Page 25 - Flathead Beacon // 8.31.16

plane wrecks.
Burt says the pilot, 56-year-old Mark
Melotz, bought the Cessna 182 on Friday. “Ice Road Truckers” follows truckers who bring supplies across frozen lakes to
work camps and remote towns.
HELENA
4. Gianforte: Sell State Plane
Republican gubernatorial candi- date Greg Gianforte last week accused Gov. Steve Bullock of misusing a Mon- tana-owned airplane and said, if elected, he would sell it and spend the savings to expand computer science in high schools.
Gianforte, speaking during a news conference in Helena, said his Demo- cratic opponent has used the plane to attend campaign events, a 2014 Paul McCartney concert and for short trips that could easily be made by car.
“I’m calling on the governor to sell the state airplane,” Gianforte said. “Get out on the road like the rest of us. And if he won’t sell the plane, if elected, I will.”
Gianforte said the plane is symbolic of what he called the Bullock adminis- tration’s misplaced priorities as the state faces revenue declines amid a down- turn in the oil and coal industries. He acknowledged that the governor does need to y to be able to serve a vast state that stretches 800 miles from Libby to Ekalaka, but said “there are other state aircraft and there are also commercial providers available.”
Bullock came under criticism after The Associated Press reported in Feb- ruary that he attended a fundraiser after ying to Billings for two o cial business items: a media interview and making sandwiches with middle school students. Republicans renewed their criticism after ight logs showed the state plane ew to Missoula the day of the McCart- ney concert, which Bullock attended.
Bullock has previously said that cam- paign activities are secondary events to trips made for state business, and he has since reimbursed the state for time the pilots spent waiting while he attended those events. His o ce has said Bullock had meetings in Missoula prior to the McCartney concert.
The Beechcraft King Air twin tur- boprop was purchased in 1989, when Republican Stan Stephens was governor. Governors as far back as the 1960s have used state-owned aircraft to e ciently visit communities, hear the people’s con- cerns and use their input to make respon- sible decisions, Bullock spokeswoman Ronja Abel said.
“When a wild re threatens lives and property, or when a parasite kills thou- sands of sh in the Yellowstone River, Governor Bullock believes it’s the responsibility of any governor to see con- cerns rsthand and to hear from folks on the front lines,” Abel said in a statement.
Discontinuing use of the plane would pose a signi cant challenge for future governors to hear directly from the peo- ple they serve, Abel said.
BIG SKY
5. Resort Announces $150 Million Investment Plan
The Big Sky Resort is set to receive $150 million in improvements as part of a 10-year plan for the ski area and sur- rounding community.
Bozeman Daily Chronicle reports the resort’s parent company Boyne Resorts made the announcement last week. The plan includes adding a 10-person gon- dola, making lift upgrades as well as incorporating night skiing and building a new hotel complex.
The changes to the mountain’s infra- structure come as the resort plans to handle 650,000 annual visitors pre- dicted in 2025.
The resort already investment $9 mil- lion earlier this year on two lifts, which are expected to open in time for Thanks- giving weekend.
Boyne Resorts President Stephen Kircher says Big Sky has added $10 to $15 million in annual earnings since its 2013 merger with Moonlight Basin and Span- ish Peaks.
BILLINGS
6. Advocates Say They’ll Sue to
Protect Hundreds of Species
A wildlife advocacy group has led notice that it intends to sue the U.S. gov- ernment for failing to act on petitions to protect more than 400 plants and ani- mals under the Endangered Species Act.
The Center for Biological Diversity accuses the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Ser- vice of leaving hundreds of species in limbo.
It says the Florida sandhill crane, white tailed ptarmigan and eastern dia- mondback rattlesnake are among those species awaiting a government decision.
The advocacy group in 2011 reached a settlement that required the government to make initial ndings on protections for more than 700 species. Final decisions on most of those plants and animals still are pending, despite ndings by federal o - cials that protections were warranted.
BILLINGS
7. Job Retraining Planned After Yellowstone River Fish Kill Forces
Closure
Montana labor o cials will o er advice on job retraining for shing guides, raft operators and other work- ers a ected by the closure of a 183-mile stretch of the Yellowstone River.
Gov. Steve Bullock announced last week that the Department of Labor and Industry will host a meeting in Liv- ingston on Monday to provide further information.
State wildlife commissioners closed the Yellowstone inde nitely to all rec- reational activity last week following a massive sh kill in the Paradise Valley area north of Yellowstone National Park.
O cials hope to stop the spread of a contagious parasite blamed for kill- ing tens of thousands of white sh and smaller numbers of trout.
Labor department representatives plan to o er information on retraining options, unemployment insurance and alternative job opportunities during this week’s meeting.
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