Education (Higher Education)

This bill revises voter identification laws, directly affecting all registered voters in Montana by narrowing the types of identification accepted for voting. For in-person voting, it removes student photo identification cards issued by the Montana university system and eliminates the option to combine a document showing name and address with a general photo identification card. For mail-in voting, the bill similarly removes student photo identification cards from the Montana university system from the list of accepted photo ID copies.

HB 282 would have amended Montana's tuition waiver law to require tribal certification for descendants of federally recognized tribes seeking tuition waivers. Specifically, it would have added a requirement that descendants provide a certificate of descendancy issued by their tribe to qualify for waivers under Section 20-25-421(2)(c)(i). This change would directly affect American Indian students who are descendants of Montana tribes but not enrolled members, as they would need formal tribal verification to access the waiver. The bill was withdrawn before becoming law on February 22, 2025.