SB 251 Montana Senate · 2025 Regular Session

Establish confidentiality for child and family ombudsman

SB 251 establishes confidentiality for all matters under investigation by the Office of the Child and Family Ombudsman. This means information received, collected, and maintained by the ombudsman's office cannot be disclosed or shared. However, there are exceptions: records may be disclosed to a court for in camera inspection if relevant to a legal issue, and a court can permit disclosure if necessary for a fair resolution. The bill also specifically ensures the identity of individuals who contact the ombudsman remains confidential, with a limited exception.

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2025

Committee Review

Mar 2025

Senate Passage

Apr 2025

House Passage

Apr 2025

Signed into Law

Apr 2025

Introduced Jan 31, 2025 Signed Apr 17, 2025

Maddy AI version diff · 4 comparisons

What changed between versions

SB0251_1(4).pdf → SB0251_X.pdf · 1 edit

MINOR

The bill text was converted from a draft version to an enrolled, signed version, adding official certification signatures and removing draft markers. No substantive policy changes, new laws, or legal requirements were added; the content of the confidentiality provisions remains exactly the same.

TECHNICAL

The document format changed from a draft bill to an enrolled bill, including the addition of signature blocks for the Secretary of the Senate, President of the Senate, and Speaker of the House, and the removal of draft-specific headers and footers.

Floor votes · Senate Feb 26, 2025 · House Mar 26, 2025

How they voted

49–1

Passed

Total votes 50

Feb 26, 2025

D Democratic18

18 Yea

100% Yea

R Republican32

31 Yea 1 Nay

96% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Apr 16, 2025

Signed into law

(S) Signed by Governor

upper

Apr 7, 2025

Lower · Passed

(H) Signed by Speaker

lower

Apr 1, 2025

Upper · Passed

(S) Signed by President

upper

Mar 26, 2025

House · Passed

House Vote: pass (98-1-1)

house

Mar 19, 2025

Lower · Passed

(H) Committee Report - (H) Human Services

lower

Mar 18, 2025

Lower · Passed

(H) Committee Executive Action - (H) Human Services

lower

Feb 27, 2025

Committee

(H) Referred to Committee - (H) Human Services

lower

Feb 26, 2025

Senate · Passed

Senate Vote: pass (49-1)

senate

Feb 24, 2025

Upper · Passed

(S) Committee Report - (S) Public Health, Welfare and Safety

upper

Feb 21, 2025

Upper · Passed

(S) Committee Executive Action - (S) Public Health, Welfare and Safety

upper

Feb 5, 2025

Committee

(S) Referred to Committee - (S) Public Health, Welfare and Safety

upper

Jan 31, 2025

Introduced

(S) Introduced

upper

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors