Montana
Montana Senate votes down bill to narrow eligibility for Medicaid expansion
HELENA — As the Montana Legislature continued its second day of marathon debates ahead of Friday’s transmittal deadline, the state Senate voted one more time on Medicaid expansion.
(Watch the video to see more from Thursday’s debate on Medicaid expansion.)
Montana Seante debates Medicaid Expansion
House Bill 245 – the main bill to renew Medicaid expansion in the state – passed the Legislature last week. However, Senate President Sen. Matt Regier, R-Kalispell, said it was worth having one more discussion about how the program should be structured.
“Whether it’s this bill, this program, a lot of things that we do here at government, we need to stop and take a look at what’s the end goal,” he said Thursday.
Senators narrowly rejected Regier’s Senate Bill 334, on a 24-26 vote.
Regier argued his bill was “stackable” with the existing program, not in competition with it – but it would make significant changes. SB 334 would have required the state to ask for and receive a waiver from the federal government and implement “community engagement” requirements in order to offer Medicaid expansion. The current state law calls for community engagement – requiring those on Medicaid expansion to spend 80 hours a month on work, education, workforce training, volunteering or other approved activities – but federal authorities haven’t yet allowed the state to implement those requirements.
SB 334 also would have lowered the maximum income level to be eligible for Medicaid expansion, from 138% of the federal poverty level to 100%. Regier said that would mean about 14,000 people currently on the program would no longer be eligible, but he argued those people now have other options for health coverage, including getting insurance through the Affordable Care Act marketplace.
“Are we going to judge a program on how many people we can put on it, or judge a welfare safety net program as its success of not needing it anymore – how many people can be off of it and be self-sufficient to where we don’t even need that program anymore?” Regier asked. “To me, that is more of a definition of success.”
However, opponents of SB 334 said lawmakers had already weighed in on the Medicaid expansion program – by passing HB 245, which essentially continued it as it is currently. They said the bill would undermine a system that’s already working.
“This bill coming now is a fix that we really don’t need,” said Sen. Russ Tempel, R-Chester.
“What we are essentially doing is we are taking people who are working hard – they’re hard-working Montanans in our small businesses, in all of our communities who are trying to make things work – and we’re making it harder for them,” said Sen. Emma Kerr-Carpenter, D-Billings.
The Senate passed HB 245 30-20 on a final vote last Thursday. Earlier this session, senators also voted down Senate Bill 62, which would have begun phasing out the Medicaid expansion program.
Montana
How one Montanan has tapped into the market of bison shearing — and turned it into a successful business
CLYDE PARK — You might be familiar with alpaca shearing, but did you know there’s a man right here in Montana who also shears bison? And has made it into a successful business?
“This bail right here, that is 500 pounds of bison fiber that is going to Italy,” said Peter Connelly.
WATCH: Montana man turns bison shearing into a business, calls it the last unexplored natural fiber
Montana man turns bison shearing into a business, calls it the last unexplored natural fiber
Connelly has been shearing for 21 years.
“About 13 years ago, I had an opportunity to start shearing bison hides,” said Connelly. “It was the most amazing thing. Like, they look rough and rugged, which they are… but when you get into their winter coat that they grow, it’s as soft as cashmere.”
As Connelly explains, he was first contracting for companies as a bison shearer. But, he noticed they would mostly use the bison fibers for beanies and socks. He saw more potential.
“Bison has been gate-kept essentially by the people that we were shearing for,” said Connelly. “There’s a lot of interest. It’s the last natural fiber that has not been explored.”
So, he decided to expand, partnering with various companies to do research and development with bison fiber.
“We know what we want to do with it, but we want to see what other people can do with it,” said Connelly.
In addition to selling bison fiber, Connelly founded a company last October called Ember Heritage to sell his own products, such as shirts and blankets.
“We’ve built this company vertically. So, at a point in our manufacturing chain, we can sell,” said Connelly.
Besides breaking into an untapped market, Connelly says bison shearing helps reduce waste, as it is a byproduct of the meat industry.
“If we don’t shear it, it goes to the tannery, and the tannery just uses chemicals to melt off the fiber to get to the leather,” he said.
End-to-end, Connelly says shearing bison benefits everyone involved.
“What we’re doing by basically renting the hide from them is adding value to the animal so the rancher gets more money when he brings the animal in on the hoof,” said Connelly.
“All the way around, everyone is doing better because we just added one more step,” he added.
If you’re interested in learning more about Ember Heritage, visit this link.
The Montana Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at June 13, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Powerball numbers from June 13 drawing
03-13-44-50-53, Powerball: 02, Power Play: 4
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Lotto America numbers from June 13 drawing
06-13-31-35-48, Star Ball: 07, ASB: 05
Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Big Sky Bonus numbers from June 13 drawing
05-11-14-31, Bonus: 03
Check Big Sky Bonus payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Powerball Double Play numbers from June 13 drawing
24-55-56-57-67, Powerball: 15
Check Powerball Double Play payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Montana Cash numbers from June 13 drawing
08-28-40-43-44
Check Montana Cash payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from June 13 drawing
03-05-11-13-49, Bonus: 01
Check Millionaire for Life 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.
- Millionaire for Life: 9:15 p.m. MT daily.
Missed a draw? Peek at the past week’s winning numbers.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Great Falls Tribune editor. You can send feedback using this form.
LAUREL — Firefighters gathered shoulder-to-shoulder in Laurel to honor Ruben Romero.
Romero was a wildland firefighter from Oregon who died of a heart attack while fighting the Bivens Fire in the Tobacco Root Mountains.
The solemn ceremony took place at the Montana State Firefighters Memorial, where Romero’s name was added to a wall that now carries nearly 100 names.
Watch the full story below:
Montana State Firefighters Memorial honor fallen firefighters at ceremony
Jamie Swecker, board chair of the Montana State Firefighters Memorial, said every name on that wall represents more than the fallen — it represents the families left behind.
“Honoring their sacrifice, not only their sacrifices, we have almost 100 names on the wall and the families. Their sacrifices that they’ve gone through after they’ve lost their love to a fire,” Swecker said Saturday.
Swecker said even one name added is too many.
“One of these years we’re hoping that we have none to add,” Swecker said.
The ceremony drew people from across the state, including Missoula Fire Chief Lonnie Rash, who said the fire service does not let distance stand in the way of honoring its own.
“As the brotherhood, the sisterhood, the fire service, regardless, when one of our own is deceased, we drop everything and try to make sure that they, their family are comforted and that we can recognize the sacrifice that they made,” Rash said.
Rash said the ceremony also serves as a reminder to every firefighter still serving.
“The importance is to remind everybody else who continues to serve that there is a dangerous job, that they need to pay attention and make sure that they’re safe, that they’re taking care of their physical and their mental well-being so that they’re able to go out and help our community,” Rash said.
Romero was not from Montana. He was a contract firefighter from Keizer, Oregon.
Rash said that does not matter to the fire service.
“That it shows the resilience of firefighters across the nation that we’re all doing the same job. We’re doing the same (thing), have the same impacts. Regardless of where we’re from, we recognize the importance of the sacrifice that Ruben made here in Montana,” Rash said.
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