WASHINGTON – Senate Democrats on Wednesday called for a windfall profits tax on oil companies and a rollback of $17 billion in oil industry tax breaks as part of an energy package. The proposal also would impose federal penalties on energy price gouging and calls for stopping oil deliveries into the government’s emergency reserve. Senate […]

WASHINGTON – Negotiators on a five-year, $300 billion farm bill say they have reached a tentative agreement on the legislation and it will be considered by the House and Senate next week. But the Bush administration has objected to the bill, and the White House says it seems unlikely that Congress will pass farm legislation […]

ST. LOUIS – The Energy Department unveiled its blueprint Wednesday for spending up to $1.3 billion on multiple clean-coal power plants that would capture carbon emissions and permanently store them underground. The announcement, launching two weeks of public comment over the revised plan for the project known as FutureGen, came despite pledges by U.S. Sen. […]

More than 20,000 Flathead Valley kids have waded in cold-to-the-bone streams, fondled vibrant-colored smooth rocks, touched muddy deer tracks and heard the rattle of woodpecker bills on dry trees. They’ve slept in bunkhouses and roasted marshmallows on a crackling fire. For many, it was their first time in the woods. Glacier Institute hopes it won’t […]

The chances of Democratic presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton returning to Montana took a hit Tuesday night. After Obama’s crushing victory in North Carolina and Clinton’s narrow win in Indiana, the majority of pundits have declared the race all but over. I hope not. The state press has been blanketed with high-profile attention […]

Good morning and happy World Red Cross Day. The sun is peeking through the clouds in downtown Kalispell, let’s hope it continues through the weekend. On the Beacon today, Keriann looks at the state of the county library system, including a new branch location being considered in Columbia Falls. Myers Reece finds out where that […]

Changing federal regulations and a collapse in the bond market have caused many national associations to pull out of college loan programs, limiting resources for students. The national woes have trickled down to Montana, where the state’s nonprofit lender cut staff and loan benefits in recent months, but is assuring borrowers that funding is secure […]

HELENA – Officials from several states say Facebook has agreed to implement more than 40 safeguards to protect younger users. Montana Attorney General Mike McGrath says the changes are designed to thwart sexual predators, fraud and online bullies at the popular online hangout. He’s one of the attorneys general who announced the agreement Thursday. Facebook […]

There is a major crisis in the ski and snowboard world that very few people are aware of and no one is doing anything about. In Colorado last winter 17 skiers or snowboarders were killed by running into each other or trees. At Deer Valley, Stein Eriksen broke his ribs, wrist and collar bone when […]

HELENA – Missoula County commissioners concerned about potential development of private timberlands sent Agriculture Undersecretary Mark Rey a letter Wednesday, telling him he needs to be forthcoming with information. The commissioners say they want documents related to talks between Rey, who oversees the U.S. Forest Service, and Plum Creek Timber Co., which owns vast timberlands […]

The Kalispell Police and Flathead County Sheriff’s reports for Wednesday included the following: 7:32 a.m. A Foys Canyon resident called in because they couldn’t get their adult son to leave the house. Deputies picked him up and dumped him out at a store on First Avenue West. 9:19 a.m. Stray dogs were running around all […]

A conservation group has filed a request for documents relating to the release of an upcoming decision by Glacier National Park regarding avalanche control on the railroad tracks that skirt the park’s southern border, out of concern that Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway executives may have influenced the decision after the public comment period had […]

Residents of the five homes along Montana Highway 35 forced to evacuate after an April 2 fuel spill recently received a bit of good news: It could be a matter of months – not years as was initially thought – before these families can return home. “Hopefully, within a few weeks we can start getting […]

This week, we continue my quest to examine Flathead Valley business websites on a market by market basis. This week, we’re eating out. Yep, sticking a fork in restaurant websites.One thing stands out here, and that’s the chains. Most all of the chains have corporate-managed websites that are well done. Let’s look at the local […]

Good morning and happy National School Nurse Day. It’s a gray morning in the valley and the new Beacons are on the stands. Our top story this morning looks at the fallout from the recent fuel spill along Highway 35, and whether restrictions for truck traffic along the east shore of Flathead Lake is necessary. […]