PureCountry1067 Team 
A group of news organizations, including the Daily Montanan, filed a petition on December 6 to join a lawsuit aimed at keeping all documents related to drafting bills, including communications between legislators, lobbyists, and others, available to the public under Montana’s “right to know” law. For 30 years, people, including reporters and lobbyists, could request … Read more
Early Thursday morning, 33-year-old Justin Feliciano, an inmate at Halawa Correctional Facility in Hawaii, was found unresponsive in his cell around 2:15 a.m. Staff tried to save him, and emergency responders from EMS and the Honolulu Fire Department arrived, but he could not be revived. Officials believe his death was a suicide, and an autopsy … Read more
On Thursday, a court in Williams County ordered a church in Bryan, Ohio, to stop sheltering homeless people until it fixes alleged fire and zoning code violations. This decision went against a request from Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, who asked the court to let the church continue helping people. Bryan’s mayor, Carrie Schlade, criticized … Read more
A recount is happening in Juneau for a ballot measure that aimed to repeal Alaska’s open primaries and ranked-choice voting. The process began on December 4. The official results, certified on November 30, show Ballot Measure 2 failing by 737 votes—just 0.2% of all votes cast. Because the margin was so small (less than 0.5%), … Read more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit has ruled in favor of Rhode Island’s RhodeWorks truck tolling program, allowing the state to restart it. This decision overturns a 2022 ruling by U.S. District Judge William Smith, who had declared the tolls unconstitutional. The American Trucking Associations had filed a lawsuit, arguing that the … Read more
ProPublica, a nonprofit newsroom that exposes abuses of power, recently highlighted a settlement involving a Native American tribe’s controversial loan practices in Minnesota. The Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians (LDF) has been under scrutiny for charging extremely high interest rates on loans, often between 200% and 800%. The Minnesota Settlement Minnesota … Read more
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz recently opened up about his experience as Kamala Harris’s running mate in the presidential election, reflecting on the campaign’s highs and lows and looking ahead to his work in Minnesota. In an interview with KSTP-TV journalist Tom Hauser, Walz shared his thoughts on being part of the national race. “It was … Read more
In September, Hurricane Helene caused massive damage to long-term care facilities across the Southeast. Despite the destruction, these challenges inspired a wave of support for caregivers to help them recover and continue their work. One example is Principle LTC, a North Carolina-based company operating in North Carolina, Virginia, and Kentucky. Principle stepped in quickly to … Read more
Jake Harvath, a Utah resident, has returned home after an incredible journey across the country on horseback. His goal? To raise awareness about the Bureau of Land Management’s wild horse adoption program. For 14 months and 10 days, Jake traveled with his three horses, covering about 6,000 miles. Starting in Heber City, Utah, he rode … Read more
On Thursday, a group of protesters disrupted a meeting of the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents. They held signs and chanted slogans like “disclose, divest, we will not stop, we will not rest,” and “Free, free Palestine!” Many organizations participated in the protest, including CODEPINK and Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), among others. … Read more