House Local Government Committee advances four bills on camping, pools, septic appeals and policing

During an executive-action session of the Montana House Local Government Committee, lawmakers approved four bills addressing municipal authority over unauthorized camping, grants for public swimming pools, appeals for added post-permit septic requirements, and local law-enforcement service agreements.

The measures were considered as executive action (EA) items and all four passed out of committee. HB313, a grant program for municipal pool capital and maintenance, drew the lengthiest discussion and passed on a roll-call vote of 14-3. The other three bills passed on voice votes or voice votes supplemented by proxy votes; explicit roll-call tallies for those three were not specified in the transcript.

House Bill 208 would allow a municipality to regulate unauthorized camping on public property or facilities. Representative Overstreet sponsored the bill and supported a sponsor amendment (HB208.001) that he said was suggested by “the league” and added more detail about the statute’s scope. Representative Valverum described the amendment as improving clarity, saying it “cleans things up and makes it crystal clear for municipalities and local governments.” The committee passed the…