- The BOL discussed the current situation of salmonella testing on eggs and chickens in the MVDL and the salmonella testing that Wilcox was having done at Washington State University
Legislature helping the budget to cover expenses; the Diagnostic Lab was down by $38,000, the proprietary fund balance was $446,000, which was a $100,000 loss of revenue that had been stored up, and with the disruptions from moving into the new Lab building and an anticipated increase in O&M costs, Mr. Simonson expected a bumpy ride for a whole year;
(1:56:45) 10:13 AM June 30, 2026 Budget Comparison Report
Brian Simonson reported that the DOL had spent $1,095,000 more than the year before, but still had $1,264,000 left of the budget that wasn't spent:
- With all the vacancies and the pay increases, Mr. Simonson said that the $791,339 number had been growing steadily all year; the $485,611 in Operations was 8% of that budget left over; predominantly in Contracts; there was $200,000 less in testing; CSD had about $133,000 of extra authority in the Rent area; under Budgeted Funds, $689,000 of general fund was left over, with $400,000 of that in Meat & Poultry Inspection, aided by $300,000 general fund from the Legislature and a 50-50 match from the Feds; there was a lot of money spent on end-of-year “wish list” items, but there was still a lot of authority left over
- Dr. Tahnee Szymanski was doing a lot of work with MVDL staff who wanted to do more work around Brucellosis, working with MSU and USDA, hoping to get research grants
- Evan Waters' analysis of FY26 compared to FY27 showed $612,000 more in expenses in FY27, and most of that would be in Personal Services
PREDATOR CONTROL
(2:21:32) 10:38 AM
(2:21:42) 10:38 AM Update on Activities of USDA Wildlife Services - (Presented by Dalin Tidwell, Montana State Director)
Dalin Tidwell, State Director for USDA Wildlife Services, introduced himself and caught the BOL up on USDA Wildlife Services activities for the past couple of months:
- Mr. Tidwell reported on new hires, including Specialists, Range Riders and a Budget Analyst who was scheduled to start in September; he reported that adjustments in the 4D Rule wouldn't affect their grizzly bear work much; the EIS draft was out in time for a court-mandated deadline and was out for public comment; there were continued challenges with the new OARS reporting system; coyote take in the state through July was over 9,200; helicopters and maintenance were in good shape
- Investigative Report (IR) numbers so far this year: Black Bear-28 total, with a typical year being 23 to 40 in the last five years; Grizzly Bear-114 (70 in the last two months), with normal numbers being 150-180 the last five years, 51 were confirmed and probable and 19 unconfirmed for about $112,000 worth of damage; Wolf-44 total, with normal around 80-82 for the last five years, mainly