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SCHOOL PROGRESS Three-fourths of MT schools meet NCLB requirements HELENA, Mont. (AP) Nearly three-quarters of Montana's schools met education requirements under the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

Superintendent of Public Instruction Denise Juneau released the seventh Adequate Yearly Progress report Friday.

The report shows 73 percent, or 603 of Montana's 823 public schools, met the requirements for proficiency in math and reading, an increase of 14 schools from 2008.

Each spring, students in grades three through eight and grade 10 participate in reading and math assessments, while students in grades four, eight and 10 are also tested in science.

A school makes AYP only if each of the student groups in the school meets the federal requirements.

The report says 83 percent of Montana students are proficient or better in reading, while 68 percent meet that qualification in math. The No Child Left Behind Act requires that 100 percent of students demonstrate proficiency by the 2013-14 school year.

COLUMBUS WILDFIRE Crews battling fire near Columbus BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) A wildfire west of Columbus has burned one cabin and a storage shed.

Fire information officer Dwayne Andrews says the lack of sustained wind aided firefighter efforts Friday afternoon.

Some of the fire had been contained but there was no estimate yet of containment.

Officials have issued evacuation notices for 100 homes.

The Stillwater County sheriff's office says residents of the Eagle Mountain Ranch and Columbus Heights subdivisions were notified late Thursday by a reverse-911 system. Fire officials say the fire burning in timber, sagebrush and grass was reported Thursday afternoon.

The fire has burned an estimated 900 acres.

The Montana Highway Patrol is asking travelers to be cautious when using Interstate 90 or the frontage road in the area because heavy smoke from the fire is reducing visibility. The roads were closed briefly Thursday, but have been reopened.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

YELLOWSTONE WILDFIRE Lightning-caused fire in Yellowstone not threatening anything and allowed to burn YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. (AP) A lightning-caused fire in Yellowstone National Park had grown to about 110 acres.

The Butte fire has been burning since Sunday near the summit of Druid Peak, along the Northeast Entrance Road, about 16 miles southwest of Cooke City, Mont.

It is well away from any park attractions, roads and structures and so park managers are letting it burn for now.

No trails are closed because of the fire.

The National Park Service reports 15 fires in Yellowstone this summer. Thirteen of them were caused by lightning. So far, all but the Butte Fire have been less than a half acre in size.

REHBERG-BOAT CRASH Prosecutor says Barkus drinking night of boat crash, not yet sure if he was above legal limit HELENA, Mont. (AP) The Flathead County attorney says state Sen. Greg Barkus was drinking the night of the Flathead Lake boat crash that severely injured Congressman Denny Rehberg and three other passengers.

Prosecutor Ed Corrigan said he hopes to get results on Barkus' alcohol level and his medical records in the next week or so, then decide on charges. A critical piece of information will be whether Barkus' blood alcohol level was above the legal limit of 0.08 for a vehicle operator.

Corrigan said Barkus had been drinking that night. The five passengers had dinner together at a function on one side of the lake and were using Barkus' boat to get back to their resort on the other side when the boat crashed into a steep rock bank probably at around 40 miles per hour.

Barkus' attorney Todd Glazier did not return a call seeking comment.

POWER PLANT State approves air permit for plant GREAT FALLS, Mont. (AP) The state Department of Environmental Quality has given preliminary approval for an air quality permit for a proposed natural gas-fired power plant near Great Falls.

The DEQ previously revoked an air quality permit that had been issued when plans called for a coal-fired plant.

Billings-based Southern Montana Electric Generation & Transmission Cooperative, the project's developer, asked the state to revoke the first permit and issue the new one for a gas-fired plant.

The plant will emit less air pollution by burning natural gas than coal.

If the state air quality permit receives final approval, the construction of the project would need to begin within three years of the date the permit is issued.

The preliminary air quality permit states that the plant would produce about 120 megawatts of electricity.

Information from: Great Falls Tribune, http://www.greatfallstribune.com SHERIFF CONVICTED More charges against former sheriff BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) A former Petroleum County sheriff who was convicted of stealing a custom trailer and faking an investigation into its disappearance faces four more felony charges.

John W. Taylor is accused of receiving more than $5,000 in reimbursements from the county for items that he owned before he took the job or that he bought for his own personal use while he was sheriff.

County Attorney Monte Boettger says Taylor also submitted and was paid for false overtime claims for himself and an undersheriff, who said he did not work the time or receive the extra money.

Taylor was Petroleum County's sheriff for 10 months beginning in January 2006. He was fired for undisclosed reasons. A jury later found him guilty of stealing an 18-foot trailer, hiding it at an abandoned homestead and pretending to investigate the theft.

Taylor was caught using the trailer to move his belongings to Nevada. He was sentenced to 45 days in jail and ordered to pay $27,000 in fines and restitution.

Information from: Billings Gazette, http://www.billingsgazette.com GREAT FALLS COURTHOUSE 200 attend Great Falls courthouse ceremony GREAT FALLS, Mont. (AP) Nearly 200 people heard federal judges and other praise the new, $16.4 million federal courthouse in Great Falls.

The Missouri River Federal Courthouse was officially dedicated Thursday after opening in July.

Besides housing federal courtrooms, the 48,000 square foot courthouse also contains the U.S. Marshals Service and Federal Probation Office.

The courts were previously housed on the upper levels of the Great Falls post office.

Information from: Great Falls Tribune, http://www.greatfallstribune.com (Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) APNP 09-05-09 0230CDT | save this article / add to your favorites list