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Committee advances bill to tighten utility relocations and set MDT rulemaking timeline
Summary
The House Transportation Committee gave HB 672 a due‑pass recommendation after sponsor Representative Courtney Sprunger and MDT Director Chris Dorrington described a stakeholder process to fix chronic utility‑relocation delays, preserve up to 75% reimbursement, and allow incremental reimbursement reductions for repeated noncompliance.
Representative Courtney Sprunger, sponsor of House Bill 672, told the House Transportation Committee the bill is aimed at resolving chronic delays caused when utilities do not relocate facilities in time for highway construction.
"This bill comes from very personally lived experience," Sprunger said, and she described retaining the current relocation reimbursement that covers up to 75% of utilities’ costs while adding a penalty scale for utilities that repeatedly fail to relocate after multiple notices. The bill also requires a stakeholder‑driven rulemaking process, giving contractors, utilities and the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) six months to work through…
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