- MPI Investigates: Michael went to Massachusetts for the Scott Brown election, looked into Montana stimulus spending, interviewed Denny Rehberg at his D.C. office and more over the past month or so.  Not a bad way to start the year.
 
  - Health Care Reform: Check out the latest bill status and free market approach information at our continuously updated health care reform resource page.  Remember, this is about freedom, not health care.  But we have to fight on the battleground they've given us so stay informed.  Some people say this is dead, but there's a bill out there ready to pass when people stop paying attention, so keep the pressure on.

 

  - Global Warming Resources Page: Much like our health care resources page, we're tracking and linking to the best information out there to keep you informed about topics and developments that will shape the course of future energy policy and Montana's energy potential.

 

  - Government Transparency: We're in the process of creating a transparency site for county spending similar to our www.schoolsopenmt.org site.  More on that as it unfolds.

 

- Property Rights Forum: We're working with PERC on this event that will be held in Bozeman on February 18th.  We have national experts to provide broad perspectives on property rights, including CATO's Randal O'Toole, PERC's Terry Anderson, and environmental expert Steven Hayward, but the main goal is to engage Montana leaders on this issue in a way that provides you actionable information.  That's why we have a range of Montana experts from academia, state and local government, and business to talk about threats to our rights and how to protect them.  Go here for the latest information on speakers and to register.

 

  - Cap and Trade: We're putting the final touches on our Cap and Trade study for a February 11th release.  This study outlines the costs to Montana jobs, production, and state revenues to say nothing of increased utility bills if a Waxman/Markey type of bill were to pass.

 

  - Helena News Bureau: We have Phil Drake in place in Helena and he'll be looking deep into capitol issues to provide an in depth, unbiased look at state news.  We'll have a grand opening once we get the office set up and online with the new Montana Watchdog web site.

 

  - Budget Review: Montana's budget is going from a large surplus to a potential deficit for 2011.  How does that happen? Some people say we're not collecting enough revenue, but we say the state's spending too much.  That should be the mantra for all of us: It's not a revenue problem, it's a spending problem.  So to help people make that argument we've got a study in the works that will clearly lay out how spending has increased over the past decade or so in a way that was clearly unsustainable over the long term.

 Study: Montana Already into Deficit Spending

BOZEMAN - Montana is engaged in deficit spending if pension costs and other post-employment benefits for state workers are factored in.  That's according to a study published in 2009 by the Institute for Truth in Accounting, titled "The Truth About Balanced Budgets - A Fifty State Study."  Read More... 

 

 

MPI Op Ed's