Montana State Legislature
2019-2020 Legislative Council
Next Scheduled Meeting:
Full Legislative Council:
November 17, 2020 - Cancelled
See below for more information.
Upcoming Meeting Dates:
TBD
(Dates may be subject to change.)
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About the Committee
Presiding Officer: Rep. Casey Schreiner
Vice Presiding Officer: Sen. Mark Blasdel
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.
Committee Members
Committee Staff:
Susan Byorth Fox, Executive Director, Lead Staff
Todd Everts, Legal Services Director, Attorney
Fong Hom, Secretary
Areas of Focus
- 2021 Session Planning
- Save the Dates: Caucus, Orientation, & Training
- Tentative 2021 Session Calendar
- Legislator appointments to:
- NCSL Standing Committees - Updated 5/29/19
- CSG Standing Committees - Updated 5/29/19
- Interim Committees and Other Agency Interim Appointments- (updated 9/11/19)
- Interim Study Assignments - The Legislative Council recommended all studies to the Interim Committees to consider for their respective work plans.
All meeting minutes are in PDF format and will open in a new tab.
- October 15, 2020
- October 19, 2020 (Rules Subcommittee) - Minutes
- August 24, 2020 Minutes - August 25, 2020 Minutes
- June 30, 2020 (Rules Subcommittee) Minutes
- June 9, 2020 Minutes
- April 16, 2020 Minutes
- January 13, 2020 Minutes (Legislative Week)
- December 10, 2019 Minutes and December 11, 2019 Minutes
- November 15, 2019 Legislative Week & SB 310 Steering Committee Conference call Minutes
- August 26, 2019 Minutes
- May 29, 2019 Minutes
- May 29, 2019 | Audio / Video (Joint meeting with Legislative Finance Committee)
- April 23, 2019 Minutes
- April 25, 2019 Minutes
SB 310: A Study of Strengthening the Legislature
Steering Committee Members:
Legislative Council Members:
Rep. Abbott, Rep. Galt, Sen. MacDonald, Sen. Pomnichowski, Sen. Thomas
Legislative Finance Committee Members:
Rep. Holmlund, Rep. Hopkins, Sen. Jacobson, Sen. Osmundson, Rep. Ryan, Sen. Sesso
Next SB 310 Steering Committee Meeting: TBD
The March 23, 2020, Meeting was cancelled.
See
Meeting Information Page under March 23-24, 2020 for Meeting Materials that may be considered once the Steering Committee has rescheduled.
Past Meetings:
June 22, 2020
Minutes
January 14, 2020, Legislator & Public Comment
Handout
Minutes
December 10, 2019 Meeting
Agenda
Minutes
NCSL Legisbrief on
Legislative Sessions
Legislative Sessions with
Limited Scope (NCSL)
Annual vs. Biennial Legislative sessions (NCSL)
Full and Part-Time Legislatures (NCSL)
History of Montana Annual Sessions (Updated Table)
Legal Analysis on Scope and Effect of Montana Constitution regarding Regular Legislative Sessions (Everts, 2014)
November 15, 2019 Meeting
Agenda
Minutes
August 19, 2019 Meeting
SB 310
Work Plan
May 29, 2019 Meeting
SB 310 Meeting
Results
New Resources
- NCSL Bill Limits
- Public Commission on the Oregon Legislature (11/2006)
Information from Past Studies
Legislative Improvement:
2013-2014
Annual Sessions
- History of Montana Annual Session Proposals - Table
- Annual Sessions - Montana History. The Full Report
- Other States: Annual vs. Biennial Sessions
- Montana Legislator Survey -
Highlights
- Results on Legislative Calendar and Scheduling
Budget-Related
- Limited-Scope Sessions
- Budget Processes in Other States
- Wyoming Budget Processes
- State experiences with Annual and Biennial Budgeting, NCSL report
- NCSL Tables on Development of Budget-related Practices
Bills and Legislative Calendar
-
- General Introduction to Comparing Legislatures: Bill Limits, Pre-filing, Carryover, Etc.
- Information from 7 States on Limiting Legislative Bills, and Bill Deadlines
Other Legislatures
- What Do Other Legislatures Do? Overview of MT, NV, ND, TX, OR (PowerPoint)
- Structure and Operations of the Nevada Legislature (Nevada Legislative Counsel Bureau, Bulletin 13-03, January 2013)
- What Do Other Legislatures Do? Calendars, Orientation, Training (AK, NV, ND, OR, SD, UT, WY (PowerPoint)
- December 2013 Back Page article for The Interim: The Quest for Legislative Improvement and Legislative Improvement Bibliography
Staffing
Interim Committees
- A Study of Other Legislatures: Interim Committees (includes history of Montana's structure)
- Comparison on Interim Committees in 10 States (2004)
- NCSL 2010 Update from 5 States
- NSCL 1990 Survey
Legislator Compensation
2017-2018
- 5-State Compensation Method Fiscal Information
- History of Legislator Salaries and Per Diem - updated February 2018
2013-2016
- Montana Legislator Survey - Highlights(March 2014)
- A Study of Other Legislators: Legislator Compensation (April 2014).
- Overview of Montana State & Legislator Pay Information
- CSG (NCSL) certain states excerpted table 3.9: Legislative Compensation and Living Expense Allowances During Session
- CSG (NCSL) certain states excerpted table 3.10: Legislative Compensation: Other Payments and Benefits
- FiveThirtyEight.com Article, " How Much Should State Legislators Get Paid?" (April 7, 2016)
- NCSL State Legislatures Article, " Pay Problem" (Jan 2011)