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meeting on Dec. 1, state representatives will listen to public input and present the study’s ndings to the Flathead County Commission. The meeting will start at 4:30 p.m. with an open house, and con- tinue with a 5:30 p.m. presentation, at Bigfork Elementary School.
The bridge, constructed in the early 1900s, connects the village of Bigfork to Montana Highway 35. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2015. Without action, the one-lane bridge would likely be deemed structur- ally de cient in ve years’ time, accord- ing to MDT o cials. Following an initial open house in April, MDT worked with construction rm KLJ to identify options that best maintain this bridge’s historic character, have the structural integrity to ensure safe passage for vehicles and pedestrians, and are fundable by MDT and maintainable by the county, which owns the bridge.
All seven preliminary bridge options may be reviewed online at http://www. mdt.mt.gov/pubinvolve/bigforkbridge/ docs/Swan-River-Bridge-Handout.pdf.
State o cials are seeking community input at the Dec. 1 meeting, and will also accept comments until Jan. 3, 2017. Com- munity members can submit comments online at www.mdt.mt.gov/mdt/com- ment_form.shtml (indicate that com- ments are for project UPN 9020-SWAN- RIVER-BRIDGE-STUDY). They may also contact MDT District Administra- tor Ed Toavs at P.O. Box 7039, Missoula, MT 5907-7039.
SEELEY LAKE
4. Employee Dies in Accident at Lumber Mill
An employee died in a work-related accident at Pyramid Mountain Lumber Co. near Seeley Lake just hours after a fatal highway crash in the same area.
Missoula County sheri ’s spokes- woman Brenda Basset says 66-year-old Philip Pohlman of Seeley Lake died at about 10 a.m. Nov. 17 when a vehicle he was working on fell on top of him.
About four hours earlier, a 60-year- old Conrad man was killed in a crash on Montana Highway 83 near Seeley Lake. Basset says David Solum died after being thrown from his vehicle in the rollover crash.
HELENA
5. Montana Unemployment Holds Steady at 4.3 Percent in October
Montana’s seasonally adjusted unem- ployment rate held steady at 4.3 percent in October, the third consecutive month at that level.
State Labor Department o cials said last week that payroll employment increased by 2,200 jobs last month, with strong gains in construction and leisure activities industries. Total employment estimates re ect a loss of about 1,000 self-employed or agricultural jobs for a monthly gain of about 1,200 jobs.
Labor Commissioner Pam Bucy said employees can expect to see increasing wages.
The national unemployment rate fell by one-tenth of a percentage point to 4.9 percent in October.
Flathead County’s jobless rate hit 5.1 percent last month, roughly the same it has been all year.
HELENA
6. Governor’s Budget Includes New Taxes on Wealthy, Marijuana
Montana Gov. Steve Bullock is propos- ing a budget that would increase spend- ing by 1.4 percent over two years and look to bolster agging revenues by taxing medical marijuana and raising taxes on the rich.
The two-year budget plan released last week also seeks to build Montana’s rainy day fund back to $300 million.
The Democratic governor’s plan would cut state spending by nearly $8.8 million the rst year, then increasing it $44 million the second, a re ection of lower-than-expected revenues from tax collections.
The proposal also calls for a new 6 per- cent tax on medical marijuana.
People would be taxed at a 7.9 percent rate instead of 6.9 percent for income over $500,000 a year.
Bullock is proposing to spend $292 million on infrastructure, $157 million of which would come from bonds.
Lawmakers take up the proposal in January.
YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK 7.U.S.MovestoBlockMiningNear National Park
U.S. o cials plan to block new min- ing claims outside Yellowstone National Park as the Obama administration races in its last days to keep industry out of pristine and environmentally sensitive areas.
Mining claims on 30,000 acres north of the nation’s rst national park would be prohibited for at least two years while a long-term ban is considered.
Interior o cials last week blocked new oil drilling in the Arctic Ocean and cancelled 25 oil and gas leases in west- ern Colorado and 15 in northwestern Montana.
Republicans and industry representa- tives have criticized the administration’s eleventh-hour actions to limit develop- ment and promised to seek their rever- sal once Obama leaves o ce.
The latest move comes after a pair of gold exploration proposals north of Yel- lowstone drew strong opposition from local business owners, environmental- ists and Montana elected o cials.
The opponents argue that mining would industrialize wild areas populated by grizzly bears, bighorn sheep and other wildlife; harm streams that drain into the Yellowstone River; and dampen tour- ism, which is a mainstay of the region’s economy.
The two-year prohibition would not explicitly block the two pending mining proposals, both of which involve private lands. However, o cials said it could make large-scale mining more di cult if the projects were expanded onto pub- lic lands.
Recreation and other activities still would be allowed in the area.
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