This bill allows Montana state authorities to criminally prosecute individuals who are currently in federal immigration detention for crimes committed within the state. It enables the state to pursue legal action against these individuals regardless of their immigration status or pending federal proceedings. Additionally, the bill gives the state the option to either surrender a person to federal authorities if a state case is pending or continue the state trial until the person is convicted and sentenced. This change directly affects how Montana handles criminal cases involving people detained by federal immigration officials.
This bill requires peace officers in Montana to check and report the immigration status of individuals during lawful stops, unless doing so would hinder an investigation. It directly affects law enforcement officers and individuals who are stopped by police under existing stop-and-frisk provisions. The key provision adds a new requirement for officers to make a reasonable attempt to determine immigration status when practicable and report non-citizens who are not lawfully present to federal immigration agencies. The bill amends existing Montana law to include this immigration status check as part of the standard investigative stop procedure.
This Montana bill requires certain professionals and officials - including healthcare workers, school staff, social workers, law enforcement, and clergy (with limited exceptions) - to report individuals they know are not lawfully present in the U.S. to the Montana Department of Justice. It specifies required report details (e.g., individual’s name, source of knowledge) and mandates audio recording of phone reports while keeping reporters’ identities confidential. The Department of Justice may share reported information with federal immigration agencies, and the bill appropriates $500 for a reporting website and physical forms. It directly affects the listed professionals who must comply with reporting obligations, not the undocumented individuals themselves.
Bill LC 3133 would have prohibited state and local governments from using tax revenue to pay for legal representation for non-citizens facing deportation (referred to as "removable aliens" in immigration law). This bill would have directly affected state/local budgets by restricting how public funds could be allocated and limited legal services available to non-citizens in deportation proceedings. The key provision required state and local governments to exclude funding for such attorneys from all budgets and spending plans. However, the bill did not advance beyond the drafting stage and died in the legislative process on May 27, 2025.
Bill LC 3137, titled "Provide deportation from the state of Montana," was assigned to a drafter in December 2024 but died in process by May 2025. The bill's title is unclear and does not specify a mechanism for deportation, as deportation is typically a federal authority, not a state function. Since it did not advance beyond drafting, it did not become law or affect any policies or individuals.
This bill (LC 2914) proposed making it a state crime for someone who has been deported to return to the state. It would have directly affected individuals previously deported from the state who re-entered. The bill never advanced beyond the drafting stage and died in process in May 2025, so it did not become law or affect anyone.
HB 214 allows Montana to prosecute individuals for state criminal offenses even if they are in federal immigration detention for immigration violations. It directly affects people detained under federal immigration authority who commit crimes in Montana. The bill's key provision permits state prosecutors to initiate criminal cases against these individuals and requires Montana to hold them until their state trial concludes before transferring them to federal custody. This law, signed by the governor on April 7, 2025, amends state procedures to coordinate state criminal proceedings with federal immigration processes.
House Bill 927 would have required a wide range of professionals and officials in Montana to report individuals they know are "not lawfully present in the United States" to the state Department of Justice. These mandatory reporters would have included healthcare providers, school staff, social workers, law enforcement, and certain clergy members. The bill outlined procedures for the Department of Justice to receive and record these reports, with the option to share information with federal immigration agencies while keeping the reporter's identity confidential. Failure to make a required report would have been a misdemeanor.
HB 278 requires peace officers, during a lawful investigative stop, to make a reasonable attempt to determine a person's immigration status, unless it is impractical or would hinder an investigation. If the officer determines the person is not lawfully present in the United States, the bill mandates that this information be reported to a federal immigration agency. This affects peace officers by adding new duties during stops and impacts individuals who are lawfully stopped, as their immigration status may now be checked and reported.
