After a state Commerce Department official released information on $3.5 million in local government grants that are currently on hold – including about $500,000 for road projects in Flathead County – he claims Gov. Brian Schweitzer’s administration forced him to resign.
Schweitzer’s administration has denied the charge. Nonetheless, Lee Newspaper’s Charles Johnson’s story on the controversy is a must read.
Several newspapers across the state, <a href="http://www.flatheadbeacon.com/articles/article/with_grant_cuts_columbia_falls_and_county_left_holding_the_bag_for_road_pro/16467/" title="including the Beacon“>including the Beacon, published articles over the last several days on how grants freed up by stimulus money has been put on hold and is causing financial headaches for local governments. Sen. Dave Lewis, R-Helena, confronted the administration about the freeze last week.