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protect the rights of non-Indian water users and members of the Fort Belknap Indian Community.
Montana’s two U.S. Senators heralded the vote as a success for both the tribe and the state.
“Today marks a major milestone for the Blackfeet Tribe,” said Demo- cratic Sen. Jon Tester. “I will continue to work with folks to nd the funding that is needed to get this compact across the nish line and ensure that families, communities, and farms and ranches on the Blackfeet Reservation have reliable access to clean water.”
“This is a good day for Montana and the Blackfeet Nation,” said Republican Sen. Steve Daines. “This long-overdue agreement will not only establish the tribe’s water rights, but will also facili- tate real, tangible bene ts for the Black- feet and the surrounding communities.”
The Blackfeet Water Compact was rst passed by the Montana Legislature in 2009 but it has languished in Congress ever since.
HELENA
5. Montana Court Rules to Keep Libertarian Candidate on Ballot
The Montana Supreme Court ruled last week to keep the Libertarian can- didate for secretary of state on Novem- ber’s election ballots after the head of the state’s Republican Party tried to have the candidate declared ineligible.
The justices, in a 5-1 decision, denied GOP Chairman Je Essmann’s request to remove Roger Roots from the ballot because Roots failed to le his required campaign nance disclosure paperwork.
Roots is a long-shot candidate for the open seat against Republican Corey Sta- pleton and Democrat Monica Lindeen. He has neither raised nor spent any money in his campaign to replace outgo- ing Secretary of State Linda McCulloch.
Essmann argued that Roots is not eli- gible as a candidate because he failed to le his business disclosure statement and several campaign nance reports. Under Montana law, candidates who don’t le the documents must be removed from the ballot.
Essmann had asked the court to order county election o cials to stop printing ballots and remove Roots’ name.
Commissioner of Political Practices Jonathan Motl responded that Roots led the documents, though some were late and one was lost in his o ce after Roots submitted it. Roots also said that he led all the paperwork that was required of him.
Roots said that he believes Essmann wants him o the ballot because Roots would take votes away from Stapleton in the race. Essmann denied that he was trying to give Stapleton an advantage against Lindeen by striking Roots from the ballot.
YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK
6. Montana Lawmakers Push for Tribal Bison Hunts
A Montana legislative committee says American Indian tribes should be allowed to hunt bison inside Yellowstone National Park.
Supporters say such hunts would bet- ter control herds of the animals that migrate into Montana during winter.
The Environmental Quality Council issued a letter last week to Yellowstone Superintendent Dan Wenk asking him to honor hunting requests from tribes. Democrats on the council objected, say- ing no tribes have asked to hunt inside the park.
Several tribes with longstanding treaty rights hold annual bison hunts just outside Yellowstone’s boundary.
Many Yellowstone bison carry a dis- ease that can be harmful to livestock. However, no bison-to-cattle transmis- sions of the disease brucellosis have been recorded.
BILLINGS
7. Three People Killed in Southeastern Montana Small Airplane Crash
Three people were killed in a crash of a twin-engine airplane in southeastern Montana.
Carter County o cials say the Beech- craft Baron crashed at about noon on Sept. 17 in a grassy area about 12 miles south of the small town of Boyes.
Sheri Neil Kittelmann told the Bill- ings Gazette that the crash killed a 64-year-old man, a 45-year-old woman and a 13-year-old boy.
The aircraft took o from Billings Logan International Airport and was headed to Michigan where the man and the woman owned a business.
The airplane was registered in Flor- ida and the adults had Florida driver’s licenses.
The victims’ names have not been released. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the crash.
BILLINGS
8. Protections Rejected for American Pika, Other Species
U.S. o cials last week rejected greater protections for six species including the rabbit-like American pika, which researchers warn is disappearing from areas of the West as climate change alters its mountain habitat.
The pika’s range is shrinking across southern Utah, northeastern California and in the Great Basin that covers most of Nevada and parts of Utah, Oregon, Idaho and California, according to a U.S. Geo- logical Survey study released last month.
Ambient temperatures of 78 degrees Fahrenheit or higher can kill the moun- tain-dwelling mammals, wildlife o cials say.
But the Fish and Wildlife Service said in documents released that warmer tem- peratures don’t necessarily lead to popu- lation declines. That’s because pika can seek cooler refuge beneath rock elds during summer months.
The agency also said the most severe e ects of climate change are being felt at elevations below 8,200 feet, which is near the lower limit of the pika’s range in the West.
That suggests pika habitat “has not experienced the more substantial changes” of reduced snowpack due to cli- mate change, the agency said.
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