summary
Introduced
02/07/2025
02/07/2025
In Committee
02/10/2025
02/10/2025
Crossed Over
Passed
Dead
05/23/2025
05/23/2025
Introduced Session
2025 Regular Session
Bill Summary
AN ACT ENTITLED: “AN ACT GENERALLY REVISING LAWS RELATED TO DISTRICT COURTS; COMBINING THE 10TH AND 14TH JUDICIAL DISTRICTS; PROVIDING AN ADDITIONAL JUDGE TO THE 13TH JUDICIAL DISTRICT; AMING SECTIONS 3-5-101 AND 3-5-102, MCA; PROVIDING A TRANSITION; AND PROVIDING EFFECTIVE DATES.”
AI Summary
This bill revises Montana's judicial district laws by consolidating the 10th and 14th judicial districts and adding an additional judge to the 13th Judicial District (Yellowstone County). The bill reduces the total number of judicial districts from 22 to 21 by merging the 10th and 14th districts, which currently have low workloads (0.7 and 0.4 fulltime judges respectively). In contrast, the 13th Judicial District, which covers Yellowstone County, currently has a workload equivalent to 13.9 judges but only 8 full-time judges, justifying the addition of a ninth judge. The bill specifies that if a vacancy occurs in the 10th or 14th districts, the governor will not appoint a new judge, and the remaining judge will serve the newly configured district. For the 13th district, the governor will appoint an additional judge through the standard judicial appointment process, with the first election for this ninth judge to be held in November 2030. The changes to the judicial districts and number of judges will become effective either on passage of the bill or on January 6, 2031, depending on when a vacancy occurs in the affected districts.
Committee Categories
Justice
Sponsors (1)
Last Action
(S) Died in Process (on 05/23/2025)
Official Document
bill text
bill summary
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bill summary
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bill summary
Document Type | Source Location |
---|---|
State Bill Page | https://bills.legmt.gov/#/laws/bill/2/LC1049 |
State Bill Page | https://bills.legmt.gov/#/lc/bill/2/LC1049 |
Fiscal Note SB0284_1 | https://docs.legmt.gov/download-ticket?ticketId=34a34c39-2cd3-4a8a-937c-24db263eeda0 |
BillText | https://docs.legmt.gov/download-ticket?ticketId=d353d6cf-7b69-47f8-9620-b255d5737fab |
BillText | https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=278655 |
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