Montana Legislative Information
The 2009 Legislative Session is over. The MAC 2009 Legislative Priorities for this session have been Ecomonic Justice, Capital Punishment, Caring In Creation and Health Care System Reform. The full text of the official Position Papers for each of these can be viewed at the"Position Papers" link at the left of this page.
Legislative Updates: 5/1/09
From Ray Peck, MAC Lobbyist
The Montana 61st Legislature came to an official close about mid-afternoon on Tuesday, April 28 as some very big legislation was given final approval on bi-partisan votes. House Bill 2 (HB2) is always a bill that causes a split within both political parties as some vote against the bill because it does not appropriate enough money or it appropriates to much money. In some cases members vote against this bill because they did not get their proposal included in the bill or it did not provide enough funds to please the member. Traditionally, this bill appropriates nearly all of the state general fund money, or nearly all, under this number. There is always a pretty strong vote against it.
This session also faced two other major issues -- reappraisal of real property and how to use the federal funds given to Montana under the economic recovery program. The Montana Legislature only had appropriation flexibility over about 20 percent of the federal stimulus funds, slightly over $ 200 million dollars. The remainder of these funds were under the direction of federal authorities and amounted to approximately $600 million dollars. Reappraisal became a major issue due to some parts of the state coming up with huge increases in value of some properties, especially in the Flathead area. A number of bills were sponsored by various legislators, but in the final days only one bill on this issue remained, andit was sponsored by a legislator from Flathead County. This bill cleared the House on a strong vote, but failed to be endorsed by the House members on a conference committee that was appointed to work on it. It came out of that committee without the full support of the committee as the 4 house members vote 2 to 2 on the motion. The conference committee report was approved in both houses by positive vote.
A bill to create a committee to oversee the use of the stimulus funds was vetoed by Governor Schweitzer who termed it unnecessary and a waste of taxpayers' money. The Governor went on to veto an additional 5 bills and has indicated there may be some line item vetoes applied to HB2. Also pending are three bills dealing with mental health services (HB130, 131, and 132) that seem to be under consideration for a possible veto; however, there is a large group of supporters working on an effort to convince the Governor that these services are needed to meet the increased need. They point out that the economic downturn has caused additional stress and family problems that are evidenced by the increase request for support/counseling.
House Speaker Bob Bergren (D-Havre) and Senate President Bob Story (R-Park City) have both issued statements claiming the session to be a success. MAC tends to agree to a large extent, particularly in the improved decorum/behavior in evidence throughout the 90 day session. The compromise that kept the CHIP Program at the level approved by the voters (250% of the poverty level) and the funding of K-12 education appear to be good decisions for the people. The distribution of the federal stimulus funds appear to have been done in a fair and thoughtful manner, although some will disagree with that statement. Creating a rainy day fund of some $262 million and another $100 million for a possible need due to economic conditions at this time seem to be prudent planning. MAC liked the respectful manner between the two houses and with the governor, and we thank Governor Schweitzer, Speaker Bergren, President Story and all the members for their service to the State of Montana.
Ray Peck, MAC Lobbyist 406-442-1906
Other Session Notes....
MAC's administration would like to thank Ray Peck for his service during this legislative session. Ray was a constant presence at the Capiol for MAC and consistant with his message regarding the legislative priorities. It was evident that he is greatly respected amoung his peers. His weekly updates helped all of us stay abreast of the issues as well as better understand the process. Everyone knew that MAC was in the building!
For more Legislative and Contact information....
Use the following links to access both general and specific information regarding the 2009 Montana Legislative Session:
TO GET A LIST OF ALL 2007 MONTANA LEGISLATORS (HOUSE and SENATE), go to:
http://leg.mt.gov/css/sessions/61st/default.asp This is the Montana State Legislature (Sessions) home page. Click on "Committees" for a list of House and Senate members and their committee assignments. This page also provides the correct format to use for addressing mail (via USPS) to legislators.
TO LEAVE A MESSAGE FOR A LEGISLATOR, call (406) 444-4800 between the hours of 7:30 AM to 5:30 PM (Monday through Friday) and from 8:00 AM to adjournment on Saturday.
TO SEE CURRENT INFORMATION ABOUT BILLS, go to: http://laws.leg.mt.gov/laws09/law0203w$.startup
NOTE: At the bottom of this page, click on "Committee and Hearing Information" to see the schedule of hearings (Committee, date, time, etc.) for all introduced bills.