Representative Rosendale stood with several of his Republican colleagues to object to the Democratic resolution to call on Vice President Pence to invoke the 25th amendment. Representative Rosendale released the following statement. 

“Once again, the American public is confronted with Democrats' false claims of a national crisis that requires President Trump’s immediate removal from office. Last year, they made the same argument the first time they impeached the president, and then proceeded to delay transfer of the articles to the Senate for nearly a month. Now, Democratic leadership is arguing that we have to impeach right now, but then delay removal for 100 days. I objected, with other colleagues this morning, to this disgraceful episode of political theater, and urge Democrats not to do any additional damage to the political fabric of our republic. I want to thank Rep. Mooney for leading the group, and for Reps. Perry and Herrell for supporting us.”

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announces details of the 97th annual Agricultural Outlook Forum, which will be held virtually on February 18-19, 2021.
The 2021 Forum, themed “Building on Innovation: A Pathway to Resilience,” will focus on the central role science and innovation have played in helping the agricultural sector overcome challenges and build resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Forum’s program (PDF, 187 KB) will begin with a presentation by USDA’s new Chief Economist, Dr. Seth Meyer, on the Department’s outlook for U.S. commodity markets and trade for 2021 and the U.S. farm income situation. A keynote address by the incoming Agriculture Secretary, presentations by Congressional leaders, and a session on genetic literacy are also scheduled for the morning on the first day of the Forum.
In addition, the program will cover five key areas:

• Supply Chain Resilience
• Commodity Market Outlooks
• Food Price and Farm Income Outlooks
• U.S. Trade and the Global Market Place
• Managing Risk and Ensuring Sustainability
• Innovation, Technology, and Productivity

The 2021 Forum is expected to bring together more than 3,000 participants from the U.S. and around the world, including producers, processors, policymakers, government officials, and nongovernmental organizations. The Forum’s program includes more than 30 sessions and 100 expert speakers.
Registration for the Forum is free but required to attend the Forum sessions. To register, visit the 2021 Agricultural Outlook Forum website.

Representative Rosendale (R-MT)  released the following statement:

“I oppose impeachment as well as other methods of denying President Trump his lawful term in office. Efforts to impeach or remove the president are media stunts drawn from left-wing fever dreams. January 20th will mark the transfer of power to president elect Biden.”

Registration is now open for the 2021 Montana’s Next Generation Conference, which will take place on Tuesday and Thursday evenings beginning Tuesday, Jan. 12. The event is hosted by Montana State University Extension, Farm Service Agency, NACDC Financial Services, Marias River Livestock Association and the Montana Farm Bureau Federation.

The conference will have all sessions broadcast and accessible for free online. Registration for the conference can be completed at mtnextgen.com. This year’s conference will cover crops, livestock, family communication, business planning and succession planning.

There will be six workshops during the conference, each running from 6 to 8 p.m. Participation in all six workshops, along with a completed evaluation and passing a test on the materials covered, will satisfy the FSA's borrower training requirements.

Session dates and topics follow:

• Jan. 12: Lacy Roberts, Glacier County FSA farm loan manager, will present “Beginning Financial and Production Recordkeeping.” Roberts will cover the basics of developing a balance sheet and cash flow, as well as how to keep track of income and expenses. Mykel Taylor, an associate professor at Purdue University and an MSU graduate, will discuss making strategic management decisions based on financial records.
• Jan. 14: Dallas Mount of Ranching for Profit will be joined by three producers to discuss generating profit from farming and ranching enterprises by developing new income streams and closing unprofitable enterprises.
• Jan. 19: Domenic Varricchio from Roach Ag Marketing will cover the topic of marketing and how to develop a farm and ranch marketing plan using futures and options. He will give an overview of the 2021 marketing opportunities available to producers. Shane Eaton, co-owner of Eaton Charolais Ranch in Lindsay, will discuss how his family operation is four generations strong thanks to a robust marketing plan. Along with over 1,500 head of registered Charolais and 1,500 commercial cattle, the family operation has multiple feedlots in Montana and North Dakota.
• Jan. 21: Carla Sanford, MSU Extension beef specialist, will cover cattle nutrition. Her focus will be on how third trimester nutrition and fetal programming tie together. Brian Vander Ley, veterinary epidemiologist at the Great Plains Veterinary Educational Center in Nebraska, will follow Sanford and discuss how to begin calf nutrition, the importance of colostrum in a new calf and long-term effects when this building block is missed.
• Jan. 26: Jane Wolery, MSU Extension Teton County agent, will present “FENCES – Families Engaging Nicely in Communicating ExpectationS.” Wolery will share the importance of communication in moving a family operation forward and having effective lines of communication. Marsha Goetting, MSU Extension family economics specialist, will follow with a discussion on how to start succession and estate planning conversations with family members.
• Jan. 28: Brian Lee from the Lee Law Office in Shelby will present “Legal Horror Stories and Taxes.” Lee will highlight some legal stories gone wrong and how agricultural businesses can ensure agreements say what they mean. Britney Tempel with the accounting and business consulting firm Wipfli will discuss tax updates and how they are important to farm and ranch producers.

Producers who are completing classes for FSA borrower training credit can also substitute nights with Pondera County MSU Extension’s Master Farmer classes, which run Thursday evenings in January and February. For a full list of these classes contact Adriane Good at adriane.good@montana.edu.

Registration is now open for winter/spring courses and programs offered by the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Montana State University. Programming for OLLI, formerly MSU Wonderlust, includes courses, lectures, forums and book discussion groups for the intellectually curious aged 50 and older.

Eight noncredit enrichment courses will be offered for the upcoming semester. All programs will be held virtually unless noted otherwise. Courses typically meet once a week for four to six weeks. Topics include: people of the Americas, the science of sound, the Himalaya, modern China, international diplomacy, paleontology, Shakespeare’s plays and gravity. The cost for courses and workshops ranges from $55 to $75 with an OLLI membership.

OLLI will also offer eight side trip lectures from 3 to 4:30 p.m. on Mondays. These lectures will cover a range of topics, including Yellowstone wolves, the 19th Amendment, red-light districts in Montana and renewable energy. Side trips are free with an OLLI membership. Additionally, OLLI will also offer book discussion groups, special events and free lectures sponsored by the public libraries in Belgrade and Bozeman.

An OLLI membership costs $45 per academic year per person. To purchase an OLLI at MSU membership or to register for courses and programs, visit montana.edu/olli/register. For more information contact Academic Technology and Outreach at olli@montana.edu or 406-994-6550. To sign up for a free weekly e-newsletter, visit montana.edu/olli/newsletter.

As part of its ongoing efforts to support families and educators during the COVID-19 pandemic, MontanaPBS will continue in 2021 to offer its Learn at Home broadcast curriculum of educational programming and corresponding free digital resources. The new Learn at Home schedule begins Jan. 4 and will continue through the end of the school year on June 4.

Through Learn at Home, MontanaPBS is dedicating its daytime weekday schedule to educational programming provided by MontanaPBS and the Montana Office of Public Instruction. The 6:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. weekday schedule includes specific blocks of time for pre-kindergarten through eighth grade and covers subjects including language arts, social studies, science and math. MontanaPBS’ regular primetime schedule is not affected by this change.

“We’ve revamped our Learn at Home website after a year of learning what works best for our educators and families,” said Laura Dick, digital content and marketing manager at MontanaPBS. “We’ve worked closely with our education team to gather together new curriculum offerings that are even easier to access from our webpage.”

MontanaPBS has also curated corresponding free digital content for the Learn at Home programming to better serve educators across the state. Aligned to the same Montana content standards and topic areas as the broadcast service, MontanaPBS has created and shared the following free resources for teachers:

• Distance learning webpage: View weekly broadcast schedules as well as articles and activities created and/or vetted by the MontanaPBS education team, other public media organizations and other trusted education partners. Visit montanapbs.org/learnathome.
• Digital media collections: View and download full resource collections on PBS LearningMedia that correspond with the TV broadcast schedule. Collections include curated media and lesson plans, sorted by grade level and subject area. Visit montana.pbslearningmedia.org.

Officials at the Montana Department of Justice announced today that Montanans, especially senior citizens, should be aware of a new tactic being used in the old lottery scam.

The new twist works like this:  A scammer calls you, claiming to be from the “Montana State Gaming Commission.” The scammer says if you pay $600, you’ll have a chance to win $1 million.

“Legitimate lotteries never require people to send money to claim a prize or to have a chance at winning,” Attorney General Tim Fox said. “Because older persons are especially vulnerable due to physical and mental decline, social isolation, and their tendency to trust others, the most effective thing we can do to combat this scam is public education.  Remind your parents, grandparents, and elderly friends about the importance of staying vigilant for lottery scams and other rip-offs that can happen if they engage with these callers,” Fox added.

Another red flag?  The “Montana State Gaming Commission” doesn’t exist.  The Gambling Control Division at the Montana Department of Justice is responsible for state gaming regulation.  Angela Nunn, Gambling Control Division Administrator, said, “Real lotteries never contact the winner, or other players, because they don’t know who these people are.  So, keep in mind two things:  If you receive a call claiming to be from the Montana State Gaming Commission, it’s a scam; if you’re asked to send money in relation to lotteries, it’s a scam.”

Nunn also advised Montanans questioning the validity of a contact from the Gambling Control Division to call her office at (406) 444-1971 or email gcd@mt.gov to confirm.

For more information on lottery scams, visit the Montana Lottery’s website, or Montana Department of Justice’s Office of Consumer Protection’s (OCP) information here.  If you or a family member are the victim of a scam, contact local law enforcement.  You may also report scams to OCP by calling 1-800-481-6896 (toll-free) or (406) 444-4500, or by emailing contactocp@mt.gov.

For updates on this and other issues, follow DOJ’s Gambling Control Division and OCPon Facebook.

1st Choice Realty Open, Call for appointment 278-9129

1st Liberty Federal Credit Union: Drive thru open  

Branding Iron Open : Bar 2 p.m. - 11:30 p.m.; Restaurant 11 a.m. - 9 p.m. Bowling Alley and pool tables closed

Brown-Fitchner & Assoc. Business by phone or email; Open Mon-thurs 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. Fri 8-3

Coaches Corner: Take out, curbside pickup and delivery. Free masks; 4:30 – 8 PM

Conrad Building Center Open

Country Charm Open Mon-Fri 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Sat 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. In-store shopping limited to one; curbside delivery

Elings Insurance Office open, appointment recommended  

Folklore: Take out, curbside pickup and delivery. Free masks, 7:30 AM – 2 PM

Gary & Leo’s IGA:  Open, also providing delivery for AT RISK residents, free masks

H & R Realty Open, Call for appointment  271-2080

Home Café: Restaurant seating, open 6 a.m. - 2 p.m. Social distance seating to be followed

Independence Bank, Lobby and Drive-thru open.

Java Hut: Delivery and drive thru only. Free masks; 6:30 AM – 1 PM

Main Drive-in  Mon - Sat 11 a.m. - 7 p.m.

Marias Greenhouse Open 9 a.m. - 6 p.m. 576-7297

Northern Front Guns and Ammo Open Tues. - Sat. 11 a.m. - 3 p.m.

Olsons’Drug and Village Drug: Both Open. Both will continue to offer home delivery 

Pet Paws Grooming and Supply Open 10 a.m. - 5 pm. Call for appointment 271-7394

Pondera County Insurance: ? Call for hours 271-2034

Senior Center Open for delivery and pick up only. Call 271-3911 to reserve a meal

Stockman Bank Lobbies open

Subway: Open for pickup and take out 10 AM – 8 PM

Sunset Dental Care Mon - Fre 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Super 8: Closed

The Keg: Open for pickup, takeout and delivery 11 AM – 8 PM

The Independent-Observer:: Lobby Open Hours 8 AM - 5 PM

Town Pump: Open 24 hours.

Windrift Hill Open Mon - Fri 8 a.m.  - 5:30 p.m., Sat 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.