With week two in the books the legislative session is well under way and heating up. We heard several bills under various topics from housing to human trafficking. Another bill would establish a state cemetery for veterans in Columbia Falls. While yet another bill focuses on a beloved pastime in Montana, huckleberry picking. The common thread throughout is ways that we can improve the lives of all Montanans and protect our way of life.
It’s no secret that housing in Montana has become scarce and expensive. Senate Bills 130 and 131 are designed to provide relief to our heavily burdened housing system. SB 130 allows local governments to consolidate multiple boards into one single land-use board, streamlining the process for getting plans approved. SB 131 would limit the number of days local governments have to decide on applications to just 20 working days. Both bills, if signed into law, will be effective tools in helping to provide more affordable housing for all Montanans.
January 11th marked National Day of Human Trafficking Awareness, and fittingly House Bill 112 was discussed on Wednesday as well. This has been a growing problem in Montana. In 2015 there were 7 trafficking investigations in the state. That number rose to 68 investigations in 2021. HB 112 sets penalties for offenses including a 100-year sentence for child sex trafficking.
House Bill 81 would create a state cemetery for veterans in Columbia Falls at the Montana Veterans Home. Currently there is 150-acre plot of land that acts as a cemetery but only for residents of the Montana Veterans Home. HB 81 would make it so that veterans from the Northwest Montana region could have a final resting place there. This bipartisan bill passed the house with unanimous support.
One bill that falls under the red tape relief that we are tackling this session is House Bill 94. Under current law people picking huckleberries are required to report where the patch was that they picked them. Every Montanan knows how prized these locations are. No one shares the patch location, and no one was ever reporting it. HB 94 will remove the reporting requirement, while at the same time making sure that products that claim to have Montana huckleberries in it do.
While these bills address a wide variety of issues, one thing that is consistent throughout is that they are designed to protect Montanans and our way of life. By focusing on things like being able to provide ample and affordable housing for all Montanans, protecting the most vulnerable among us who may fall victim to trafficking, and ensuring that Veterans may be laid to rest close to home are all ways that legislators are helping to improve Montanans’ lives and defending our way of life.
