Bill > HB111

This bill adopts the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act, which establishes a comprehensive framework for managing and authenticating legal materials in electronic format. The bill defines key terms such as "electronic" and "legal material" (which includes the state constitution, session laws, and Montana Code Annotated) and specifies the official publishers for each type of legal material. It requires official publishers to authenticate electronic legal materials, providing a method for users to verify that the electronic record is unaltered from the official published version. The bill creates a presumption of accuracy for authenticated electronic legal materials, with the burden of proving inauthenticity falling on any party challenging the record. Official publishers must ensure the preservation, security, and ongoing usability of electronic legal materials, including maintaining backup and disaster recovery systems. The legislation also mandates that electronic legal materials be reasonably available to the public on a permanent basis and requires publishers to consider national standards, user needs, and compatibility with other jurisdictions when implementing these requirements. The bill modifies the existing Montana Code Annotated provisions to incorporate these new electronic legal material standards and is set to take effect on October 1, 2025, applying to legal materials first published electronically on or after that date.

Government Affairs

https://bills.legmt.gov/#/laws/bill/2/LC0110