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69th Legislature 2025 SB 6.1
- 1 - Authorized Print Version – SB 6
1 SENATE BILL NO. 6
2 INTRODUCED BY B. USHER
3 BY REQUEST OF THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE OVERSIGHT COUNCIL
4
5 A BILL FOR AN ACT ENTITLED: “AN ACT ESTABLISHING CRIMINAL JUSTICE DATA WAREHOUSE
6 PROJECT PRIORITIES FOR THE 2025-2026 INTERIM; PROVIDING DEFINITIONS; PROVIDING
7 APPROPRIATIONS; AND PROVIDING AN IMMEDIATE EFFECTIVE DATE.”
8
9 WHEREAS, there is a criminal justice data warehouse housed in the Board of Crime Control; and
10 WHEREAS, the Board of Crime Control shall consult with the Criminal Justice Oversight Council to
11 establish and maintain the criminal justice data warehouse; and
12 WHEREAS, the Criminal Justice Oversight Council provides direction and recommendations to the
13 Board of Crime Control on data collection project priorities for the criminal justice data warehouse.
14
15 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:
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17 NEW SECTION. Section 1. Projects for 2025-2026 interim. (1) In preparation for the 2027
18 legislative session, the board shall prioritize the following projects:
19 (a) create a unique identifier to link data from separate state and local criminal justice agencies
20 and the judicial branch in a manner that is efficient and protects the confidentiality requirements for any
21 personally identifiable information;
22 (b) consult with the council to determine research priorities to answer questions about the criminal
23 justice system, prioritize data collection, and develop data warehouse governance policies;
24 (c) consult with the council to identify and expand on the data elements that the board shall collect
25 to achieve the purposes of 44-7-126;
26 (d) acquire a software application to assist with mastering records received in the criminal justice
27 data warehouse from disparate data systems across the state criminal justice system;
28 (e) acquire a software application to assist in the cataloging of data fields and components in ****
69th Legislature 2025 SB 6.1
- 2 - Authorized Print Version – SB 6
1 records received in the criminal justice data warehouse from disparate data systems across the state criminal
2 justice system;
3 (f) identify willing local stakeholders to expand beyond the pilot project to deposit existing local
4 criminal justice data in the criminal justice data warehouse, identify technology needs, and document data
5 processes;
6 (g) maintain a list of the current vendors used by state and local criminal justice agencies and the
7 judicial branch;
8 (h) identify and apply for federal funds that will help the board and the council sustain work on the
9 criminal justice data warehouse;
10 (i) document data processes that are used to deposit data in the criminal justice data warehouse;
11 (j) identify methods to share any state savings that may result from improved data collection and
12 integration with local governments; and
13 (k) identify information from other state agencies, including the department of public health and
14 human services, or from tribal governments or the federal government that may be included in the criminal
15 justice data warehouse or that may be necessary to answer criminal justice research questions posted by the
16 council.
17 (2) The board shall:
18 (a) report to the council and the law and justice interim committee at each regularly scheduled
19 meeting between [the effective date of this act] and September 15, 2026, and to other legislative interim
20 committees or administrative committees as requested; and
21 (b) by September 15, 2026, submit to the council, the law and justice interim committee, the
22 legislative finance committee, and the governor's office of budget and program planning a report that includes:
23 (i) a summary of the work of the board since its last report to the council, the law and justice
24 interim committee, the legislative finance committee, and the governor's office of budget and program planning
25 to create the criminal justice data warehouse;
26 (ii) recommendations for specific next steps to further implement the criminal justice data
27 warehouse and the associated costs and technology needed to accomplish those steps;
28 (iii) a summary of data sharing or integration projects the board has completed; and ****
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1 (iv) a list of policy and funding priorities identified for the 2027 legislative session.
2 (3) As used in this section, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the following definitions
3 apply:
4 (a) "Board" means the board of crime control established in 2-15-2008.
5 (b) "Council" means the criminal justice oversight council established in 53-1-216.
6
7 NEW SECTION. Section 2. Appropriations. (1) There is appropriated $480,000 from the general
8 fund to the department of justice to the credit of the board of crime control for the biennium beginning July 1,
9 2025, for the purposes of paying for the acquisition of software applications outlined in [section 1].
10 (2) (a) There is appropriated $504,243 from the general fund to the department of justice to the
11 credit of the board of crime control, for the biennium beginning July 1, 2025.
12 (b) The appropriation in subsection (2)(a) is intended to supplement base funding to the board of
13 crime control for the implementation of the criminal justice data warehouse to fund the positions of one full-time
14 equivalent position of a project manager and one full-time equivalent position of a business or data analyst.
15 (c) The legislature intends that the appropriation in subsection (2)(a) be considered part of the
16 ongoing base for the next legislative session.
17 (3) (a) There is appropriated $500,000 from the general fund to the judiciary to the credit of the
18 court administrator for the biennium beginning July 1, 2025, for the purposes of contributing data and
19 information to the criminal justice data warehouse as provided in 44-7-126.
20 (b) The legislature intends that this is a one-time-only appropriation.
21
22 NEW SECTION. Section 3. Effective date. [This act] is effective on passage and approval.
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