Happy Tuesday, Beacon readers! Mariah Thomas here with your Daily Roundup. I returned from a weekend trip to my hometown of Helena on Sunday, and as I drove through the Swan, the Montana sky above me transformed from a clear one to a smoky haze. As I pen today’s newsletter, I’m daydreaming about those clear skies and sending best wishes to everyone impacted by the local blaze in Olney. If you know a firefighter working right now as these fires blanket the West, make sure to thank them.
This morning, I walked into the office to an announcement that The Montana Plan is coming to Kalispell next week — this time, for a small business roundtable as the group tries to drum up support for the ballot initiative that’s been heralded as a novel approach to removing dark money from politics. Known as I-194, the initiative aims to limit business entities in the state from contributing to candidates, political parties and state ballot issues.
According to the release, the roundtable will take place from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Aug. 11 at the Kalispell VFW. Attendees can expect an overview of I-194, along with a discussion about the ballot initiative and how political spending touches the state’s small business community. The release said the roundtable in Kalispell will be the first in a series of similar talks happening around the state.
The effort to host roundtables like the one in Kalispell builds on the Transparent Election Initiative’s (the group backing the ballot initiative) addition of Russell Cleveland as its executive director of partnerships. Cleveland formerly ran to represent Montanans in Montana’s western congressional district. In his role with the Transparent Election Initiative, Cleveland is working to drum up support for the ballot initiative from the state’s businesses.
It’s no small task, as the initiative has posed concerns for the Montana Chamber of Commerce and other chambers in the state, including Kalispell’s.
In March, the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce joined on with a group of corporations and special interest groups who tried to sue to stop the initiative from gathering signatures to make it onto the ballot, citing the “significant First Amendment chill” it would cause “to both entities and individuals.” That lawsuit didn’t pass muster; but the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce, Montana Chamber of Commerce and Billings Chamber of Commerce wrote an op-ed in May doubling down on their opposition.
The chambers’ argument hinges on concerns the initiative would sideline small business voices and allow for wealthy individuals to instead exercise an outsized amount of power over election outcomes.
It’s a position the Transparent Election Initiative has pushed back against. Cleveland told the Beacon in June the intention isn’t to prevent small business owners from advocating on issues of importance, but rather, to prevent large corporations from wielding excessive influence on elections.
The Montana Plan’s release invites business owners who “support I-194, remain undecided, or have questions or concerns about the initiative” to join the conversation next Tuesday.
I know I’ll be there to listen in — and I’m curious to hear what folks have to say, because ultimately, Montanans will be the ones to weigh in on the initiative. Pending ballot certification on Aug. 20, the initiative is set to appear in front of Montanans on Election Day in November.
The initiative adds to a long history with dark money in Montana, a state where the influence of the “Copper Kings” once reigned supreme until voters approved the 1912 Corrupt Practices Act. The act banned corporations from spending money to influence elections in the state until 2012, when the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision, which opened the door to corporate money in politics, was used to overturn Montana’s law.
And … that’s what I’ve got for you all today. Now, onto the rest of today’s Daily Roundup.
Flathead County Sees Highest In-migration Rates as Housing Prices Continue to Outpace Wage Gains
Experts at the University of Montana’s Bureau of Business and Economic Research say that despite strong wage gains, Kalispell’s affordability is the worst in the state when compared with income levels as residents become increasingly displaced
Montana Wildlife Advocates Sue Over Rollback of Endangered Species Act’s ‘Harm’ Definition
As conservation groups challenge the Trump administration’s move to rescind a 50-year-old regulation, proponents say the new reform gives local land managers more control
Man Charged with Deliberate Homicide in Fatal Hungry Horse Shooting Pleads Not Guilty to Amended Charges
Dylan Austin Olson, 26, now faces an additional 10-year term in the Montana State Prison after the use of firearm, destructive force and dangerous weapon amendments were added to his felony deliberate homicide charge
Group of Corporations, Industry Organizations Sue to Stop Anti-Dark Money Ballot Initiative
The group, which includes the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce, argues the potential ballot initiative is unconstitutional, while those who are working to pass it say the lawsuit is an attempt to quiet Montanans’ voices
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