Revise GAL laws and funding
SB 465 clarifies funding rules for court-appointed special advocates (CASAs) who support children in custody cases. It specifically prohibits using money from the Court-Appointed Special Advocate Account to pay attorneys serving as paid special advocates, ensuring funds are reserved exclusively for CASA services. The bill amends Montana law to define "special advocate" and updates account management procedures, directly affecting CASAs, the state’s child welfare funding system, and courts managing child custody cases. These changes aim to prevent misallocation of funds while maintaining clear accountability for resources supporting child advocacy.
Bill status
died
1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2025
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Feb 25, 2025
Last action May 23, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison
What changed between versions
LC0472.pdf
→
SB0465_1.pdf
·
2 edits
MINOR
The bill was renumbered from LC 472 to SB 465 and updated with a new sponsor. A substantive definition was added to clarify that 'concurrent planning' involves working toward family reunification while simultaneously developing an alternative permanent plan for the child.
Scope change
The bill's scope regarding the definition of concurrent planning was expanded to explicitly include the development of alternative permanent plans.
DEFINITION
Added a definition for 'concurrent planning' to clarify that it means working toward reunification while developing an alternative permanent plan.
TECHNICAL
Changed the bill number from LC 472 to SB 465 and updated the sponsor information.
Floor votes
How they voted
No floor votes recorded yet.
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
17
Key actions
0
Committee
1
Amendments
1
Mar 1, 2025
Amended
(S) Tabled in Committee - (S) Public Health, Welfare and Safety
upper
Feb 26, 2025
Committee
(S) Referred to Committee - (S) Public Health, Welfare and Safety
upper
Feb 25, 2025
Introduced
(S) Introduced
upper
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors
Sponsors
Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Dennis Lenz
RRepublican
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