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Morning Newscast 07-09-15

MTPR Morning Newscast
Josh Burnham
MTPR Morning Newscast

In today's morning newscast: A part-time sports reporter and medical marijuana patient from Glendive says legalizing pot for recreational use would be an economic boon for Montana.
Anthony Varriono has submitted a proposed ballot measure with the Secretary of State's office that would allow adults 21 and older to possess limited amounts of pot.

Firefighters are reporting progress against three wildfires burning in Montana. They expect to fully contain the Glacier Rim fire south of Glacier National Park by today. And say the closed Canyon Creek Road will reopen to the public this morning.

Gov. Steve Bullock has issued an executive order declaring a state disaster exists in Powder River County after a series of storms in May and June.
 
Bullock says several weeks of storms have been damaging to the southeastern Montana county and have caused difficulty for residents. The storms with heavy rain caused rivers to rise to near-flood levels, damaging bridges and roads.

The Missoula City Council budget committee has approved a pay hike for city workers that would start with a raise to $12 an hour all the way up to $15 an hour by 2018.

Helena's city commissioners have agreed to seek the installation of signs explaining the history and controversy of a 98-year-old city park memorial that honors Confederate soldiers who died during the Civil War.

A former senior official with the BLM has appealed his conviction by a Montana jury that he covered up for a subordinate who kept drawing government pay after abandoning his post.

As the Senate begins debating federal education policy, Montana Senator Jon Tester is trying to remove annual testing requirements from Washington, and Senator Steve Daines is seeking block grants of federal funding instead of funding with specific strings attached.

Burlington Northern Santa Fe is relocating 55 workers to Laurel from Glendive and Forsyth and planning other worker furloughs. Rail officials tell the Billings Gazette the move is in an effort to consolidate operations to Laurel, which is the region's largest rail yard. Officials say the move will also reduce costs, a necessary move as freight demands drop.

The Obama administration is moving to significantly expand a requirement for utilities to install inexpensive safety valves on natural gas lines across the U.S. to avert the risk of deadly explosions.

Two mining exploration proposals north of Yellowstone National Park have environmentalists pushing for tougher scrutiny from state and federal officials.
 
The Bozeman Daily Chronicle reports the Custer Gallatin National Forest and Montana Department of Environmental Quality are each performing low-level reviews of applications from British Columbia-based Lucky Minerals Inc. to search for gold on federal and private land.

Montana is seeking aid from a national research organization to conduct a comprehensive study of the state's correctional system for the first time in 18 years.

 

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