House advances cleanup of child-protective code to remove duplicative investigative authority

The Montana House approved House Bill 77 by a vote of 99 to 1. The sponsor described the bill as a cleanup measure that removes a duplicative "temporary investigative authority" provision and clarifies code related to emergency protective services used in dependency and neglect proceedings.

Representative Howell, who brought the bill from the Children and Families interim committee, said the bill resulted from a CPS work group including legislators, the Department of Public Health and Human Services, judges, county attorneys, public defenders, CASA, tribal representatives and people with lived experience. The group concluded the temporary investigative authority provision duplicates the emergency protective services (EPS) code and its continued presence could cause confusion.

Howell said the bill deletes temporary code sections left over from prior sessions and consolidates relevant authority under EPS to increase clarity and transparency for families, attorneys and courts. He noted rare cross-system agreement: the department, public defenders and county attorneys supported the change and it passed unanimously out of the Human Services Committee.

Motion and vote: Representative Howell moved that the committee recommend House Bill 77 "do pass." The clerk recorded 99 ayes and 1 no; the bill passed second reading.

Next steps: If enacted, the bill will require agencies and courts to proceed under the clarified statutory framework and may prompt administrative updates and training to align procedures.