All but seven state lawmakers get health benefits

The Legislature finally agreed to Lee Newspapers’ request to release all the names of state lawmakers covered by taxpayer funded health care benefits.

Mike Dennison has the story here.

The Legislature’s former chief legal counselor, Rob Stutz, initially denied Dennison’s request in January.

Lee Newspapers indicated that it planned to sue, but held off after Sen. Anders Blewett, D-Great Falls, and Sen. Kendall Van Dyk, D-Billings, introduced a bill  that would require the Legislature to disclose the information.

Senate Bill 284 passed the Senate 47-3, but was tabled Wednesday without debate in the House Human Services committee.

Rep. Ellie Hill, D-Missoula, attempted to blast the motion on the House floor today. GOP opponents argued that the measure was aimed at “embarrassing Republicans” for criticizing federal health care reforms while at the same time accepting taxpayer-funded health benefits. The motion failed 38-54.

Nevertheless, the Legislature today released the names of lawmakers accepting benefits.

Here’s the list.

Here’s the letter Legislative Services Division Executive Director Susan Fox wrote to Dennison.

Will the Legislature adjourn early?

Republican lawmakers — ever mindful of Gov. Brian Schweitzer's veto power—are considering a plan to temporarily adjourn the legislative session after delivering the state budget bill to the governor's desk in an attempt to avoid a special session.

Last week, Senate President Jim Peterson, R-Buffalo, and House Speaker Mike Milburn, R-Cascade, requested a memo from the Legislature's legal staff examining possible veto scenarios. The memo outlines the procedural requirements with respect to House Bill 2, the spending bill, including the Legislature's legal and procedural options should the governor veto the budget while the Legislature is in session.

Here’s a link to the full memo from acting chief legislative council Todd Everts.

Milburn confirmed Wednesday that GOP lawmakers are considering the idea of putting HB2 on Schweitzer's desk early, and then taking a break from the session and resuming it after Schweitzer makes his move on the budget.

"We have certainly studied that option," Milburn said.

Schweitzer sent a clear message to the GOP-controlled Legislature last month when he unveiled a "veto" branding iron.

Schweitzer refuses to say which bills he plans to veto, but he has indicated that he wouldn't hesitate to use the "hot iron" on HB2 if the measure is not to his liking.

The governor repeatedly has criticized GOP-proposed cuts to human services and education, including a plan to turn down $120 million in federal money.

"We've mentioned to them that they're just going to make taxes go up for property owners, and make health care costs go up for people who are paying private health insurance. Those really aren't acceptable solutions," Schweitzer said in an interview Wednesday.

Once a bill gets to his desk, the governor has 10 days to decide whether to sign it into law, administer a line-item veto, use an amendatory veto or veto the bill in its entirety. If Schweitzer doesn't sign or veto the bill, it becomes law after 10 days.

If the governor vetoes a bill that arrives on his desk after the Legislature has adjourned for the session, lawmakers can attempt to override the veto by mail-in ballot. If they fail to override the veto, the bill dies.

However, the state Constitution requires that lawmakers pass a budget, so if Schweitzer vetoes HB2 after lawmakers go home for the summer and they are unable to muster enough mail-in votes to override it, the Legislature must return to the Capitol for a special session at a date of the governor's choosing.

That's the scenario GOP leaders want to avoid.

If they get the budget on the governor's desk with legislative days to spare, and then temporarily adjourn for the 10 days Schweitzer has to act on the bill, it will leave time for lawmakers to take up the measure without a special session.

"The idea of adjourning early to leave time was to eliminate the possibility of a special session," Milburn said. "I would say that was more of an option earlier on. A lot of this depends upon what the governor wants to do. Is he interested in using his veto brand on House Bill 2 and then get on with the issues, or sit down and discuss it early on?"

Milburn said he and Peterson briefly met with Schweitzer about the budget on Monday.

"I think that after speaking to him and with Senator Peterson and I, we're all willing to sit down early in the process and get the executive branch included in House Bill 2," Milburn said.

Senate Majority Leader Jeff Essman, R-Billings, was less candid about the GOP's strategy for heading off a budget veto.

Asked if Senate Republicans were exploring the possibility of adjourning early, Essman said, "We are trying to pass a responsible budget that tightens the belt of state government, just like people are trying to do in their own homes. We think we need to go through a fact-based budgeting process. We think every dollar in the state budget needs to be looked at."

When pressed, Essman refused to say whether Republicans are considering early adjournment.

"We think it's important to have a process that we put forth a balanced budget that's responsible for all of Montanans, and give the governor an opportunity to look at it and react to it," Essman said. "I would say the requested memo speaks for itself in terms of all options being examined."

Democratic lawmakers said they are distressed with the pace at which Republicans are pushing the budget and related spending bills through the legislative process.

"I think they're pushing these bills without having given thoughtful consideration," Senate Minority Leader Carol Williams, D-Missoula, said. "The speed with which they're trying to get done is undercutting the quality of the product that we're putting out here. That does disturb me."

The Senate is expected to take up the budget early next week, and pass it as early as Wednesday or Thursday. If the House then accepts the Senate's changes to HB2, the measure could arrive on the governor's desk by the end of the week.

"I would say that would be iffy," Milburn said. "The House may not accept the amendments the Senate puts on."

Helena IR bars Planned Parenthood from Health Fair

About a dozen picketers demonstrated outside the Helena Civic Center Thursday to protest the Helena Independent Record newspaper's decision to bar Planned Parenthood of Montana from participating in a health fair.

Demonstrators held signs that read "The Helena IR bans Planned Parenthood from health fair," and "I stand with Planned Parenthood."

Stacey Anderson, Planned Parenthood public affairs director, said her organization was initially invited to join the more than 60 health and wellness businesses and organizations exhibiting at the event fifth annual event.

"Then about a week ago they walked the check back to our office," Anderson said. "They said they decided not to let either side exhibit."

"Either side," Anderson explained, meant anti-abortion groups and pro-abortion rights groups.

Anderson said Planned Parenthood provides a variety of family planning, medical, counseling and educational services to women, including abortion services. Last year the Helena Planned Parenthood clinic served 1,685 clients, most of whom are low-income individuals.

Questions directed to the Independent Record regarding the decision to bar Planned Parenthood from the health fair were directed to publisher Randy Rickman. Rickman did not returned repeated phone calls seeking comment.

"We are deeply disappointed that our local paper is choosing to censor our community, our providers and dismiss our patients," Anderson said.

This is not the first time Planned Parenthood and the Independent Record have publically clashed.

In May 2010 Rickman penned a controversial editorial supporting the Oklahoma Legislature's passage of a bill that requires women to get an ultrasounds and hear a detailed description of the fetus prior to an abortion.

Pro-abortion rights groups, including Planned Parenthood, blasted Rickman for the piece.

"We’ve had challenges with the IR in the past months and had hoped that after our staff met with the publisher and editorial board that a greater understanding of the breadth of our services would have prevailed," Anderson said. “Anti-choice sentiment and politicization should not weaken our ability to advocate for our patients or have access to the only newspaper in Helena."

Rift splits groups fighting to keep wolves on endangered species list

The law firm that represented 13 environmental groups in a successful push to return wolves to the endangered species list has withdrawn from the case because of a rift among the plaintiffs.

Attorneys for Bozeman-based Earthjustice, which represented the 13 environmental groups, filed a motion in federal court in Missoula Wednesday to step aside.

According to Earthjustice attorney Douglas Honnold, some of the plaintiff groups that brought the lawsuit have "established different positions" about how to proceed with the case.

"There will be different lawyers that are going to step in in short order," Honnold said.

Honnold declined to comment on what the "different positions" were among the plaintiffs.

U.S. District Judge Don Molloy ruled in August 2010 that the government made a political decision when it removed gray wolf protections from just two of the states where Northern Rocky Mountain wolves roam.

The decision returned wolves to the list of endangered species under the Endangered Species Act in most states and stopped planned wolf hunts in Montana and Idaho. The ruling was heralded by wildlife advocates and reviled by anti-wolf interests across the nation.

The Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks joined the federal Department of Justice, the state of Idaho, the Idaho and Montana Farm Bureau federations, and the Mountain States Legal Foundation in appealing the ruling last fall.

Since then both sides have tried to negotiate a settlement, but Wednesday’s motion and Honnold’s statement indicate that those negotiations failed to produce an agreement all parties were willing to go along with.

Mike Garrity, executive director for the Alliance for the Wild Rockies, said some plaintiffs wanted to settle the case and others did not.

The Alliance, Western Watersheds Project and Friends of the Clearwater refused to settle, Garrity told the Tribune Thursday.

"I believe these other groups will ask Judge Molloy for stay of his ruling which put wolves back on the Endangered Species List. This would mean that wolves could then be shot on sight and the states could have a hunting season on wolves before the wolf population is fully recovered," Garrity said. "We are sticking to our original request that wolf management should be based on science and the law, not politics."

Michael Leahy, Rocky Mountain region director for Defenders of Wildlife, the lead plaintiff in the case, declined to comment. Other plaintiffs in the case also declined to comment Thursday.

According to court documents filed in federal court Thursday, Bozeman attorney Brian Gallik will represent Defenders of Wildlife, Natural Resources Defense Council, Sierra Club, Center for Biological Diversity, Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance, Oregon Wild, Cascadia Wildlands, Wildlands Network and Hells Canyon Preservation Council.

James Jay Tutchton, of Englewood, Colo., will represent the Alliance and Friends of the Clearwater.

Summer Nelson, an attorney for the Western Watersheds Project, will take over representation of that group.

Rob Stutz, legislature’s chief attorney, resigns

The Legislature's chief attorney resigned Tuesday after fewer than 9 months on the job.

Rob Stutz replaced longtime legal services director and code commissioner Greg Petesch in July. Petesch had served as the Legislature's chief lawyer for 26 years until his retirement in June.

Susan Fox, executive director of Legislative Services Division declined to comment on the reason for Stutz's abrupt resignation because it is a personnel matter.

"We respect his privacy," Fox said.

Stutz did not immediately return a call for comment.

Fox said Stutz's departure will have little impact on the work of the Legislature's legal services staff at this point in the session.

"The timing of his resignation was respectful to the process," Fox said. "The bulk of the legal review work is complete."

Fox said general bills that survived the 45-day transmittal deadline have already been reviewed by legal staff.

Fox said she was grateful for the work Stutz did in his during his brief tenure.

"I want to thank him for all of the hard work he did pre-session and during transmittal," Fox said.

Stutz's brief term as legal director was dominated in the months leading up to the session defending a lawsuit Gov. Brian Schweitzer filed against the Legislature last fall alleging that lawmakers violated the Montana Constitution's "single subject" rule when it passed a spending measure in 2009.

"It was a lot of work and took a lot of his time and a lot of staff time, time that could have been spent on session business," Fox said.

A Helena district court judge dismissed the lawsuit in December.

Legislative attorney Todd Everts will take over as interim legal services director, Fox said.

Legislative attorney Lee Heiman, who took over as code commissioner upon Petesch's retirement will remain in that job, Fox said. The code commissioner is responsible for incorporating laws passed by the Legislature into the Montana Code. That work will begin this summer after the Legislature adjourns.

Fox said the search for a new legal director will begin no sooner than May.

"We'll wait until after the dust of the session has settled before we make those decisions," Fox said.

U.S. Attorney Cotter: “When criminal networks violate federal laws those involved will be prosecuted.”

U.S. Attorney Michael Cotter said federal agents executed 26 criminal search warrants and four civil seizure warrants in Montana.

According to a three page press release, the raids were “the culmination of an 18-month multi-agency investigation into the drug trafficking activities of criminal enterprises operating throughout the state of Montana.”

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, a total of 26 criminal search warrants were executed on Monday, March 14 at medical premises in Belgrade, Big Sky, Billings, Bozeman, Columbia Falls, Dillon, Great Falls, Helena, Kalispell, Miles City, Missoula, Olney, and Whitefish.

“Twenty-six search warrants were carried out yesterday where there is probable cause that the premises were involved in illegal and large-scale trafficking of marijuana,” Cotter said. “When criminal networks violate federal laws those involved will be prosecuted.”

More to come on The Lowdown and the Great Falls Tribune.

UPDATE: Click here for the complete text of Cotter’s press release:

http://www.greatfallstribune.com/assets/pdf/G1171771315.PDF