Montana
On July 1, Illinois and Ohio increased gas taxes by double digits: 19 cents per gallon and 10.5 CPG, respectively, followed by California at 5.6 CPG, all due to legislation passed this year or in 2017. Diesel tax hikes were even higher.
Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy
Downtown revitalization can be a small town planning priority too.
Next City
Once again, the president's efforts to undo his predecessor's environmental legacy were thwarted by a court ruling. In this case, the Interior Department's failure to conduct an environmental review of a Trump executive order ran afoul of NEPA.
The New York Times
A small town success story in Montana is indicative of a larger trend in the Western United States. Meanwhile, small towns in the rest of the country struggle.
The Washington Post
With a tweet from the president on Saturday morning, the public learns that yet another embattled cabinet member will lose his job. Zinke, a former congressman from Montana, is the subject of numerous investigations and controversies.
The New York Times
The Trump administration's denial of climate change may serve a political purpose, but in the courtroom, it can prove a liability. A federal judge in Montana took into account the administration's "discarding" of climate science in its ruling.
InsideClimate News
An exposé of a local urban planner isn't something you see every day—especially in Montana. Meet Julia Crain, of Butte, Montana.
Montana Standard
The city of Missoula professes a strategy of "focusing inward" when it comes to growth and development. A new 'Design Excellence Overlay' will help achieve more goals toward that strategy in the city's downtown.
Missoula Current
Though he’s opened land all over the U.S. to industry, the Interior Secretary is actually pushing to conserve even more of his home state.
The New York Times
According to one recent study, regional culture plays a major part in how healthily people eat. Supply may be less of a factor than demand.
The Washington Post
Using treated wastewater for snowmaking would have dual benefits for Big Sky, Montana.
Water Deeply
House Republicans from Washington are hoping to cut red tape for the development of surface storage facilities as the American West grapples with intensifying droughts.
Crosscut
The recent spill of 210,000 gallons of crude oil from the Keystone pipeline in South Dakota was far from an outlier.
High Country News
Missoula, Montana is home to seven craft brewers, and two more are in the works. The small town has seen development and jobs from these local businesses, but some fear market saturation.
CityLab
New research reveals the extent of the glacial retreat in the national park named for glaciers.
Climate Central
After a slow 2016, four states this year have already passed state gas tax increases. South Carolina may be next if they override the governor's veto. A new analysis should help legislators do just that.
Governing
Days earlier the presumed nominee was Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington, a member of the GOP congressional leadership, but Zinke's interview with Don Trump Jr., the president's son, appears to have caused the change.
The Washington Post - Energy and Environment
One of the Pacific Northwest's remaining coal export facility proposals was dealt what could be a final blow in state court last week. Some are describing such projects as zombies "shambling forward unaware that their heart has stopped beating…"
The Oregonian
A new report by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration documents the increasing frequency of nuisance floods and "clear-sky flooding."
USA Today
The unraveling of the coal industry, as exemplified by the demise of Arch Coal, was on display again as federal regulators put the final nail in the coffin of a proposed coal railroad.
Billings Gazette
