The trustees overseeing the estate of Edra Blixseth, the bankrupt co-founder of the exclusive Yellowstone Club, in Federal Court today, is seeking permission to sell 160 acres and two cabins at the resort known as the "Family Compound" to Boston based CrossHarbor Capitol, but debtors want a higher price, pointing out that, in 2008, CrossHarbor tried to buy it for $56 million.

The Montana Board of Regents, as part of the state's efforts to reduce spending, has agreed to $7.56 million in proposed spending cuts in the University System, if necessary, in fiscal 2011. They set an overall spending decrease of $5.2 million among all the state's campuses. The rest will come from targeted cuts.

Smur-fit Stone Container Corp. is in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware today, disclosing its plan to emerge from Chapter 11, and pay off a $3 billion debt, which includes $22 million owed to Montana creditors, including government entities, and private businesses. State officials, as well as Missoula and Frenchtown community leaders, are also waiting to find out what will happen to the linerboard facility, the largest industrial site in the state, when it finally closes today, after some 50 years in operations.

Montana is ranked third in the nation for per capita teen abuse of prescription drugs, last year 10% of state teens reporting they had abused legal medicines. Attorney General Steve Bullock has about $100,000, and hopes to raise up to $500,000 from private groups this year, to finance a public advertising campaign warning of the dangers of prescription drug abuse in Montana.

Patrick Barkey, in Great Falls for an Outlook 2010 Economic Conference said the recession has hit every economic sector in Montana, and every physical area. The Director of the Montana Bureau of Business and Econom Research said yesterday he does expect to see Montana's economy begin to recover this year.

A general fund outlook, put together by fiscal analyst Amy Carlson, shows if the 2011 legislature funds state services at the current level, spends $74 million to bail out state pension funds, and $22 million to cover cost overruns, spending would exceed tax collections by $373 million. The State Constitution requires the legislature to adopt a general fund budget, where the general fund spending doesn't exceed the anticipated revenues.

Starting Monday, the fee for most parking tickets in Bozeman goes up by $5. There are currently 1,671 unpaid parking tickets in Bozeman, representing $64,380, in uncollected fines. A total of 159 people have six or more unpaid tickets, and one person has 102 unpaid tickets, and owes $4,575.

An issue of whether the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals erred when it sided with environmentalists, alleging imminent danger if Monsantao Co. sold alfalfa seed genetically engineered to resist the weed killer Roundup, banning its sale in 2007, is before the U.S. Supreme Court, and it could write new ground rules for legal battles involving other genetically modified crops, including Montana and Wyoming sugar beets.

The Montana Board of Regents has decided to join other state agencies, drafting proposed budget cuts up to 5% for the state's colleges and universities, following a request from Governor Brian Schweitzer, even though the University System has the authority to establish its own spending priorities, identifying $7.5 million in potential savings from the system's budget.

Two Haitian girls, adopted by a Glendive, Montana family arrive at Billings-Logan International Airport, stepping foot onto Montana soil just days after the devastating earthquake. (Video courtesy Aaron Flint)