With most of his legislative agenda accomplished, Gov. Brian Schweitzer is turning his attention toward the unfinished business of an ethics law for state officials, and a high priority for economic development.

With most of his legislative agenda accomplished, Gov. Brian Schweitzer is turning his attention toward the unfinished business of an ethics law for state officials, and a high priority for economic development.

Schweitzer was in Whitefish Monday to sign Montana's new open-container law at Whitefish High School, the same place where he pledged to pursue the ban during his campaign last year.

Afterwards, Schweitzer chatted with residents at a Central Avenue coffee shop, at one point asking a local contractor how business is faring.

"It's booming," the man replied.

While that's good news to Schweitzer, the first-year governor says economic development will be his singular concern now that the legislative session is finished.

"We're a tale of two economies in Montana," Schweitzer said. On the one hand, there is the booming economic activity in what Schweitzer calls the "cowboy boot" - cities along the Continental Divide and stretching east to Billings - while there continues to be economic struggles elsewhere in the state.

It's the rural "elsewhere" communities that Schweitzer is worried about. Schweitzer had striking success with most of his legislative agenda, and most of that agenda was focused on rural economic development.

Legislation aimed at incubating an ethanol industry in Montana was watered down some, he said, but there are ethanol developers who are still interested in pursuing ethanol plants that should provide alternative markets for grain producers.

The governor said his economic development office will work to develop partnerships between communities and businesses, with an eye toward bringing new capital to rural Montana.

He cites as examples a Missoula company that is assuming management and new improvements for a struggling seed oil plant in Culbertson, and efforts to encourage a buyout of the Owens & Hurst lumber mill in Eureka (see related story above).

"We've got projects like that all over the state," he said. "That's what we're going to be doing."

Energy production will be another priority. The governor said the state of California has projected that demand for an additional 25,000 megawatts in the next 10 years, and that state will be looking to Montana and other states to provide the power.

Montana currently produces 5,000 megawatts, while consuming just 2,000 megawatts, so Schweitzer sees energy as an industry the state can capitalize on. There's a new coal-fired electricity plant in Butte, and the governor said he wants to see more of them.

Just 1 percent of the state's power production currently comes from wind generation, but Schweitzer also expects that to change with new legislation aimed at encouraging wind generation.

The governor dismissed criticism that the court-ordered task of revising the state's school funding formula should have been done during the regular legislative session. As it stands, that issue will be addressed in a special session sometime this fall.

"I don't think the courts think we can solve a 12-year food fight in 100 days," he said. "They need to know that we can grow our way out of it."

Schweitzer said he does not expect the new formula to generate additional state spending over the next biennium, and he intends to "hold the line" on taxes.

While most of Schweitzer's legislative agenda was passed, he is clearly frustrated that a couple of items were blocked.

An ethics bill for state officials "didn't get to first base" in the Legislature, so now Schweitzer plans to advance his proposals through a referendum to voters.

He had proposed a one year "cooling off" period in which legislators and administration officials could not be employed as lobbyists after leaving public service. The referendum will propose a two-year period, he said.

And it will include new financial reporting requirements for lobbyists and some form of requirements that will require lawmakers and administration officials to reveal what "perks" they may receive from lobbyists.

Currently, a legislator can have nearly every meal purchased by lobbyists while he or she is in Helena. With some public "sunshine" on the practice, Schweitzer contends there would be less of it.

Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by e-mail at jmann@dailyinterlake.com