Establish the Montana hunters and anglers community fund
HB 560 would have established a Montana Hunters' and Anglers' Community Fund, allowing donors to contribute $1 or more above the cost of wildlife conservation licenses. Funds collected would support grants for small rural communities (under 7,500 people) through the Department of Commerce, including projects like school improvements, food banks, or student programs. Grants would be limited to $2,000 (small) or $20,000 (large), with eligibility restrictions barring political activities and entities involved in lawsuits. The bill created a review board appointed by legislative leaders and the governor, and it died in committee in May 2025 without becoming law.
Bill status
died
3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2025
Committee Review
Mar 2025
House Passage
Mar 2025
Senate Passage
Governor
Introduced Feb 18, 2025
Last action May 22, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison
What changed between versions
LC1052.pdf
→
HB0560_1.pdf
·
2 edits
MINOR
The bill text was updated from a legislative committee version (LC 1052) to the official House Bill 560.1, incorporating the full list of sponsors and finalizing the bill title and structure. The substantive policy content regarding the fund, grants, and board composition remains identical to the previous version.
Scope change
The scope and applicability of the bill remain unchanged; this is a procedural update to the bill's text.
TECHNICAL
Updated the header to reflect the official bill number (HB 560.1) and added the full list of sponsors.
Reformatted the bill title and introductory sections to match the final authorized print version.
Floor votes · House Mar 19, 2025
How they voted
75–23
Passed · 2 other
Total votes 100
Mar 19, 2025
D
Democratic42
97% Yea
R
Republican58
58% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea
All Nay
Mixed
No data
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
29
Key actions
3
Committee
4
Amendments
1
Mar 25, 2025
Amended
(S) Tabled in Committee - (S) Finance and Claims
upper
Mar 20, 2025
Committee
(S) Referred to Committee - (S) Finance and Claims
upper
Mar 19, 2025
House · Passed
House Vote: pass (75-23-2)
house
Feb 28, 2025
Lower · Passed
(H) Committee Report - (H) Fish, Wildlife and Parks
lower
Feb 26, 2025
Lower · Passed
(H) Committee Executive Action - (H) Fish, Wildlife and Parks
lower
Feb 19, 2025
Committee
(H) Referred to Committee - (H) Fish, Wildlife and Parks
lower
Feb 18, 2025
Introduced
(H) Introduced
lower
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors
Sponsors
Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Tom France
DDemocratic
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