Wrapping up the Montana Legislative Session

Our 2021 Legislative Priorities

AIS Prevention

HB 152, carried by Neil Duram (R), is the “pull the plug” bill requiring drain plugs to be disengaged after being used in water bodies inside AIS management areas. The bill will bring Montana into best practices for preventing AIS, improving expediency and compliance at AIS check stations. HB 152 has been signed into law by the governor.

SB 382, carried by Theresa Manzella (R), would have eliminated the requirement for hydropower facilities to pay into the AIS program and was estimated to reduce AIS program funding by $2.8 million dollars per year. SB 382 was tabled in committee.

SB 384, carried by John Esp (R), will decrease AIS fees hydropower facilities are required to pay, and would reduce hydropower funding by nearly half of 2019-2020 levels. These fees fund important AIS programs that help prevent AIS from invading our waters. The bill has been signed into law.

Water Quality

SB 164, carried by Carl Glimm (R), would double the allowable level of nitrates in groundwater.This bill not only threatens the health of Flathead Lake, but would lead to degraded water quality, aquatic habitat, and drinking water all across the state. SB 164 did not pass the House floor in a 48 - 52 vote on April 14th.

SB 165 is an attempt to eliminate important environmental review. The bill, carried by Carl Glimm (R), would result in increased septic and pollution runoff, threatening future water quality in the Flathead watershed and Montana waters. On May 14th the governor vetoed SB 165.

SB 358, carried by John Esp (R), would repeal important water quality numeric nutrient standards, which are necessary environmental baselines that drive water quality assessments and watershed protection management. SB 358 was signed by the governor on April 30th.

Conservation

SJ 28, carried by Mark Blasdel (R), would study erosion concerns along the mainstream of the Flathead River. The bill would compile data from previous studies, identify gaps, and propose solutions to improve and mitigate erosion concerns that consider all stakeholders along the Flathead River. SJ 28 has passed the legislature and is awaiting the governor’s signature.

On April 16, Lakers Executive Director Kate Sheridan testified in support of SJ 28.

Land Use

SB 211, carried by Steve Fitzpatrick (R), would exclude consideration of agriculture soils in the subdivision review process. SB 211 was signed into law by the governor and will restrict local governments from having the power to protect agricultural land during subdivision review.

Public Participation

SB 352, carried by John Esp (R), would have drastically amended Montana water law and limit who had the ability to object to another party’s water rights. SB 352 was tabled in committee.

HB 695, carried by Denley M Loge (R), would have forced the public to pay to comment on Environmental Impact Statements, violating the right for public participation. With Montanan’s help, the bill has been amended to remove that requirement. Unfortunately in the final days of the session, legislators added another amendment which pulled pieces of SB 379, a tabled bill to generally revise coal-fired generation laws. These amendments would have eliminated the Public Service Commission’s ability to prevent utilities from passing on high electricity costs from imprudent actions onto consumers. The bill died in process on April 29th.

Environmental Protections

SB 260, carried by Steve Fitzpatrick (R), would have allowed any property owner to sue the state if they believe a regulation or law devalued their property by only 25% and would have cost the state billions of dollars.

On April 14, legislators voted against a bill that would have made it harder to protect clean air, water, and wildlife.