Montana State Legislature
2021-2022 Legislative Council
Next Scheduled Meeting:
June 13, 2022 - Legislative Council
Helena, MT
Contact Susan Fox for more information.
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Committee Staff:
Jerry Howe
Executive Director
Todd Everts
Legal Services Director, Attorney
Fong Hom
Secretary
The Legislative Council is a statutory, bipartisan, legislative committee established in 1957. The Council is composed of the Speaker of the House, the President of the Senate, the Minority leaders of each chamber, and four members chosen by the Speaker of the House, and four members chosen by the Senate Committee on Committees, respectively two from the majority party and two from the minority party in each chamber.
It provides ongoing leadership, direction, and foresight for the efficient operation and improvement of the Legislative Branch. It is the administrative committee for the Legislative Services Division and the administrative committee that submits the Legislative Branch budget each session.
Senator Mark Blasdel, Presiding Officer
Representative Kim Abbott, Vice Presiding Officer
Committee Members
June 13, 2022
- Rules Subcommittee: Agenda - Minutes Log - Audio/Video
- Legislative Council: Agenda - Minutes Log - Audio/Video
April 12, 2022: Agenda - Minutes Log - Audio/Video
March 7 and 8, 2022.
- Rules Subcommittee March 7: Agenda - Minutes Log - Audio/Video
- Legislative Council March 8: Agenda - Minutes Log - Audio/Video
January 13, 2022: Agenda - Minutes Log - Audio/ Video
December 17, 2021: (Zoom - MDAC RFPs): Agenda - Minutes Log - Audio/ Video
December 6, 2021 Full Council: Agenda - Minutes Log - Audio/ Video
- Subcommittee on Succession Planning: Agenda - Minutes Log - Audio/ Video
September 27, 2021: Agenda - Minutes Log - Audio / Video
September 20, 2021: Agenda - Minutes Log - Audio / Video
- Strategic Planning Summary (Sept. 20-21)
August 16, 2021: Agenda - Minutes Log - Audio / Video
May 24, 2021: Agenda - Minutes Log - Audio / Video
Rules Subcommittee
Members:
Rep. Casey Knudsen, Presiding Officer
Rep. Kim Abbott
Sen. Cary Smith
Sen. Pat Flowers
Subcommittee on Succession Planning
Members:
Rep. Rhonda Knudsen, Presiding Officer
Rep. Derek Harvey
Sen. Jason Ellsworth
Sen. JP Pomnichowski
Materials:
November mailing
- Statutes: Legislative Services Division: 5-11-111, MCA & Functional organization & responsibilities: 5-11-112, MCA
- Knowledge Level Descriptions
- Director's Monthly Guide
- Draft 360o Staff and Legislator interview questions
September 28 Mailing
- Position description - UPDATED
- LSD Management Team and Organizational Chart
- Updated Legislative Council Meeting Dates
Members list w/ other committees
Legislative Improvement
Information from Past Studies
2013-2014, 2019
Annual Sessions
- History of Montana Annual Session Proposals - Table
- Annual Sessions - Montana History. The Full Report
- Other States: Annual vs. Biennial Sessions (NCSL)
- Public Commission on the Oregon Legislature (11/2006)
- NCSL Legisbrief on Legislative Sessions
- Legislative Sessions with Limited Scope (NCSL)
- Full and Part-Time Legislatures (NCSL)
- Legal Analysis on Scope and Effect of Montana Constitution regarding Regular Legislative Sessions (Everts, 2014)
Bills and Legislative Calendar
- Bill Statistics - Regular Sessions: 1951-2021
- General Introduction to Comparing Legislatures: Bill Limits, Pre-filing, Carryover, Etc.
- Information from 7 States on Limiting Legislative Bills, and Bill Deadlines
- NCSL Bill Limits
- Montana Legislator Survey - Highlights
- Results on Legislative Calendar and Scheduling
The Council's statutory duties are:
• designate the time for holding the presession caucuses (5-2-201, MCA);
• allocate office space occupied by the Legislative Branch (5-2-503, MCA);
• select studies to be conducted during the interim and assign the studies to the appropriate committees (5-5-217, MCA);
• employ and set the salary of the Executive Director of the Legislative Services Division (5-11-105, MCA);
• adopt rules for classification and pay of Legislative Branch employees with the concurrence of the Legislative Audit and Finance Committees (5-11-105, MCA);
• adopt rules governing personnel management of Legislative Branch employees with the concurrence of the Legislative Audit and Finance Committees (5-11-105, MCA);
• adopt procedures to administer legislator claims for reimbursements authorized by law for interim activity (5-11-105, MCA);
• establish time schedules and deadlines for the interim committees of the Legislature, including dates for requesting bills and completing interim work (5-11-105, MCA);
• review proposed legislation for agencies or entities that are not assigned to an interim committee or the Environmental Quality Council (5-11-105, MCA);
• assign to an appropriate committee a question of statewide importance that arises between sessions and for which there is no legislative committee already assigned to address the question (5-11-105, MCA);
• establish a functional organization within the Legislative Services Division in order to effectively and efficiently carry out all responsibilities delegated to the Division (5-11-112, MCA);
• set fees for proceedings of the Legislature (5-11-212, MCA);
• serve as the agency of interstate, international, and intergovernmental cooperation and as the appointing authority for legislative membership for voting purposes in interstate, international, and intergovernmental entities (5-11-303 through 5-11-305, MCA);
• approve and adopt a Legislative Branch computer system plan developed by the Legislative Branch Information Technology Planning Council (5-11-405, MCA);
• appoint members to policy committees of the Pacific Northwest Economic Region
(5-11-707, MCA);
• assist the Legislative Services Division in providing oversight of the state governmental broadcasting structure (5-11-1111, MCA), know as MPAN or the Montana Public Affairs Network;
• provide general supervision and policy for the Code Commissioner (1-11-203, MCA);
• with the advice of the Code Commissioner, decide on the quantity, quality, style, format, and grade of all Code Commissioner publications (1-11-301, MCA);
• fix the sales price of the Montana Code Annotated and ancillary publications (1-11-301, MCA);
• appoint members to serve on the Montana Commission on Uniform State Laws (1-12-101, MCA);
• adopt adequate rules for the use of any information technology resources (2-17-518, MCA);
• consult with and advise the Department of Administration concerning the assignment of space in the Capitol (2-17-805, MCA);
• serve as a long-range building committee to recommend to the Legislature and the Department of Administration construction and remodeling priorities for the Capitol
(2-17-805, MCA);
• serve as the budget approving authority with respect to Legislative Services Division programs (17-7-102, MCA);
• provide concurrence with the Environmental Quality Council's selection of the Legislative Environmental Analyst (75-1-323, MCA); and
• serve as the appropriate legislative committee for consultation with the Board of Land Commissioners regarding disposal, sale, or exchange of certain state lands (77-2-302 and 77-2-351, MCA).
About the Legislative Council: Commonly Asked Questions
Final Rules, Procedures, And Guidelines For Interim Committees Adopted May 24, 2021
Legislative Council Meeting Dates (revised September 2021)
Appointments:
- Interim Appointments Chart- Legislative and Nonlegislative (Updated 5/13/2022)
- American Rescue Plan Act Commissions (ARPA) (Updated 11/9/21)
- NCSL and CSG-West Standing Committee Appointments (Adopted 5/24/2021)
- On May 24, 2021, the Legislative Council, the Speaker of the House Galt, President of the Senate Mark Blasdel, Minority Leaders Senator Jill Cohenour, and Representative Kim Abbott made the following appointments to The Energy Council:
Representative Katie Zolnikov
Representative Jim Keane
Senator Duane Ankney
Senator Christopher Pope (substituted)
- On May 24, 2021, the Speaker of the House Galt, President of the Senate Mark Blasdel, Minority Leaders Senator Jill Cohenour, and Representative Kim Abbott made the following appointments to The Pacific Northwest Economic Region:
Representative Steve Galloway
Representative Katie Sullivan
Senator Terry Gauthier
Senator Shannon O'Brien