Montana committee hears hours of testimony urging Congress to overturn Citizens United

Senator Andrea Olsen told the Senate Judiciary Committee that Senate Resolution 4 (SR 4) was brought by Montanans asking Congress to act to limit the role of money in elections.

The resolution asks Congress to pursue steps to reverse the effects of the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010) and to restore the states’ and public’s ability to limit election spending, supporters said.

Supporters from across Montana told the committee that unlimited spending by corporations and wealthy donors is overwhelming ordinary voters, polarizing civic life and deterring participation. “Every U.S. citizen deserves the right to honest and respectful elections,” said Patrick Yawaki, who said he represents Indigenous communities and is co-CEO of Red Medicine LLC. “With unlimited funding, we are bombarded with digital media advertising and paper mailers that seems unbearable as election day gets closer.”

Testimony cited last year’s spending in Montana as evidence for the resolution’s urgency. Mary Catherine Dunphy of Miles City told the committee that about $300 million was spent in the Montana 2025 election cycle and said, “More than $165,000,000 of that $300,000,000 was from groups outside of Montana, according to OpenSecrets.” Several witnesses tied the increase in outside and corporate spending to the 2010 Citizens United decision and urged a constitutional amendment as the only sure remedy. “Nothing short of a constitutional amendment can do that,” said Sue Kirchmeyer.

Several organizational representatives also testified in favor. Christine Glenn, speaking for the Northern Plains Resource Council, said when corporations can spend without limit, “their interests take priority while the needs of working families, small businesses and communities are pushed aside.” Gilles Stockton, representing the Montana Cattlemen’s Association, told lawmakers, “Corporations are not people and money is not speech.”

Witnesses described civic consequences beyond advertising: Jasmine Krotkov of Truth to Power recounted hostile encounters while canvassing and said money and “vitriol” have polluted civic life; others asked for disclosure requirements for public companies’ political spending. Multiple speakers urged the committee to give SR 4 a “due pass” so the full Senate can register Montana’s support for federal action.

Committee members asked procedural and strategic questions. Senator Phelan and others asked how the resolution originated and whether other states are pursuing similar measures; proponents said it is part of a broader national effort and noted Montana’s earlier history of campaign finance laws dating to the early 20th century. No formal vote or committee action on SR 4 was recorded in the transcript excerpt provided; the hearing moved from testimony into committee questions at the close of public comments.

The hearing included only proponents in the room and online; the committee then shifted to questions of the sponsor and other senators. The testimony emphasized that the resolution expresses the Legislature’s support for action by Congress and does not itself change state law.

If the committee advances SR 4, supporters said, it would be intended to signal Montana’s backing for federal measures — including a constitutional amendment — to reverse or limit the effects of Citizens United. The committee did not record a vote or final disposition in the provided transcript.