Rep. Jane Gillette, R-Bozeman, drew lawmakers’ attention during public comment to the notable absence of one item: a new building for Montana State University’s 12-year-old two-year campus, Gallatin College. The request, Gillette explained, was MSU President Waded Cruzado’s top priority heading into the 2023 Legislature. But the $38 million ask did not appear in Gov. Greg Gianforte’s budget proposal in November. Still, Gillette continued, MSU and the Bozeman community have continued to press the issue in conversations with the governor’s office, hence her desire to put it on lawmakers’ radar as they discuss the state’s broader long-range planning package, House Bill 5.
