Generally revise Montana environmental policy act
HB 285 revises the Montana Environmental Policy Act (MEPA), clarifying its purpose and impact on state agency actions and permitting decisions. The bill specifies that MEPA is a procedural law designed to provide information to the public and decision-makers, not to grant additional regulatory authority to state agencies. It also shifts the burden of proof for those challenging licensing or permitting decisions, requiring them to establish the unconstitutionality of the underlying statute. Furthermore, legal challenges must now be filed in the county where the proposed activity is located.
Bill status
signed
all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2025
Committee Review
Mar 2025
House Passage
Apr 2025
Senate Passage
Apr 2025
Signed into Law
May 2025
Introduced Jan 22, 2025
Signed May 5, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 4 comparisons
What changed between versions
HB0285_X(2).pdf
→
HB0285_X(3).pdf
·
1 edit
MINOR
The bill text shows a minor formatting change where the word 'AND' was removed from the list of repealed sections. This is a technical edit that does not alter the substantive legal effect of the bill, as the list of repealed sections remains the same.
TECHNICAL
Removed the word 'AND' from the list of repealed sections in the bill's summary or title, which is a stylistic change with no impact on the bill's legal effect.
Floor votes · Senate Apr 4, 2025 · House Apr 15, 2025
How they voted
31–18
Passed · 1 other
Total votes 50
Apr 4, 2025
D
Democratic18
100% Nay
R
Republican32
96% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea
All Nay
Mixed
No data
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
43
Key actions
9
Committee
6
Amendments
1
May 1, 2025
Signed into law
(H) Signed by Governor
lower
Apr 22, 2025
Upper · Passed
(S) Signed by President
upper
Apr 18, 2025
Lower · Passed
(H) Signed by Speaker
lower
Apr 15, 2025
House · Passed
House Vote: pass (63-34-3)
house
Apr 4, 2025
Senate · Passed
Senate Vote: pass (31-18-1)
senate
Apr 4, 2025
Introduced
(S) Returned to House with Amendments
upper
Mar 31, 2025
Upper · Passed
(S) Committee Report - (S) Natural Resources
upper
Mar 28, 2025
Upper · Passed
(S) Committee Executive Action - (S) Natural Resources
upper
Feb 21, 2025
Committee
(S) Referred to Committee - (S) Natural Resources
upper
Feb 10, 2025
Lower · Passed
(H) Committee Report - (H) Natural Resources
lower
Feb 7, 2025
Lower · Passed
(H) Committee Executive Action - (H) Natural Resources
lower
Jan 23, 2025
Committee
(H) Referred to Committee - (H) Natural Resources
lower
Jan 22, 2025
Introduced
(H) Introduced
lower
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors
Sponsors
Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Brandon Ler
RRepublican
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