Governor Gianforte Proclaims April Month of the Military Child
Governor Greg Gianforte on April 3 proclaimed April 2023 Month of the Military Child and April 27, 2023, as Purple Up! Day in Montana to honor children of servicemembers and their families.
On Purple Up! Day, Gov. Gianforte encourages Montanans to wear purple to show support for the children of our servicemen and women.
The governor’s proclamation may be viewed here and below.
WHEREAS, children of U.S. servicemembers deserve support as they sacrifice for our state and nation; and
WHEREAS, ensuring the physical, social, and emotional well-being of children of servicemembers in our schools and communities is essential to their success and allows our men and women in uniform to focus on the challenges and missions they face in the line of duty; and
WHEREAS, Montana is home to over 6,000 military-connected youth; and
WHEREAS, children of servicemembers are required to step up and take on more responsibilities while their parents serve, and often must move to new communities and start at a new schools every few years; and
WHEREAS, children of servicemembers are incredibly resilient and adaptable in their circumstances – understanding the importance of service to our state and nation – leading them to be well rounded, successful individuals that continue to serve and contribute to their communities;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, Greg Gianforte, Governor of Montana do hereby proclaim April 2023 and April 27, 2023
MONTH OF THE MILITARY CHILD and PURPLE UP! DAY
In Montana to support children of servicemembers and their families.
Submitted by Katlin Price
Biden-Harris Administration announces more than $62 million for drinking
water infrastructure upgrades in Montana
April 4, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced $62,283,000 for Montana essential drinking water infrastructure upgrades through the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF). Thanks to a $6 billion boost from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, EPA is increasing the investments available to rebuild the nation’s water infrastructure.
“Every community deserves access to safe, clean drinking water,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “Thanks to President Biden’s historic infrastructure investments in America, we have an unprecedented opportunity to revitalize America’s drinking water systems, support the Biden-Harris Administration’s goal of removing 100% of lead pipes across our country, and protect communities from PFAS pollution.”
“EPA is committed to protecting the health of all Montanans by ensuring the water flowing into their taps is reliably safe long into the future,” said EPA Regional Administrator KC Becker. “This funding is an invaluable investment in public and environmental health.”
“Water is life, and clean drinking water is essential for rural America’s small businesses and working families,” said Senator Jon Tester. “No matter where they live, Montanans deserve to have clean water coming right out of the tap, and that’s why I fought to secure this funding to upgrade critical drinking water infrastructure here in the Treasure State.”
“In many Montana communities aging infrastructure requires investment now to protect access to safe, clean drinking water,” said Montana Department of Environmental Quality Director Chris Dorrington. “This funding will help with those upgrades and reduce the risk of lead and emerging contaminants while reducing the out-of-pocket costs to Montanans.”
Progress made in Montana under the first wave of DWSRF allocations includes a project that will provide two disadvantaged communities near Fort Smith with modern sewer infrastructure, eliminating sewer backups and groundwater contamination in the area. The project will also eliminate current sewage contamination of the Big Horn River.
The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to strengthening the nation’s water infrastructure, while providing significant resources to address key challenges, including climate change, emerging contaminants like per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and cybersecurity.
The DWSRF allotments to states are based on the results of EPA’s 7th Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment (DWINSA). The survey, which is required by the 1996 Safe Drinking Water Act, assesses the nation’s public water systems’ infrastructure needs every four years and the findings are used to allocate DWSRF grants to states. The drinking water utilities need $625 billion in infrastructure investments over the next 20 years to ensure the nation’s public health, security, and economic well-being.
At the direction of Congress, EPA’s 7th Drinking Water Assessment, for the first time included survey questions focused on lead service lines and is projecting a national total of 9.2 million lead service lines across the country. This best available national and state-level projections of service line counts will help advance a unique opportunity to employ a separate lead service line allotment formula for the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law DWSRF Lead Service Line Replacement Funding that is based on need. Almost $3 billion of the funding announced today will be provided specifically for lead service line identification and replacement, taking a key step toward the Biden-Harris Administration’s goal of achieving 100% lead free water systems.
President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is investing over $50 billion in water and wastewater infrastructure improvements across the country between FY 2022 and FY 2026. In its second year of implementation, $6 billion of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding will be available to states, Tribes, and territories through the DWSRF. Of that funding, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will invest $3 billion in lead service line identification and improvement, $800 million to address PFAS and other emerging contaminants, and $2.2 billion in other critical drinking water system improvements. Additionally, approximately $500 million will also be available through the DWSRF annual appropriations, established by the Safe Drinking Water Act.
EPA is committed to ensuring every community has access to this historic investment and has centralized increasing investment in disadvantaged communities within its implementation. The implementation of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law calls for strong collaboration, and EPA continues to work in partnership with states, Tribes, and territories to ensure that communities see the full benefits of this investment. In addition, EPA is strengthening its water technical assistance programs to support communities in assessing their water needs and apply for their fair share of this historic investment.
President Biden’s Investing in America agenda is growing the American economy from the bottom up and middle-out – from rebuilding our nation’s infrastructure, to creating a manufacturing and innovation boom powered by good-paying jobs that don’t require a four-year degree, to building a clean-energy economy that will combat climate change and make our communities more resilient.
Submitted By EPA Press Office
Montana Commissioner of Securities Joins Other State Regulators To Stop Fraudulent Artificial Intelligence
Investment Scheme
Earlier today, the Montana State Auditor and Commissioner of Securities and Insurance joined the Texas State Securities Board and the Alabama Securities Commission in filing enforcement actions to stop a fraudulent artificial intelligence investment scheme. The enforcement actions accuse YieldTrust.ai and Stefan Ciopraga of illegally soliciting investments tied to a decentralized application (dApp) that purportedly uses quantum artificial intelligence to trade digital assets. The initial scheme recently collapsed, and the respondents are now allegedly perpetrating a Ponzi scheme by raising capital from new investors to cover withdrawals from previous investors. The Montana Order demands YieldTrust.ai cease and desist all Montana activity and seeks a total of $100,000 in fines.
According to the orders, YieldTrust.ai is illegally marketing its dApp, known as the YieldBot, through an internet website, its social media channels, and various online influencers. YieldTrust.ai is allegedly claiming the YieldBot is powered by cutting-edge artificial intelligence designed to interact with the market for digital assets. It is purportedly touting the sophistication of the artificial intelligence, claiming it is “capable of executing 70 times more trades with 25 times higher profits than any human trader could.” YieldTrust.ai is also allegedly claiming the artificial intelligence continuously evolves, as the YieldBot “continually improves itself…becoming more effective with each trade made.” Yieldtrust.ai did not provide any proof to investors that this AI trading bot even exists, let alone that it is performing at the level Yieldtrust.ai claims.
The YieldBot was purportedly developed for Binance’s BNB Smart Chain and YieldTrust.ai allegedly permits clients to stake Binance USD, USD Coin and Tether. According to the orders, YieldTrust.ai is claiming the YieldBot interfaces with the staking programs, and that it “picks up on the money deposited” and then “uses…funds on various centralized exchanges to generate profits with every withdrawal.” The promised profits are highly lucrative – YieldTrust.ai is allegedly claiming the YieldBot generated returns of 2.6% per day for four months and new investors can expect to earn up to returns of up to 2.2% per day.
Although artificial intelligence and investments tied to machine learning are generating widespread public interest, scammers are already leveraging the hype to perpetrate fraudulent securities schemes. Alabama, Montana, and Texas filed today’s actions to proactively stop this type of fraud and protect the public from irreparable harm. The three state regulators are unanimous in strongly cautioning the public:
Artificial intelligence may be an exciting concept, but scammers are attempting to capitalize on the excitement by developing high-tech ploys to deceive investors – while playing on their emotions by falsely promising lucrative profitability and the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to secure financial freedom. We are uncovering an increasing number of promotions for illegal and fraudulent investments tied to artificial intelligence. Today’s action is likely just the tip of the iceberg.
According to the orders, an independent firm recently published an audit of the smart contract tied to the YieldBot. The audit showed the smart contract is dangerous to investors because, among other reasons, the deploying team retained sufficient control to block users from withdrawing their assets. After the publication of the smart contract audit, YieldTrust.ai allegedly announced it would cease operations. Instead, the orders accuse YieldTrust.ai of raising capital from the public to cover withdrawals from prior investors. Montana, Alabama, and Texas filed today’s actions to stop this illegal and fraudulent scheme.
Submitted By Commissioner Troy Dow