Apr 26 Watch 6:37 Trans Rep. Zephyr on being only Montana lawmaker in decades to be censured By Amna Nawaz, Matt Loffman, Dorothy Hastings Republicans in the Montana House of Representatives voted to block Democratic Rep. Zooey Zephyr from entering the House chamber for the rest of the session. The party-line vote capped a week-long saga that began as the first transgender member of… Continue watching
Apr 26 Transgender lawmaker banned from Montana House floor for rest of 2023 session By Amy Beth Hanson, Sam Metz, Matthew Brown, Associated Press Transgender lawmaker Zooey Zephyr was barred from participating on the House floor as Republican leaders voted Wednesday to silence her for the rest of 2023 session after she protested GOP leaders’ decision earlier in the week to silence her. Continue reading
Apr 25 Montana House cancels session after supporters for trans lawmaker continue protests By Amy Beth Hanson, Sam Metz, Associated Press Montana legislators canceled a floor session in the Statehouse on Tuesday, a day after protesters were arrested while demanding that transgender lawmaker Rep. Zooey Zephyr be allowed to speak. Continue reading
Apr 23 Lawsuit over water pollution could curb use of aerial retardant to fight wildfires By Matthew Brown, Associated Press A legal dispute in Montana could drastically curb the government's use of aerial fire retardant to combat wildfires after environmentalists raised concerns about waterways that are being polluted with the potentially toxic red slurry that's dropped from aircraft. Continue reading
Apr 21 Montana's House speaker has silenced a transgender lawmaker. Here's what to know By Amy Beth Hanson, Matthew Brown, Associated Press The latest high-profile example of state legislative leadership deciding who can be heard during statehouse debates is playing out in Montana where a transgender lawmaker was silenced by Republican leaders for a second day Friday. Here's what you need to know… Continue reading
Apr 20 Trans lawmaker silenced by Montana House speaker as Legislature debates gender-affirming care ban By Amy Beth Hanson, Associated Press Speaker Matt Regier said Thursday he would not recognize any representative that he doesn't feel can "maintain decorum."… Continue reading
Apr 20 Montana GOP misgenders trans colleague while demanding censure for her language By Amy Beth Hanson, Associated Press The Montana Freedom Caucus called for a "commitment to civil discourse," in the same sentence in which they misgendered Rep. Zooey Zephyr. Continue reading
Apr 01 Narrow legal definition of sex in Montana bill would jeopardize protections for trans people By Orion Rummler, The 19th “They’re trying to categorize people by their reproductive capacity. There are a small number of people who produce both sperm and eggs,” said Lauren Wilson, president of the Montana Chapter of the Academy of Pediatrics. “So what that means is… Continue reading
Feb 04 China tries to minimize impact of suspected spy balloon after Blinken cancels visit By Huizhong Wu, Associated Press Secretary of State Antony Blinken was due to visit Beijing on Sunday for talks aimed at reducing U.S.-China tensions. He said he had told senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi in a phone call that sending the balloon over the U.S. Continue reading
Jan 12 Montana health officials consider stricter abortion process for people covered by Medicaid By Amy Beth Hanson, Associated Press Officials in Republican-controlled Montana want to require authorization before the state's health department pays for abortions for people covered by Medicaid. Continue reading