Thousands of people who traveled from all over Montana converged on the Capitol today to show their support for Public Lands.  Public land is the cornerstone of our Montana heritage and culture.  These lands, which belong to all of us, provide places to hunt, fish, hike, view wildlife, and find solitude.  Threats to our public lands have never been greater.

In an address to a joint session of the Montana House and Senate, newly elected Montana Supreme Court Chief Justice Cory Swanson spoke out strongly against partisan elections for judges.  He clearly stated that judges should be independent.

This week, the Republican majority in the House passed 4 bills that will tip the scales of justice to benefit large corporations against average citizens who have been harmed by them.

Today, Rep Powers submitted her third bill, HB 509.  This bill will improve the College Loan Forgiveness Program for beginning teachers…..one more tool to keep new teachers in Montana.

Valentine’s Day love for the Constitution!  Today, there was a rally in the Capitol in support of the Montana Constitution and all of the rights that it guarantees the citizens.  We have the best state constitution in the country which spells out more rights than the U.S. Constitution!

House Republicans pushed through HB 291 which says that Montana’s clean air standards cannot be any higher than those of the federal government.  Besides lowering Montana’s clean air standards, they are trying to avoid having to regulate greenhouse gas emissions that are causing climate change.  If passed by the Senate, this will most likely be challenged in the courts.

Today, Republicans in the House held a press conference to celebrate the passage of 3 bills aimed at gutting MEPA–the Montana Environmental Policy Act.  This was a direct assault on the Supreme Court decision in the Held v. State of Montana.  If passed by the Senate, these bills seek to put limitations on the MEPA review process and avoid disclosure of greenhouse gas emissions in energy projects.  Hopefully, the constitutionality of these bills will be questioned in the courts if they become law.

Democrats and moderate Republicans worked together to lift the sunset and continue Medicaid for Montana citizens.  This was an excellent example of bipartisan cooperation to work for the people of Montana.  The bill passed 63-37.

Rep Powers submitted her second bill today, HB 378.  This bill will repeal the prohibition against inclusionary zoning.  This bill is about local control and affordable housing…two things that are important to House District 3, especially Whitefish.

The Republican majority in the Legislature is filing many bills attacking the Judicial Branch of government.  Rep Powers spoke on the House floor supporting an independent judiciary.  As a former high school social studies teacher, she schooled her fellow legislators on the separation of powers.  She was quoted in the Helena Independent Record as saying “I think that if we are tired of the judiciary striking down the laws that we make, that we need to stop passing unconstitutional laws that trample on the rights of the people.”