Heart flutters at the state capital Friday as the Medicaid Expansion bill carried by Rep. Ed Buttrey, R-Great Falls, was tabled by a Senate committee. But that turned out to be a parliamentary maneuver by the bill's Senate sponsor to assure it a more friendly committee hearing. The bill still should pass the Senate and be signed by the governor, most observers predict, as it has the support of Democrats as well as more moderate Republicans. Some Republicans opposed to Medicaid Expansion point to a failed statewide referendum last year that would have funded the program through an increase in tobacco taxes, suggesting that the current effort thwarts the will of the people. Opposition to the ballot measure was heavily financed by tobacco companies.
Here are a half-dozen super-helpful websites for understanding the Montana Legislature and what's going on this session: A good place to start is the Montana Legislature's website . It's deep, comprehensive, timely, informative and easy to navigate. It's the best way to stay up-to-date on bills, hearings and budget details, and great for finding and contacting legislators. There's also excellent explanatory information about how the Legislature works. That's also the mission of Ripple Rousers --lots of practical information about the Legislature. If you want to stay up-to-date on the issues for which we are advocating, these organizations and their websites are excellent: • Montana Budget and Policy Center focuses on families and economic security, children and education, health care, housing and state-tribal issues, as well as revenue and tax policy pertaining to all of these areas. Great reports, fact sheets and analyses. • Montana Women Vote has be...
Welcome to Episcopal Advocacy in Montana! The purpose of this blog is to keep readers informed about the latest developments in an advocacy initiative recently begun by Holy Spirit Episcopal Church in Missoula. Our initial targets are two-fold: restoring full funding for targeted case managers for the developmentally disabled and the mentally ill in the state and retaining Medicaid Expansion. Both issues affect the neediest among us and we feel compelled to advocate on their behalf during the 2019 session of the state legislature. While parishioners at Holy Spirit will be doing what they can to make sure Montana takes care of its neediest, we also hope to enlist Episcopal laity and clergy across Montana--and others--in this effort. On this blog, you will find deeper explanations of the issues on which we are focusing and links to efforts by organizations and individuals to achieve the same goals.
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