Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Bill to tighten family-transfer rules draws sharp split between counties and realtors
Summary
House Bill 714 would change Montana's family-transfer exemption process — adding an affidavit, increasing penalties and altering the burden of proof. Counties and environmental groups warned the changes could hamper local subdivision oversight; realtors and builders backed the bill for consistency.
House Bill 714, introduced by Representative Larry Brewster (House District 43), would revise Montana's family-transfer exemption from subdivision review, require an attorney-general-designed affidavit to document intent, expand certain definitions, and increase penalties for violations. The Senate Local Government Committee heard more than two hours of testimony that divided county officials, planners and environmental groups from real-estate and building-industry representatives.
Proponents said the bill would bring uniformity and guard against evasive transfers. Mark Taylor, an attorney working with the sponsors, said the affidavit requirement aims to provide "consistency…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
