From the State Capitol: We’re one month into the legislative session. The highlight of the week was Governor Gianforte delivering his first State of the State address where he laid out his Montana Comeback Plan. As the Governor said, "If there's anything this year has taught us it's that Montanans can handle anything. The State of our State is strong!"
This week, the House acted on several pieces of legislation to reduce crime, strengthen our elections, and protect life.
House Bill 200 will ban “sanctuary cities” in the state of Montana. House Bill 223 will ensure that Montana is not a “sanctuary state”. The goals of these bills are to assist federal law enforcement and immigration officials and keep Montana communities safe in the event an undocumented immigrant with a criminal history comes to the state. The House Judiciary Committee heard those bills this week.
Several bills are being considered to strengthen Montana’s elections. These include bills to require photo IDs and eliminate same-day voter registration, among others. Election integrity is crucial and Montanans must have confidence in their election procedures.
The Montana House passed four pro-life bills this week that will now go to the Senate. HB 136 prevents abortions after 5 months of pregnancy when the child can feel pain. HB 140 allows women to be offered the opportunity to view their ultrasound and listen to the fetal heartbeat before having an abortion. HB 167 creates a referendum to establish the Born Alive Infant Protection Act. HB 171 requires in-person visits for prescribing chemical abortion drugs.
Barry Usher (R-Musselshell/Rural Yellowstone County) House District 40 [email protected]
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