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69th Legislature 2025 HB 674.1
- 1 - Authorized Print Version – HB 674
1 HOUSE BILL NO. 674
2 INTRODUCED BY Z. ZEPHYR, L. MUSZKIEWICZ, J. SECKINGER, P. ELVERUM, C. NEUMANN, L. JONES,
3 W. MCKAMEY, D. HARVEY, L. SMITH, K. ZOLNIKOV, B. BARKER, G. NIKOLAKAKOS, J. DARLING
4
5 A BILL FOR AN ACT ENTITLED: “AN ACT REVISING THE DUTIES OF THE CODE COMMISSIONER;
6 PROVIDING THAT THE CODE COMMISSIONER INCLUDE A RECOMMENDATION FOR LEGISLATION
7 THAT WILL ELIMINATE FROM THE CODE UNCONSTITUTIONAL LAWS THAT ARE PERMANENTLY
8 ENJOINED AND NO LONGER IN EFFECT; AND AMENDING SECTION 1-11-204, MCA.”
9
10 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:
11
12 Section 1-11-204, MCA, is amended to read:
13 "1-11-204. (1) Prior to November 1 immediately preceding each
14 regular legislative session, the code commissioner shall prepare and submit to the legislative council a report,
15 in tabular or other form, indicating the commissioner's recommendations for legislation that will:
16 (a) eliminate archaic or outdated laws;
17 (b) eliminate obsolete or redundant wording of laws;
18 (c) eliminate duplications in law and any laws repealed directly or by implication;
19 (d) clarify existing laws;
20 (e) correct errors and inconsistencies within the laws; and
21 (f) eliminate any law that is not in effect because a final determination has been made by a court
22 that the law is facially unconstitutional, and the court has permanently enjoined the law.
23 (2) The commissioner shall cause to be prepared for publication with the Montana Code Annotated
24 the following material:
25 (a) the statutory history of each code section;
26 (b) annotations of state and federal court decisions relating to the subject matter of the code;
27 (c) editorial notes, cross-references, and other matter the commissioner considers desirable or
28 advantageous; ****
69th Legislature 2025 HB 674.1
- 2 - Authorized Print Version – HB 674
1 (d) the Declaration of Independence;
2 (e) the Constitution of the United States of America and amendments to the constitution;
3 (f) acts of congress relating to the authentication of laws and records;
4 (g) the Organic Act of the Territory of Montana;
5 (h) The Enabling Act;
6 (i) The 1972 Constitution of the State of Montana and any amendments to the constitution;
7 (j) ordinances relating to federal relations and elections;
8 (k) rules of civil, criminal, and appellate procedure and other rules of procedure the Montana
9 supreme court may adopt; and
10 (l) a complete subject index, a separate index for the constitution, a popular name index, and
11 comparative disposition tables or cross-reference indexes relating sections of the Montana Code Annotated to
12 prior compilations and session laws.
13 (3) (a) After publication of the Montana Code Annotated, the code commissioner shall:
14 (i) annotate, arrange, and prepare for publication all laws of a general and permanent nature
15 enacted at each legislative session and assign catchlines and code section numbers to each new section;
16 (ii) continue to codify, index, arrange, rearrange, and generally update the Montana Code
17 Annotated to maintain an orderly and logical arrangement of the laws in order to avoid future need for bulk
18 revision;
19 (iii) prepare and publish a report entitled "Official Report of the Montana Code Commissioner--
20 (year)" that indicates, in tabular or other form, all changes made during the continuous recodification, other than
21 punctuation, spelling, and capitalization, to clearly indicate the character of each change made since the last
22 report.
23 (b) In carrying out the duty imposed by subsection (3)(a)(ii), the commissioner shall recodify the
24 Montana Code Annotated on a title-by-title basis. The recodification is intended to be secondary to the
25 completion of other interim duties.
26 (4) From time to time, the commissioner shall confer with members of the judiciary and the state
27 bar relative to recodification procedures."
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