-
First Four Months in 2025, Illegal Crossings Down by 83% Nationwide from 2024
By Bethany Blankley The Center Square In the first four months of 2025, illegal border crossing encounters and apprehensions reported nationwide totaled 168,390, an 83% drop from the number reported during the same time period last year. Under the Biden administration, U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported 993,035 illegal border crosser encounters/apprehensions from January through…
-
Capital Gains Impact Housing Prices
With median home prices exceeding $1 million in many U.S. housing markets, some real estate professionals are drawing attention to a 28-year-old capital gains tax law, citing it as one factor contributing to the nationwide housing shortage. Ken DeLeon, founder of DeLeon Realty in Palo Alto, told The Epoch Times that some communities have experienced…
-
Goodbye to the Penny
The US Treasury recently announced it will stop making the penny. Producing one penny cost almost four cents, costing the US Mint $85 million a year. This isn’t the first time this has been considered by Congress. The Cato Institute said that the penny should have been jettisoned long ago, but previous efforts in Congress…
-
NW Energy Explains Rate Increase
In opening remarks before the Montana Public Service Commission on the first day of the hearing on NorthWestern Energy’s request for a regulatory rate review, Sarah Norcott, Director of Regulatory Corporate Counsel for NorthWestern explained how the company’s investments benefit customers—both now and in the long term. “We understand that any increase in utility bills…
-
New Sign for Metra
It’s time to replace MetraPark’s digital advertising sign at 6th Avenue. “The controller is shot,” reported staff in seeking the county commissioners’ pre-authorization to begin the process sooner rather than later due to the length of time it will take to pursue the process. It was planned to begin the process in September but there…
-
Balancing Costs, Labor, and Ambiguity in the Ninth District’s Construction Sector
Erick Garcia Luna, Director, Regional Outreach Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis “…the industry’s reliance on imported materials, such as Canadian lumber, has some firms thinking twice before submitting request for proposals.” “Following years of fast-rising prices and wages, pressures were less acute and becoming more manageable.” “Forty-four percent of survey-takers experienced price hikes greater than…
-
Never to be Forgotten
By Evelyn Pyburn In the name of freedom, the world around, we cannot let the events of Tiananmen Square be forgotten. June 4 marked the 36th anniversary of the massacre at Tiananmen Square, of hundreds and maybe thousands of peaceful protesters. The exact death toll has never been released by the Chinese government, but some…
-
On Watch: Will Inflation Stay Tame?
By Orphe Divounguy, The Center Square Bottom Line: This week’s inflation data is expected to show a slight uptick in consumer prices. However, a moderation in consumer spending could limit the ability of businesses to pass tariff-induced cost increases to consumers. This week brings the economic calendar’s main event: the May consumer price index (CPI)…
-
New Speed Races Now on Summer Venue
This summer is adding new events to all the many things to do in Billings – two speed races for “street” cars, which is being produced by The Order of Chosen Friends. It is hoped that the events will attract the participation of a wide range of vintage cars, according to Lyndon Scheveck, a member…
-
Watchdogs: New Montana Law Restricting Foreign Money in Elections Insufficient
By Tom Joyce, The Center Square Montana recently became the sixth state this year to pass a ban on foreign spending on ballot measures. Watchdog organizations, however, say the state’s new law is inadequate. Montana’s new law bars non-U.S. citizens, foreign governments, foreign political parties and foreign-owned entities from contributing to campaigns surrounding ballot measures.…