SB 206 Montana Senate · 2025 Regular Session

Generally revise laws related to child abuse and neglect proceedings and investigations

SB 206 revises laws related to child abuse and neglect investigations and court proceedings. The bill establishes two distinct roles: a child protection investigator and a child reunification specialist. Child protection investigators are responsible for investigating allegations of abuse or neglect and handling cases prior to a child's removal from their home. Child reunification specialists focus on coordinating services and proceedings to reunify families after a child has been removed. The bill generally prohibits the same person from performing both roles in a single case, aiming to separate these functions.
Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2025
Committee Review
Mar 2025
Senate Passage
Mar 2025
House Passage
Apr 2025
Signed into Law
Apr 2025
Introduced Jan 23, 2025 Signed Apr 17, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 5 comparisons

What changed between versions

SB0206_2(13).pdf SB0206_X(6).pdf · 3 edits
MINOR
The bill updates the legislative title and scope to explicitly include a 'Child Protection Investigator' and a 'Child Reunification Specialist' as distinct roles. It revises the bill's description to reflect these new roles and amends multiple sections of the Montana Code Annotated to align with these changes.
Scope change
The bill's scope is expanded to formally define and establish the authority of two specific roles: the Child Protection Investigator (focused on pre-removal investigations) and the Child Reunification Specialist (focused on post-removal services and reunification).
SCOPE

Added explicit definitions and scopes of authority for the Child Protection Investigator and Child Reunification Specialist roles.

REQUIREMENT

Amended the bill title and introductory sections to reflect the new roles and updated list of affected code sections.

DEFINITION

Modified the text of MCA 41-3-102 to align with the new role definitions and scope of authority.

Floor votes · Senate Feb 21, 2025 · House Mar 25, 2025

How they voted

500
Passed
Total votes 50
Feb 21, 2025
D Democratic18
18 Yea
100% Yea
R Republican32
32 Yea
100% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
51
Key actions
9
Committee
6
Amendments
1
Apr 16, 2025
Signed into law
(S) Signed by Governor
upper
Apr 7, 2025
Lower · Passed
(H) Signed by Speaker
lower
Mar 31, 2025
Upper · Passed
(S) Signed by President
upper
Mar 25, 2025
House · Passed
House Vote: pass (99-0-1)
house
Mar 19, 2025
Lower · Passed
(H) Committee Report - (H) Human Services
lower
Mar 18, 2025
Lower · Passed
(H) Committee Executive Action - (H) Human Services
lower
Feb 22, 2025
Committee
(H) Referred to Committee - (H) Human Services
lower
Feb 21, 2025
Senate · Passed
Senate Vote: pass (50-0)
senate
Feb 18, 2025
Upper · Passed
(S) Committee Report - (S) Public Health, Welfare and Safety
upper
Feb 17, 2025
Upper · Passed
(S) Committee Executive Action - (S) Public Health, Welfare and Safety
upper
Feb 6, 2025
Amended
(S) Tabled in Committee - (S) Public Health, Welfare and Safety
upper
Jan 24, 2025
Committee
(S) Referred to Committee - (S) Public Health, Welfare and Safety
upper
Jan 23, 2025
Introduced
(S) Introduced
upper
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Photo of Dennis Lenz
Dennis Lenz
RRepublican
MT
25