Interim study on bolstering public participation in the session/legislature
HJ 38 is a joint resolution requesting an interim study to improve public access to Montana's legislative process. It directs a legislative committee to examine website accessibility (including the new bill-tracking system), public comment procedures, consistency in committee testimony rules, and barriers for Montanans with disabilities. The study must report findings to the 70th Legislature by September 2026, incorporating feedback from the public, legislators, staff, and disability advocates. The resolution was tabled and died in committee on May 22, 2025.
Bill status
died
3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Mar 2025
Committee Review
Apr 2025
House Passage
Apr 2025
Senate Passage
Governor
Introduced Mar 28, 2025
Last action May 22, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison
What changed between versions
LC4369.pdf
→
HJ0038_1.pdf
·
2 edits
MINOR
The bill was renumbered from LC 4369 to HJ 38.1 and the sponsor was identified as J. Karlen. A minor text correction was made to remove the word 'WEBSITE' in favor of 'website' for consistency. The substantive policy content regarding the legislative tracking study and reporting requirements to the 70th Legislature remains unchanged.
TECHNICAL
Bill number changed from LC 4369 to HJ 38.1 and sponsor name added.
Text corrected to use lowercase 'website' instead of 'WEBSITE' for consistency.
Floor votes · House Apr 18, 2025
How they voted
64–34
Passed · 2 other
Total votes 100
Apr 18, 2025
D
Democratic42
95% Yea
R
Republican58
58% Nay
Vote distribution
All Yea
All Nay
Mixed
No data
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
25
Key actions
3
Committee
4
Amendments
1
Apr 24, 2025
Amended
(S) Tabled in Committee - (S) Legislative Administration
upper
Apr 18, 2025
House · Passed
House Vote: pass (64-34-2)
house
Apr 18, 2025
Committee
(S) Referred to Committee - (S) Legislative Administration
upper
Apr 8, 2025
Lower · Passed
(H) Committee Report - (H) State Administration
lower
Apr 8, 2025
Lower · Passed
(H) Committee Executive Action - (H) State Administration
lower
Mar 29, 2025
Committee
(H) Referred to Committee - (H) State Administration
lower
Mar 28, 2025
Introduced
(H) Introduced
lower
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors
Sponsors
Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Jonathan Karlen
DDemocratic
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