Author: Press Room

“Right to Know” Webinar

7 February 2023
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It’s true. Many Montanans do not fully realize the extent to which, as citizens, they have a right to access public documents and attend public meetings. Montana citizens have “a right to know” almost everything state and local governmental entities do and to have full access to public documents.

A webinar forum is being presented on Thursday, February 9, 6:30 pm, focused on Montana’s “Freedom of the Press and the Public’s Right to Know under the Montana Constitution.” Register for the webinar presentation at https:// lclibrary. libcal.com/ event/10190724.

The program will be moderated by retired Montana Supreme Court Justice Jim Nelson, and features panelists, Darrell Ehrlick, editor-in-chief of the Daily Montanan, and Billings constitutional trial lawyer Martha Sheehy.

“There is a symbiotic relationship between freedom of the press and the public’s right to know,” says Nelson. “The press is being frustrated in its constitutional right to know and is being forced to file lawsuits both to ensure that public meetings are open to the public and receive proper public notice and that public documents are available to the public. “The press is subsidizing the public’s right to know.”

“The right to know guarantees that citizens have access to all governmental decision-making,” Sheehy adds. “People need to know how to exercise that right.”

“Because we stand in the public’s shoes,” says Ehrlick, who has been a party in a number of these lawsuits, ”our fight is your fight. You should know what the press is doing on your behalf because these are your public officials.”

Ehrlick is the former editor of The Billings Gazette, which took Montana’s top newspaper award six times in seven years during his tenure.

During her 35- year career, Sheehy has represented media interests and private citizens in enforcing Montana’s constitutional right to know in dozens of cases. Her uncle was a delegate to the 1972 Constitutional Convention.

Nelson, served on the Montana Supreme Court from 1993 to 2013 and is a former Glacier County Attorney and prosecutor.

The event is co-sponsored by the Montana League of Women Voters of the Helena Area and Lewis & Clark Library.

States Dig Out from Pension System Debt

20 January 2023
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Samuel Stebbins,  24/7 Wall St. for Center Square

Public employee pension systems are some of the largest financial liabilities on state government balance sheets. The 50 states have over $4.5 trillion in cumulative pension liabilities combined, roughly double the amount all 50 states spent in fiscal 2020. For years, state pension systems were woefully underfunded in much of the country, but according to a recent report from the Pew Charitable Trusts, this trend may be reversing.

Driven by higher investment from both employees and employers, state pension systems have largely stabilized as of 2020. Since 2007, states across the country have more than doubled annual pension contributions, often cutting funding for other programs to do so.

Still, some states are better positioned to pay public sector employees in retirement than others. In Montana, pension liabilities totaled an estimated $17.5 billion in 2020. Meanwhile, the state’s pension assets totaled $11.8 billion. Considering both assets and liabilities, Montana’s pension funding ratio is 67.3%, the 20th lowest in the country.

According to 2021 estimates from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Montana state government employs some 27,800 people, or 5.6% of the total private and public sector workforce in the state.

It is important to note that 2020 is the most recent year for which comprehensive state level data is available and that the recent market downturn has all but erased much of the financial gains states have made in recent years. Still, while markets are always susceptible to turmoil, improved policies have gone a long way to improving pension funding in much of the country.

All state pension data in this story was compiled by the Pew Charitable Trusts using comprehensive annual financial reports from each state.

KLJ Hires Four

20 January 2023
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KLJ Engineering is proud to welcome four new employees to its Billings office. These new employee-owners will be working in multiple markets across KLJ.

Joining KLJ’s survey team is Tyler Mayhue. While working as a survey technician, he is actively pursuing his degree in mechanical engineering from Arizona State University. Mayhue also has a bachelor’s in business administration.

Luke Walker comes to KLJ as a CAD Technician I. He is pursuing his bachelor’s in math at Liberty University. Walker is also a Specialist in the US Army.

Jessica Callahan recently started as an environmental specialist II. She has more than seven years of experience working as an environmental/permitting specialist and GIS analyst on a variety of projects in the Midwestern States, including Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Callahan has her master’s in biology from The University of Northern Iowa.

Jhett Quade has begun his career as a civil engineer in training. Before coming to KLJ, he spent time as an assistant project manager and field technician at different companies across Montana. Quade earned his bachelor’s in civil engineering from Montana State University.

Olson Hired as Communications Director for Chamber

19 January 2023
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Hannah Olson joined the Billings Chamber of Commerce as the Director of Communications and Marketing in late September, 2022.

Olson comes to the Chamber with an abundance of experience in communications and community engagement. She previously worked with nonprofits like Big Brothers Big Sisters of Yellowstone County and YWCA Billings and in public involvement with DOWL Civil Engineers. Actively involved in the community, Olson currently serves on the NextGEN leadership team and is a board member for the Junior League of Billings.

With a heart for civic engagement, she ran for the Montana state legislature in 2020, served on the Board of Community Development for the City of Billings, and is the past president of the MSU Billings Alumni Advisory Board. She also has a daughter, Vienna, who is her pride and joy. In her new role, Olson oversees the overall branding and public image of the Billings Chamber of Commerce and leads the electronic, social media and design functions, with management of Chamber publications, and public relations.

She is also directly responsible for overseeing success of new member sales, sponsorship, member retention, and event success and sharing the value of Chamber membership. Olson holds a Master of Science in public relations and a Bachelor of Science in English, both from Montana State University Billings, and an Associate of Arts in secondary education from Northwest College. She grew up in Powell, Wyoming and has been a proud resident of the South Side of Billings since 2013

FTC Proposes Ban on Noncompete Clauses

19 January 2023
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By Brett Rowland, The Center Square

The Federal Trade Commission proposed a ban on noncompete clauses which the FTC said were often exploitative and suppressed wages and competition.

“The freedom to change jobs is core to economic liberty and to a competitive, thriving economy,” Chair Lina Khan said in a statement. “Noncompetes block workers from freely switching jobs, depriving them of higher wages and better working conditions, and depriving businesses of a talent pool that they need to build and expand.”

The federal agency said ending the practice of noncompete clauses could increase wages by almost $300 billion a year and expand career opportunities for about 30 million Americans. The FTC is seeking public comment on the proposed rule. The rule was based on a preliminary finding that such clauses constitute an unfair method of competition.

“Research shows that employers’ use of noncompetes to restrict workers’ mobility significantly suppresses workers’ wages – even for those not subject to noncompetes, or subject to noncompetes that are unenforceable under state law,” said Elizabeth Wilkins, director of the Office of Policy Planning. “The proposed rule would ensure that employers can’t exploit their outsized bargaining power to limit workers’ opportunities and stifle competition.”

The FTC’s proposed rule would make it illegal for an employer to:

* enter into or attempt to enter into a noncompete with a worker;

* maintain a noncompete with a worker; or

* represent to a worker, under certain circumstances, that the worker is subject to a noncompete.

The proposed rule would apply to independent contractors and those who work for an employer, paid or unpaid. It also would require employers to rescind existing noncompetes and inform workers that they are no longer in effect.

Letter to the Editor – McLane

18 January 2023
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Once upon a time, in a land where our leaders tended to have more concern for their constituents then they do now–-though nothing as per their job descriptions in Thomas Paine’s Common Sense–-established the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).  The purpose of the FTC is/was to curtail potential monopolies causing a lack of competition in various segments.  A lack of competition puts the consumer “between a rock and a hard place” when purchasing their goods and services, especially necessities.

Examples:

*Four international meat processing facilities control 80% of the total commercial processing in our country;

*The largest grocery chains merging;

*Airlines “joining” forces;

*Exxon-Mobil being bought out;

*There is a publication group that has approximately 300 livestock and livestock-related newspapers and periodicals.  Think of the impact they can have on issues relative to their readers.

One has to wonder if there is “anyone at home” at the FTC or are their offices being used for storage?  I ask this because of all the merging going on, no one ever hears of the FTC doing due diligence on these entities.

The only merger I have heard about that may be of benefit to a group of people, is the news group that is buying up the small newspapers in Montana.  If left to their own, some of these papers would not be able to continue.  I only hope the news group will continue to serve the relatively small towns in Montana by continuing the distinctive, individual papers.

Wally McLane

Billings, Montana

Decker Joins Visit Billings

18 January 2023
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Evan Decker joined Visit Billings, managed by the Billings Chamber of Commerce, as the new Sports Tourism Manager in November 2022. In his new role, Decker is leading the ongoing recruitment and solicitation of sports related tournaments and events to the Billings area by supporting businesses, event coordinators, tournament owners, local and state sports associations, rights holders, and National Governing Bodies in the athletic field.

He promotes Billings as a sports tourism destination to grow existing and recruit new athletic events. “The sports market is the second largest segment for growing visitation to Billings and creates hundreds of millions of dollars in economic impact,” said Alex Tyson, executive director of Visit Billings. “Evan brings a wealth of knowledge to the destination and focus to help grow new and foster existing sports events. He will take the market to the next levels.”

Decker holds a Bachelor of Science in hospitality management from Northern Arizona University and has experience in the hospitality, tourism, and sports industries. He recently became a Certified Autism Travel Professional (CATP) and completed training to receive his designation as a Professional in Destination Management (PDM). Decker officially joined Visit Billings on November 1, 2022. He relocated to Billings from Tempe, Arizona for his new role. No stranger to Montana’s Trailhead, Decker has strong Montana roots through his family and enjoys skiing and recreation in the outdoors.

Shop Lifting Reaches New Highs

17 January 2023
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In national news reports, prior to Christmas, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said that his company was experiencing incidents of theft “higher than what its historically been.” He explained that rising in-store theft, which often goes unchecked by local law enforcement, could force Walmart to raise prices “or even close some stores.”

His comments were buttressed by similar reports from Target’s CEO Brian Cornell a month earlier, saying that their company, too, had seen  a “significant increase in organized retail crime across our business.”

Year-to-date inventory shrink reduced Target’s gross margin by more than $400 million compared to last year, with an expected total loss of more than $600 million for the full year.

Across all retail brands, the average shrink rate in 2021 was 1.4%, according to the National Retail Federation’s (NRF) 2022 National Retail Security Survey. That represents $94.5 billion in total losses, up from $90.8 billion in 2020, the association found.

Organized retail crime was up 26.5% in 2021, according to NRF.

“This is an industrywide problem that is often driven by criminal networks, and we are collaborating with multiple stakeholders to find industrywide solutions,” Target CFO Michael Fiddelke told analysts.

Target, in a statement to WGB, said it was working with law enforcement, legislators, community partners and retail trade associations to address the “growing national problem” of retail theft.

The retailer said it is a strong supporter of the INFORM (Integrity, Notification and Fairness in Online Retail Marketplaces) Consumers Act that increases accountability and prevents people from selling stolen goods on online marketplaces.

At Walmart, the retailer has put safety measures in place on a store-by-store basis, a process that relies on proper staffing of local law enforcement, McMillon noted.

McMillon added that he would like to see firmer prosecution of shoplifters as well.

“If that’s not corrected over time, prices will be higher and/or stores will close,” he told CNBC. “It’s really city by city, location by location. It’s store managers working with local law enforcement. … It’s just policy consistency and clarity so we can make capital investments with some vision.”

Record New Businesses Register in Montana

17 January 2023
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Montana saw another year of record business registrations in 2022.

According to the Montana Secretary of State’s Office, roughly 53,000 new businesses were registered after registration fees were cut in half and other fees were eliminated entirely.

The Montana Secretary of State’s Office released the following information:

Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen announced another record number of new businesses were registered in Montana in 2022. Secretary Jacobsen made the announcement during the Montana Chamber of Commerce Business Days at the Capitol at the beginning of the month.

Poll – Americans Say Economy is in Trouble

17 January 2023
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By Casey Harper, The Center Square

Americans think the U.S. economy is in trouble, according to a new poll.

Released by CBS News and YouGov, the poll found that 64% of those surveyed said the national economy is doing “fairly bad” or “very bad.”

The survey found 56% disapprove of the job Joe Biden is doing as president. Those two figures are likely intertwined. Inflation has soared since Biden took office. Gas prices hit record highs last summer and are expected to rise again this year. Food prices have soared as well and show little sign of returning to their previous level.

Notably, 49% of those surveyed say they feel “scared” about the fate of the U.S. in the next year.

The poll also found 65% of Americans said things in the U.S. are going “very badly” or “somewhat badly.” That pessimism is similar to the sentiment found in a recent Gallup poll that found that that about 80% of those surveyed expect a higher deficit, higher taxes, and a worse economy in 2023.

“More than six in 10 think prices will rise at a high rate and the stock market will fall in the year ahead, both of which happened in 2022,” Gallup reports. “In addition, just over half of Americans predict that unemployment will increase in 2023, an economic problem the U.S. was spared in 2022.”

But it’s not just the economy. Americans are also worried about crime with Gallup reporting that 72% of surveyed Americans predict crime rates will increase, not decrease, this year.