Montana

Bullock outlines jobs initiative for governors association

HELENA, Montana – As Montana’s governor prepares to serve a yearlong chairmanship of the National Governors Association, he announced his top initiative: Good Jobs for All Americans.

One of the biggest challenges for employers isn’t government regulation or the tax structure, it’s having a talented and trained workforce, Gov. Steve Bullock said last week.

The initiative will look at what states, the private sector and public education “need to be doing to position ourselves for jobs of the future, recognizing that automation and changes in technology could impact a significant number of jobs,” he said. Bullock also hopes to highlight the strengths and opportunities in rural areas.

He notes that while unemployment is low and the economy is strong, there are about 6 million jobs that are unfilled.

Bullock’s initiative will include gathering information from states to learn the best ways to improve the workforce and opportunities for jobs that pay enough to support a family. “We’ve got to figure out long-term how to make sure that everybody that works hard can actually get ahead,” he said.

Bullock expects the solutions will include an increased focus on work-based training, such as apprenticeships; re-training mid-career workers; and recognizing that new technology has led to a rise in part-time and “gig” work. Workshops on the jobs topic will be held in September in Pittsburgh, in December in Las Vegas and next March in Des Moines, Iowa. A report will be presented at next summer’s meeting in Montana.

Nebraska

Ex-Nebraska Rep. Ashford says Russian agents hacked emails

LINCOLN, Nebraska – A former Nebraska Democratic congressman said last week that Russian agents hacked into his campaign emails in 2016, a few months before he narrowly lost to a Republican challenger.

Former U.S. Rep. Brad Ashford announced the breach on his Facebook page after the Justice Department filed an indictment alleging that 12 Russian military intelligence officers stole information from Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign and the Democratic Party.

Ashford, who lost his seat to Republican Don Bacon by 3,464 votes, said hackers obtained all of his campaign’s email correspondence with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. He said he was notified of the breach in the summer of 2016 by House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi’s office and was told that the Russians were likely responsible.

“I wasn’t concerned about anything that would be untoward or inappropriate (in the emails), because I knew there wasn’t anything like that,” Ashford said in an Associated Press interview. “I was fearful that they would know things about our campaign’s strategy and focus, and that it would somehow get into the hands of a dark money group. It was stuff you don’t want the other side to get.”

U.S. intelligence agencies have said the Russian meddling was designed to help then-candidate Donald Trump’s campaign, and included bogus Facebook ads and social media postings. Prosecutors say the campaign was designed to influence public opinion and sharpen the nation’s political divide.

The indictment filed by special counsel Robert Mueller notes at one point that a U.S. congressional candidate, who was not named in the document, contacted Russian operatives who were posing as a hacker named “Guccifer 2.0” in August 2016 and requested stolen information related to the candidate’s opponent. The hackers sent the information using the “Guccifer 2.0” persona.

Ashford said he doesn’t believe any of the stolen information ever went to Bacon or the Republican Party, and he doesn’t know whether it made a difference in his race. He did face a series of anonymous political attacks on social media.

Trade tensions weigh on outlook for rural parts of 10 states

OMAHA – Weak economic growth is expected to continue in rural parts of 10 Plains and Western states, but all the recent trade disputes may shrink profits.

Creighton University economist Ernie Goss says the new tariffs are hurting grain prices, which were already weak.

The overall economic index for the region declined to 53.8 in July from June’s 56.1.

That score still suggests growth because it is above 50, while any score below 50 indicates a shrinking economy.

Bankers from Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming were surveyed.

New Mexico

New Mexico regulators work on new rules for payday loans

ALBUQUERQUE – It took years for New Mexico lawmakers to finally reach consensus on overhauling the storefront lending marketplace by capping interest rates. But state regulators have yet to finalize the rules needed under the new law to bolster consumer protections and enforcement.

The Regulation and Licensing Department’s Financial Institutions Division has received four complaints against licensed small-loan lenders since January, when the law took effect. The agency didn’t release details about those cases but said each complaint is thoroughly investigated.

Lindsay Cutler, an attorney with the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty, said without more information on enforcement, consumer advocates don’t have a clear picture of how the small loan industry is doing business under the new law.

“All New Mexicans deserve access to fair and transparent loans under reasonable terms, but generations of low-income families and Native American communities have been aggressively targeted by unscrupulous store front lenders,” she said in a statement.

There are now about 600 licensed small-loan outlets in New Mexico, according to the agency.

The local store-front lending industry has defended high interest rates as a way to ensure borrowing options for low-income residents in New Mexico, where high poverty and unemployment rates are chronic.

Legislation approved in 2017 by the Democrat-led Legislature and Republican Gov. Susana Martinez included a variety of consumer protections to discourage predatory lending practices. Limits on fees and interest for loans are combined with requirements giving borrowers at least 120 days to repay in at least four installments – effectively eliminating payday loans tied to the next paycheck.

There are efforts underway to bring to New Mexico more small-loan alternatives. A number of local governments already are offering loans with moderate interest rates for public employees with little or no credit history. The loans are repaid through payroll deductions.

Wyoming

Man in concrete mixer truck leads Wyoming police in chase

GILLETTE, Wyoming – Wyoming police say a man twice led them in a chase – once in a pickup truck and then in a concrete mixer truck.

Gillette Police Lt. Brent Wasson says the incident began about 11:15 p.m. July 18 when police tried to stop a pickup truck on the Interstate 90 on-ramp.

The Gillette News Record reports the driver fled, reaching speeds up to 100 mph on I-90 and forcing police to stop chasing him.

However, the pickup later crashed into a ditch in a field, and the driver ran off into a nearby construction business, where he commandeered the concrete mixer.

Wasson says at some point the truck’s brakes locked and caught fire, disabling the truck.

Wasson says a 32-year-old man was taken into custody pending formal charges.