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House committee hears bill to correct occupational code cross-references
Summary
The House Business and Labor Committee held a hearing on House Bill 109, a technical cleanup bill that corrects typographical and citation errors in Montana's occupational regulation code; proponents described it as routine code maintenance and no opponents or questions were recorded.
Representative Steve Fitzpatrick, R-House District 24, opened a hearing on House Bill 109 in the House Business and Labor Committee and described the measure as a technical correction to existing occupational regulation code.
"There were some typographical errors in the previous version of the bill that went through last session. All that's doing is correcting those so that the references are right," Fitzpatrick said.
The bill would update statutory cross-references in the state code that govern licensed occupations. Quentin O'Connor, chief legal counsel to the Department of Labor and Industry, testified as a proponent, calling HB 109 "good code cleanup, just fixing the typographic layers." No other proponents, opponents or informational witnesses appeared, and no committee questions were recorded.
Why it matters: HB 109 would align statutory citations and correct typographical errors in Montana Code provisions that regulate occupations. Correct cross-references help avoid confusion for regulators, licensees and the public when enforcing or consulting the law.
Details from the hearing: Fitzpatrick said the corrections affect citation language in Title 37, Chapter 39, the statutory chapter where many occupational regulation provisions appear. O'Connor thanked legislative staff and the Economic Affairs Interim Committee for assistance in preparing the cleanup. The committee took no action beyond the hearing.
What happened next: The chairman closed the hearing on HB 109 without a recorded vote or motions to advance the bill; no executive action was taken at this meeting. The sponsor said he would sit down after the hearing and that the committee would proceed to the next docketed bill.
Meeting context: The item was one of two bills on the docket that day and provoked minimal debate; committee members did not pose substantive questions. The hearing record contains no testimony from opponents or requests for a fiscal note on HB 109.
