TO: Parks and Recreation Friends Groups

FROM: Bob Walker, Montana Trails Coalition and Montana Trails, Recreation & Parks Association

DATE: January 2, 2019

Good New Year to all you parks, recreation and outdoor enthusiasts!  Our 66th Session of the Montana Legislature convenes on Monday January 7.  We anticipate several bills affecting recreation and parks programs and we will keep you informed of those bills and their status as the session progresses.

You can expect these reports approximately every two weeks.  To repeat an old realism, the world is run by those who show up.  Hopefully many of you will contact your legislators by telephone, letter or email and/or attend committee meeting/s to voice your position on bills that affect your way of life and values.

NOTE:SB means Senate bill, HB means House of Representatives bill, LC means a bill draft request has been submitted to Legislative Services.

RECREATION (Bills with Numbers or Language Available)

SB 24 (Senator Gauthier, Helena): Increase optional light motor vehicle registration fee for parks and recreation.  This bill would increase the optional light motor vehicle registration fee from $6 to $9 and provide increased funding for state parks operations and maintenance, fishing access sites, and create a new made in Montana trails grant program.

LC 1322: (Representative White, Bozeman): Increase state gas tax distribution to recreation-related programs.  This draft bill would increase the refund of state gas tax funds from 15/28 to ¾ of 1% to the state snowmobile program and from 1/8 to ¼ of 1% to the state OHV program.

PARKS (Bill with Number and Language Available)

SB 70 (Senator Flowers, Belgrade) Remove Headwaters State Park from the primitive parks list.  Referred to Senate Fish and Game Committee.

You can maintain your knowledge of what’s happening in the legislature by going to https://leg.mt.gov/.

To find a bill go to http://laws.leg.mt.gov/legprd/LAW0200W$.Startup?P_SESS=20191

To find a legislator go to https://leg.mt.gov/legislator-lookup/

To review Montana state laws go to https://leg.mt.gov/statute/

To review our Montana Constitution go to https://leg.mt.gov/bills/mca/title_0000/chapters_index.html

Bills Currently In Process - 2019 legislature

Bob Walker, Chair
Montana Trails Coalition and
Montana Trails Recreation and Parks Association Advisory Committee
406-461-0523
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