both times, the state agency hosted similar rapid response events to help those affected file for unemployment, revamp resumes and find new jobs. 

Those efforts benefited from $5.5 million worth of federal grants administered through the U.S. Department of Labor. The federal government reportedly froze some of those grant funds in late February, making future payments uncertain.  

In a March 6 statement, the department also acknowledged that federal employees may face extra challenges navigating more traditional employment routes.  

“Unlike many Rapid Response events the agency hosted over the last year, the layoff of federal workers requires specialized support to translate the skills and duties of a federal employee to the private sector or work in other public sector and nonprofit professions,” reads the statement. 

The state Labor Department’s existing challenges could multiply, as Thursday marked the deadline for several agencies to submit “Agency Reorganization Plans” that include measures to reduce full-time positions.  

There is no information as to how these plans may affect Montana workers, but there are new additions to the state Labor Department’s website. A page titled “Federal Worker Resources” now lists the number for a hotline for federal workers seeking help with unemployment insurance and other benefits as well as a dropdown menu for “Upcoming Rapid Response Events.”  

The department was unable to provide the Daily Inter Lake with comment by its print deadline. 

Reporter Hailey Smalley can be reached at hsmalley@dailyinterlake.com or 758-4433.