Senate approves bill to send completed judicial-investigation reports to House leadership; opponents cite privacy and separation-of-powers concerns

Senate Bill 158, introduced by Senator Ammerich, advanced on second reading in the Committee of the Whole by a 28-22 vote. The bill would require the Judicial Standards Commission (JSC) to forward completed reports and any evidence from investigations of a judicial officer to the Speaker of the Montana House of Representatives; the House would adopt rules governing receipt, confidentiality, and any release, and reports could be made public only when used in impeachment proceedings.

Sponsor Ammerich described the bill as a narrow measure to ensure the legislature is not left "in the dark" when potential judicial impropriety remains unaddressed and said the House would be required to keep the materials confidential except in impeachment contexts. "All this seeks to do is make sure that all of these reports are forwarded to the speaker of the house, just to make sure that if there is any evidence of impropriety that the court has not already dealt with, that we can deal with it in a manner, pursuant to our constitution," Ammerich said.

Opponents warned the bill risks politicizing judicial discipline and undermining judicial independence. Senator Morgeau said the measure "creates two investigative processes" and injects partisan influence by giving a political body access to investigative materials. Several senators raised privacy concerns for parties involved in cases and argued the existing JSC process protects due process and judicial independence.

Questions during debate focused on confidentiality language and who within the House would receive materials; the sponsor said the bill intentionally defers procedural rules to the House so the chamber can adopt its own confidentiality protocols.

The clerk recorded 28 ayes and 22 nays. The committee reported SB 158 do pass on second reading.