House transportation committee concurs to eliminate Scenic Historic Byways Advisory Council

The House Transportation Committee unanimously voted to concur in Senate Bill 309, an act to eliminate the Scenic Historic Byways Advisory Council, during executive action on Feb. 12, 2025. Senator Becky Beard sponsored the bill and presented it to the committee.

The bill would remove the advisory council created in 1999 to review applications for designation of scenic historic byways and to recommend designations to the Montana Transportation Commission. "Members of the committee, you have before you today for your consideration Senate Bill 309, which will eliminate the Scenic History, Byways Advisory Council," Senator Becky Beard told the committee during the hearing.

Rob Stapley, rail transit and planning division administrator for the Montana Department of Transportation, told the committee that no applications for new designations have been received since 2010 and that the council has had no assigned work for roughly 15 years. "Since there has been no work for this council for the last 15 years, we would like to remove this requirement to be more efficient and effective with our time and the time of our commission," Stapley said. He also said the department has not incurred costs for the council because it has not met and the members are volunteers.

Stapley read names of the three committee members that the department submits annually to the Transportation Commission "for the record": Ed Dijo, Diz Rozier, Elizabeth Casselli and Sheila Ludlow, and noted Sheila Ludlow is an MDT employee. Committee members asked whether removing the advisory council would affect the scenic byway signage or the byway program itself; staff replied that the bill removes only the advisory council requirement and not the scenic byway designations.

Vice Chair Wirth moved that the committee concur in the bill; the committee approved the motion by voice vote, with Vice Chair Baum announcing proxy aye votes for Representatives Cafaro, Fitzpatrick, Staffman and Sullivan. The committee recorded the motion as passing unanimously, and Vice Chair Wirth will carry the bill to the House floor.