House Agriculture committee approves bill to create Montana Cattle Committee after amendments and technical fixes

The House Agriculture Committee voted 10–7 to pass House Bill 119, a measure to establish the Montana Cattle Committee and authorize a cattle assessment and seller referendum, after adopting two amendments and resolving a conflict in committee text.

Miss Shirley, committee staff, told members the bill "is an act entitled Establishing the Montana Cattle Committee, Establishing Committee Membership Requirements and Duties, Providing for a Cattle Assessment and a Referendum for Cattle Sellers on that assessment, and creating a special cattle special revenue account." The committee considered three proposed amendments before final passage.

The committee adopted an initial clean-up amendment that, among other edits, changed the term "affidavit" to "written declaration," removing a requirement for notarization, and broadened ballot-language options. A second, larger amendment (which would have expanded board membership and altered…