MATR Newsletter – September 22, 2025
The state with the best education wins!

Under the new law, students attending Montana universities may be barred from registering to vote where they actually live, simply because they can’t promise to stay there after graduation.

The implications are stark. For example, a high school graduate from Sidney, Montana, who moves to Bozeman, Butte, Billings, Havre, Dillon, or Missoula to earn a college degree would have to swear — under penalty of perjury — that she plans to stay in her college town after earning her degree in order to vote there. That’s not just an unreasonable burden — it’s an impossible one.

How Universal Child Care Could Change the Economy

Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for New York City mayor, has proposed no-cost, universal child care, helping to reignite a national conversation.

The Teen-Disengagement Crisis – Checking Out of School

The teens who say they dislike school may not be failing—more likely they’re coasting, in what we came to call Passenger Mode. A lot of them simply didn’t understand the point of school. And so they checked out.

Today’s MATR Newsletter is sponsored by:

MEDA -Montana Economic Developers Association

How Universal Child Care Could Change the Economy
Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for New York City mayor, has proposed no-cost, universal child care, helping to reignite a national conversation.
Cities Can be a Sensory Nightmare. Minnesota is Trying to Change That.
A state-wide effort to build 10,000 sensory-friendly spaces aims to set a new standard for inclusive design.
Montana Ag Network: students learn meat processing skills – The Producer Partnership
The educational initiative grew from an existing relationship between Producer Partnership and Joliet schools. For years, Pierson’s organization has helped local ranchers donate beef to Montana school lunch programs, which is how he met Begger.
A dying man said he found the key to happiness. Science backs him up.
“Anybody who walked in was welcome in the discussion. The ground rules were simple:
Montanans at Work Tour Brings Jobs and Resources to Communities Statewide
State leaders want local employers, workforce professionals, and everyday Montanans to sit down together and talk about what’s working, what isn’t, and what we need to move forward.
3rd Montana State Society Annual Boot N Scoot Rooftop Festival – 9/27 – Washington, DC
Get ready for a night of live country music, dancing, and fun under the DC skyline! The Boot N Scoot Rooftop Festival returns for its third year with incredible country bands, a DJ, great food, and drinks — all on the rooftop at Union Market.

City of Bozeman Economic Development

Bozeman forum to tackle housing affordability and availability – 10/10 – Online
The event will feature discussions on housing costs, income trends and present challenges. It aims to engage the community in the national discourse about the housing market.

Montana Business

‘You’re Going to See Very Severe Things and Dangerous Things’: Medicaid Cuts in Rural Idaho
Clinicians warn that Medicaid cuts in Idaho will drive coverage losses, care delays, and provider shortages, leading to more medical emergencies.
Montana-made comedy “Cuisine De La ‘Pocalypse” debuts on Amazon Prime Video
Here’s the plot: 10 years after the world as we know it ends, an aspiring chef refuses to let his dream die and creates the apocalypse’s first cooking show. It takes place in a town called “New Missoula.” And yes, it’s a comedy featuring zombies, robots, and taquitos.
Trip with sons leads West Virginia man to Butte business adventures
Moving to southwestern Montana was a sound business decision for Haines. He was having so much fun running the two Melrose businesses, he decided the mining town of Butte was the perfect place to expand.
California Will Revolutionize Rideshare Industry With New Union Policy
A forthcoming state law will create the single largest new pool of workers with collective bargaining rights in decades.

Funding and Building your Business

Your team’s marketing skills are already obsolete
Your team’s marketing skills are already obsolete

Energy and Transportation

Trump’s War on Wind Will Hurt Every Business
It’s not just renewable energy companies feeling the sting. Soon it’ll be everyone.
Will electric tractors gain traction with farmers? Researchers see possibilities
Agriculture is among the largest sources of climate-warming emissions worldwide. Though tractors are a small culprit, experts believe an environmentally friendly machine will attract buyers interested in sustainability.
Ventura, CA Makes Car-Free Main Street Permanent
Main Street has been closed to cars since 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic spurred a flurry of open streets projects.
The race to find a way to recycle old turbine blades from windfarms
Made from carbon fibre, they are difficult to break down, but in UK and elsewhere in Europe there are plans to tackle the waste
Who pays for wildfire damage? In the West, utilities are shifting the risk to customers.
Utah laws cap wildfire damages and let utilities pass the cost onto customers. Utility lobbyists are pushing the model in other states.
Can virtual power plants relieve hot spots on neighborhood power grids?
PG&E, Sunrun, and Span are testing how rooftop solar, batteries, and other resources can ease stressed-out local grid circuits as a way to avoid expensive upgrades.
As North Dakota Governor Interior Secretary Doug Burgum celebrated wind power. Then Trump tapped him to kill it.
As governor of North Dakota, Doug Burgum bragged about his state’s wind energy. He shed those views when he became Interior secretary.

21st Century Education Initiative – “You Should Care…”

The Teen-Disengagement Crisis – Checking Out of School
The teens who say they dislike school may not be failing—more likely they’re coasting, in what we came to call Passenger Mode. A lot of them simply didn’t understand the point of school. And so they checked out.
Officials break ground on state-of-the art hotel The Vim at MSU campus
The groundbreaking featured some speakers sharing how this hotel, the Vim, will provide real-world experience to prepare students in the fast-growing hospitality and culinary fields.

2025 Legislature and Politics

Advocacy groups sue over new Montana election law changes
Two other election laws are also facing legal challenge. One requires voters to show a photo ID to receive a ballot. The other closes same-day voter registration for federal elections eight hours earlier than usual. That law also opens up voter registration the Saturday before an election.