Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Legislation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Montana House approves and rejects a slate of bills; key outcomes listed
Summary
On a busy floor day, the Montana House passed and defeated multiple bills on elections, elections accessibility, property, and criminal law. Several bills moved out of committee on second reading for further consideration.
The Montana House of Representatives took dozens of final and committee-level actions during a floor session that ended with the chamber adjourning to reconvene Saturday, March 1.
Floor votes on third reading produced both narrow and decisive outcomes. House Bill 479 failed after the clerk recorded 44 votes in favor and 54 against. The House passed several bills by clear margins, including House Bill 423 (79-19), House Bill 513 (97-1), House Bill 488 (82-16), and House Bill 455 (98-0). A pair of bills failed on the floor by similar 44-54 margins.
On committee business in the committee of the whole, the House advanced numerous bills on second reading for further consideration by appropriations or the full chamber. Notable committee recommendations that passed included House Bill 441 (align provisional water rights with final decrees), House Bill 495 (repeal of the federal mandates act), House Bill 462 (state support for high-quality instructional materials with a one-time $5 million appropriation), House Bill 575 (statutory authority to assign public defenders in certain parental-rights and treatment-court proceedings), and House Bill 569 (revising penalties and investigation requirements for perjury and false swearing).
Votes at a glance - HB 479 — failed on third reading: 44 yes, 54 no. - HB 423 — (election-law revisions on active/inactive voter lists) passed: 79 yes, 19 no. - HB 513 — (name, voice, likeness penalties) passed: 97 yes, 1 no. - HB 488 — (allowing disabled voter to return ballot electronically) passed: 82 yes, 16 no. - HB 455 — (revised deadlines for municipal candidates) passed unanimously: 98 yes, 0 no. - HB 480 — (right to jury trial revisions) passed: 58 yes, 40 no. - HB 354 — (criminal trespass while hunting/fishing) passed: 67 yes, 31 no. - HB 485 (listed as HB 4 85 in the transcript) — failed on third reading: 44 yes, 54 no.
Selected committee-of-the-whole outcomes (second-reading committee reports recommended do pass and were adopted or referred to appropriations): - HB 441 — committee recommended do pass (committee vote recorded: 95 yes, 4 no); bill aligns provisional water permits with final court decrees and clarifies petition and verification timelines. - HB 495 — committee recommended do pass (clerk reported 59 yes, 40 no); sponsor said the bill would repeal the state-level federal mandates act and remove certain reporting and budget requirements tied to federal mandates; several members urged a red vote citing state prerogatives and budget transparency. - HB 462 — committee recommended do pass (76 yes, 22 no); bill creates a process for the Board of Public Education and the Office of Public Instruction to identify and provide access to high-quality instructional materials and includes a $5,000,000 one-time appropriation for implementing newly revised math content standards. - HB 575 — committee recommended do pass (57 yes, 42 no); bill clarifies statutory authority for appointment of public defenders in some parental-rights and treatment-court matters. - HB 569 — committee recommended do pass (71 yes, 28 no); bill raises penalties and requires outside-agency investigation when there are credible allegations of perjury or false swearing.
What happens next Several bills were re-referred to the Appropriations Committee for funding review as required by chambers’ procedure. The House will reconvene at 1 p.m. Saturday for continued consideration. Majority Leader Jay Fitzpatrick moved the committee report adopting the committee-of-the-whole recommendations before adjournment.
Methodology and limits This story lists votes and outcomes recorded on the House floor and in the committee of the whole as read aloud by the clerk and reported by the chair during the session. Where the clerk announced specific tallies, those counts are reported above. Where a tally was not explicitly read in the transcript excerpt, the note “recommended do pass” indicates the committee vote and the committee report was later adopted or referred as described.
