Week 13: Legislative Session Update
Yesterday, hundreds of people gathered at Montana’s Capitol flag plaza to celebrate Transgender Day of Visibility, an international celebration of the lives and contributions of trans people. It was an occasion of joyous rebellion following Governor Greg Gianforte signing two harmful anti-trans bills into law last week.
The crowd made sure that the Governor and legislators heard loud and clear that TRANS PEOPLE BELONG IN MONTANA! See pictures taken by Thom Bridge at the event here.
Unfortunately, there are more bills moving through the legislature that target transgender, non-binary, intersex, and Two Spirit Montanans.
HB 400: Brought by Rep. Braxton Mitchell, this bill protects employees and students from disciplinary action for purposefully using the wrong pronouns or deadnaming someone. (What's deadnaming?)
HB 682 - Brought by Rep. Greg Kmetz, this bill requires that insurance plans that provide coverage for gender-affirming care also provide coverage for de-transition care.
SB 164 - Brought by Sen. John Fuller, this bill bans young people from accessing gender affirming care until their 16.
This is just three of over 20 anti-LGBTQ2S+ bills we've seen proposed this session.
Take action today:
☎️ Contact Senate Judiciary Committee before 8am tomorrow (Wednesday, April 2) and urge them to vote NO on HB 400.
☎️ Contact YOUR legislator and urge them to stop targeting transgender, non-binary, intersex, and Two Spirit people today with these discriminatory bills.
Trans Montanans like other Montanans want the legislature to be focusing on solving real problems, not coming up with imaginary ones to move forward a hateful agenda. This looks like focusing on the state’s affordability crisis when it comes to housing, childcare, and healthcare – and some legislators are doing just that!
Join us in thanking those who voted for HB 456 which expanded access to childcare and HB 551 which protected free and reduced lunch for Montana kids.
Finally, thank you for all YOU do to realize a Montana where there is justice, dignity, and safety for all! 🥰
In Solidarity,
Julia Maxon
Program Director, Catalyst Montana
These attacks on our dignity and safety can take a toll on our hearts, bodies, and minds. Trans Lifeline is a peer-support hotline run by and for Trans people. Contact Trans Lifeline at 877-565-8860. Find additional resources and support here.
Take Action
It's going to take all of us to create a Montana where there is justice, safety, and dignity for all. This means that we need YOU to take contact your legislator this legislative session.
Call the capitol switchboard at 406-444-4800
The switchboard is open 7 AM to 5:30 PM M-F
State your name, where you're located, and ask to leave a message Supporting / Opposing the bill you want to leave comment on
There's a new system for leaving message to legislators this year that does require you to create an account. You'll need to go to legmt.gov/participate
Be sure to enter in your email address and press verify to get a confirmation code. Note: you will not be able to proceed forward in the form if you do not complete this first step.
To testify virtually, go to legmt.gov/participate. Like submitting a public comment, you will need to create an account first and verify your email.
You will be able to sign up to testify two hours before the hearing.
In your testimony, be sure to say, "Chair and members of the committee, my name is [insert full name and spell out your last name] and I live in [insert place in MT]. I'm here to SUPPORT / OPPOSE [HB/SB #] for [insert your reason]. Close by saying: [Thank you for your time and please vote YES/ NO on this bill.]
Priority Bills
Key: ✅ Support ❌ Oppose 🔵 Tracking
Health Care
✅ HB 885 (Rep. SJ Howell)
This bill aims to improve customer service for Montana's Medicaid program by implementing several key technological and operational changes. The Department of Public Health and Human Services will be required to modernize its client-facing technology, ensuring optimal mobile functionality and creating more accessible application and renewal processes. The department must accept applications and renewals online and by phone, use text messaging and email for client communications, and provide a phone hotline with expected wait times and callback options.
Oftentimes, someone's Medicaid coverage can be removed for nothing else than procedural issues. This bill aims to reduce barriers for folks accessing Medicaid services, which everyone on the program deserves.
✅ HB 884 (Rep. SJ Howell)
This bill establishes a Montana Behavioral Health Trust Fund to support mental health and substance use services across the state. The board must develop a state plan, monitor fund expenditures, evaluate service effectiveness, and provide quarterly reports to the legislature. Importantly, the funds are designated to supplement, not replace, existing behavioral health funding, and can be used for both public and nonprofit community-based organizations. The bill aims to create a sustainable, long-term funding mechanism to address behavioral health challenges in Montana, with an immediate effective date upon passage.
While the legislature provided funding last session to address ongoing issues, there was no mechanism put in place to allow for ongoing funding. This would solve for that problem.
Call the Capitol Switchboard and ask House Health & Human Services Committee to vote YES on HBs 885 and 884.
Criminal Legal
❌ HB 332 (Rep. Bill Mercer)
This bill creates eight new offenses for which children as young as 12 can be tried and sentenced as adults and held in adult detention facilities, instead of having their adjudication proceed through the Youth Court, which was designed to provide developmentally appropriate accountability for youth offenders and to prioritize their protection and rehabilitation.
Parts of the brain governing impulse control, emotional regulation, and risk assessment don't finish developing until the mid 20s, leaving an adolescent more susceptible to peer pressure and emotional overreaction without realizing the consequences, especially if they've been subject to trauma, which many justice-involved youth have. Youth Court was designed to recognize all this and to provide youth with supportive, rehabilitative and trauma-informed accountability. Sending them instead into the adult criminal legal system, where they will face an increased risk of facing sexual and physical assault, means they will be shaped by the adult punitive carceral system instead of a rehabilitative model designed for their stage of development.
Call the Capitol Switchboard and ask YOUR Senator to vote NO on HB 332.
Pro-Democracy & Voting Rights
❌ SB 42 (Rep. Daniel Emrich)
This bill requires that justices campaign with a partisan label during elections instead of on a nonpartisan basis like they currently do.
Montanans want less politics in their lives, NOT more. This bill would create a partisan MT Supreme Court, throwing into question the fairness, impartiality and commitment to the MT Constitution of the court.
❌ HB 838 (Rep. Brandon Ler)
This bill would allow MT Supreme Court justices to run campaigns on a partisan basis.
While technically optional, allowing MT Supreme Court justices to declare a partisan designation on the ballot unfairly politicizes the courts. The role of the MT Supreme Court is to interpret the constitution, NOT to declare allegiance to any political party.
❌ SB 543 (Sen. Wylie Galt)
Functionally identical to HB 838, this bill would politicize our MT Supreme Court and undermine its independence from the partisan pressures of the Legislature and the Governors' office.
There are a lot of ways to take action on the courts right now:
Write a Letter to the Editor - We’re especially looking for folks in the following counties: Mineral, Carbon, Ravalli, Yellowstone, Flathead, Madison, Jefferson, Pondera, and Anaconda Deer Lodge. If that’s you, email team@catalystmt.org and we can provide support drafting & submitting your letter!
Contact your Legislators - Call the Capitol Switchboard (406-444-4800) today and tell your legislators to vote NO on all attempts to make the Montana Supreme Court partisan!
Join a Phone Bank - We’re calling our friends & neighbors to ask them to sign on to our sign on letter! Join our phone bank in Missoula or remotely - sign up here!
Add Your Name to our Sign on Letter - We’ve put together a sign on letter with the goal of collecting support from 500 Montanans. Sign the letter & share it with your friends & neighbors!
