The Bitter End – Sine Die

Behind the frustration that defined the waning days of the 65th Montana legislative session

On the 85th day of the 2017 Montana Legislature, as a cash-strapped session drew to a bitterly familiar close, a handful of House Republican lawmakers gathered in a huddle to hash out what members of both parties recognized as the defining moment in their four months of work — negotiating both a balanced budget and a major infrastructure package to fund critical road, school and building projects across the state.

Just as they had earlier that morning, and just as they would over the coming days, the lawmakers broke from their assembly believing they were on the cusp of a deal, having wrangled enough bipartisan heft to carry the contentious measures across a divided finish line, even as others cleaned out their desk drawers and signed their battered oaken bottoms in farewell tradition, ready to return home to their lives and families.

By Tristan Scott

Full Story: http://flatheadbeacon.com/2017/05/02/the-bitter-end/

***

Legislative actions may leave Montana taxpayers with additional costs http://www.matr.net/article-76755.html