Sen. Matt Regier

Maddy summarySB 232 amends Montana's state procurement law to clarify and expand exemptions from competitive bidding requirements. It adds specific categories that now qualify for direct contracting, including Montana State Lottery contracts under $250,000, state compensation insurance fund services, and contracts for professional services like engineers, doctors, and legal experts. This change directly affects state agencies when purchasing these exempt services, allowing them to bypass standard competitive bidding processes. The bill became effective immediately upon the governor's signature in June 2025.

Maddy summarySB 351 limits Montana local governments' ability to save ("bank") property tax authority for certain state-mandated tax programs. It specifically amends property tax law to prevent local entities from carrying forward unused mill authority (tax rate allowances) for taxes imposed under statutes 20-9-331, 20-9-333, 20-9-360, and 20-25-439. This change directly affects counties, cities, and school districts that rely on these specific state tax programs, requiring them to use their full annual tax authority each year rather than saving it for future use. The bill’s key provision removes these programs from the existing rule that allows governments to carry forward unused tax authority to future years.

Maddy summarySB 334 would have expanded Montana Medicaid eligibility to able-bodied adults under 65 with incomes at or below 100% of the federal poverty level, but only if they met community engagement requirements. Key provisions include mandating participation in workforce development programs (like job training in healthcare or cybersecurity) and requiring the state to seek federal waiver approval by December 2025. The bill also included measures like biannual eligibility reviews and lifetime benefit limits for this group. However, the bill died in process on May 23, 2025, after failing to advance beyond committee review.

Maddy summarySB 352 would have extended Montana's legislative immunity protections to legislative staff, ensuring they receive the same legal safeguards as legislators themselves. Specifically, it would have protected staff from being compelled to testify or disclose privileged information they handle - such as communications related to bill drafting or committee work - just as legislators are shielded under Montana's speech and debate clause. The bill defined "legislative staff" broadly to include personal staff of legislative leadership and certain contractors hired using state funds. This change aimed to align Montana law with the U.S. Supreme Court's *Gravel* precedent, which treats staff communications as confidential to prevent intimidation of lawmakers. The bill never became law, as it died in process in May 2025.

Maddy summarySB 277 would have prohibited Montana public employers from deducting union dues, fees, or political contributions from public employees' paychecks or assisting in collecting these payments. It directly affects public employees, labor organizations, and political committees by eliminating payroll deduction as a method for these payments. The bill would have made it an "unfair labor practice" for public employers to handle such deductions or for labor organizations to request them. This policy change would have shifted responsibility for collecting dues and contributions entirely to employees and organizations, removing public employers from the process.

Maddy summarySB 560 requires nonprofit hospitals to report their annual charity care and community benefit spending to the state. The bill mandates that a nonprofit hospital's total community benefit must exceed the amount of property taxes it would have paid if it were not tax-exempt. If a hospital's reported community benefit does not meet this threshold, a fee equal to the difference will be assessed. These collected fees are then deposited into a new Critical Access Health Care Special Revenue Account, which provides funding to critical access hospitals not affiliated with other hospitals.

Maddy summarySB 350 revises Montana's education laws concerning extracurricular participation for home school students. The bill allows school districts or athletic organizations to restrict a home school student's ability to participate in extracurricular activities if that student is not a United States citizen or not a resident of Montana. Previously, such restrictions were generally prohibited solely based on the student's home school enrollment. All other existing rules, such as home school students meeting the same participation standards as full-time students, remain in effect.

Maddy summarySenate Joint Resolution 18 (SJ 18) is a resolution from the Montana Legislature urging fair consideration of recreational needs at Flathead Lake. It requests that all bodies influencing the lake's usability balance recreation needs equally with demands for hydropower, fish, and irrigation. The resolution specifically asks for Flathead Lake's recreational needs to be included in the upcoming renegotiation of the Columbia River Treaty and in future Columbia River System Operations planning. Copies of the resolution are to be sent to various federal agencies and tribal governments involved in these decisions.

Maddy summarySenate Bill 366 revises the notification process for county central committee conventions. It allows the presiding officer of a county central committee to email the call of the county convention to precinct committee representatives. This change provides an additional method for informing committee representatives about upcoming conventions, alongside the existing requirements to publish the call in a newspaper and mail a copy.

Maddy summarySB 184 revises election laws concerning precinct committee representatives for political parties. The bill provides that if a political party chooses to elect these representatives in a primary election, only contested races - where there are more candidates than available positions - will appear on the primary ballot. For uncontested positions, the election administrator may declare the filed candidate elected by acclamation, removing the need for a ballot election for that specific role. It also clarifies that write-in candidates must file a declaration of intent and that tie votes are resolved by the county central committee.