The Montana House of Representatives has passed their version of the state budget by a partisan vote of 59 to 41. It now heads to the Senate for consideration.
By a 10-9 vote on Wednesday afternoon, the Montana House Business and Labor Committee voted down Senate Bill 72, which would have provided medical coverage for firefighters who contract diseases such as cancer in the line of duty.
A dramatic, late Friday afternoon $11 million addition to the Montana University System budget has cut almost in half the $23 million deficit it was anticipating for the next two years.
There is danger brewing in Helena in the halls of the Montana Legislature over how many millions of dollars may have to be cut from the University system budget.
At the Montana Legislature's House Appropriations budget hearing on Wednesday morning, Director of the Montana Department of Health and Human Services, Sheila Hogan, had harsh words for what she termed drastic budget cuts to her department.
State agencies from the university system to the highway department are asking the legislature for funds from a budget that is significantly smaller than in years past.