Jodee Etchart

Montanans with severe mental illnesses that are accused of crimes can languish in jail for more than a year as they wait for a bed at the state psychiatric hospital. New legislation would build a facility for those patients in eastern Montana.

Montana legislators are considering bills to change how the state’s elections work. One bill would discard signatures from registered but inactive voters endorsing third-party candidates or ballot initiatives.

As Montana grapples with a health care provider shortage, state lawmakers are trying to find ways to increase access to care. One proposal up for debate is to give physician assistants more independence to practice unsupervised.