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Fish and Game committee concurs on several hunting bills, tables one; mixed roll-call results
Summary
The Montana Senate Fish and Game Committee voted to concur on multiple House bills affecting hunting licenses and equipment, including unanimous approvals and a 9–3 vote on a gray wolf-related equipment bill; one bill was tabled after recorded opposition.
The Senate Fish and Game Committee on a consecutive series of motions on early agenda business on March 1 voted to concur in several House bills affecting hunting policy and practices and tabled one bill after recorded opposition.
The measures the committee moved forward included House Bill 244 (concurred unanimously), House Bill 259 (concurred in as amended, roll-call 9–3), House Bill 307 (unanimous), and House Bill 328 (12–0). The committee also took up House Bill 283 and ultimately voted to table it after several members recorded no votes.
House Bill 244: Committee staff summarized HB 244 as revising hunting-license rules for deployed armed service members to extend the allowable absence from the state from “outside the Continental United States” to “outside the state of Montana.” Committee members voted by voice with proxies recorded; the committee secretary announced the concurrence as unanimous and the bill will move to the Senate floor.
House Bill 259 (as amended): Committee staff summarized HB 259 as an act revising laws related to gray wolf management and specifically changing the language concerning infrared or thermal-imaging scopes. The committee adopted amendment 259.001.003 by voice and then concurred in the bill as amended. A roll-call resulted in 9 ayes and 3 nays; the chair announced the bill passes and will move to the floor. The transcript records Senators Morgeau, Novak (by proxy), and Smith (by proxy) among the recorded nays; other senators recorded aye by voice or proxy.
House Bill 283: The bill, described by staff as permitting issuance of mountain-sheep and moose tags by auction or lottery, drew more sustained debate and was ultimately tabled. Several members expressed support for maintaining existing auction practices; others favored adding a lottery option. The chair took a voice vote to table HB 283; the clerk read recorded “no” votes from Senators Flowers, Morgeau, Novak and Senator Smith among those opposing the motion to table.
House Bill 307: The committee concurred unanimously in HB 307, which revises donated license procedures for disabled veterans and clarifies who may receive a donated license. Proxies were used; the clerk announced unanimous concurrence.
House Bill 328: The committee concurred unanimously (12–0 recorded in committee minutes) in HB 328, which allows a resident hunter age 75 or older to use a general elk license to harvest an antlerless elk on qualifying private land and other listed conditions.
Votes at a glance (committee-recorded outcomes): - HB 244 — Concurred (unanimous). Motion to concur moved; clerk recorded unanimous concurrence and reported bill will move to the floor. - HB 259 — Concurred as amended. Amendment 259.001.003 passed; concurrence passed 9–3 (recorded nays: Senators Morgeau, Novak (proxy), Smith (proxy)). - HB 283 — Tabled (voice vote with recorded opposition: Senators Flowers, Morgeau, Novak, Smith recorded no on the tabling motion). - HB 307 — Concurred (unanimous). - HB 328 — Concurred (12–0 recorded).
Committee discussion and proxy voting were frequent; several roll-call tallies referenced votes cast by proxy. Where roll-call detail was read into the record, the clerk’s announcements are reflected here. The measures that passed will be carried to the Senate floor for further action; HB 283 was tabled in committee and will not advance at this time.
(For evidence, committee roll call and staff summaries appear at the hearing opening and through the first two hours of the transcript.)
