Constitution in focus as Montana's legislative session opens

The 68th session of the Montana Legislature kicked off Monday, and a daunting to-do list awaits.

With a Republican supermajority being sworn in, GOP legislators are tossing in proposals to amend the Montana Constitution — 48 unintroduced bills so far on that topic alone.

But Republicans said there’s some duplication, and passing them won’t be a slam dunk because a large caucus can also mean a lack of cohesion.

Plus, President of the Senate Jason Ellsworth, R-Hamilton, said Montanans should remember the legislature can’t singlehandedly have its way with the 1972 Montana Constitution.

Rather, if 100 lawmakers agree on an amendment, it advances to the people after the 90-day session.

“At the end of the day, the legislature can’t just change the constitution,” Ellsworth said. “So it goes to a vote of the citizens.”

In a forum after November’s election with the Mansfield Center at the University of Montana, House Minority Leader Kim Abbott, D-Helena, agreed every idea about changing the constitution won’t get traction.

Abbott pointed to a failed referendum that would have dictated how caregivers treat newborns as evidence Montanans still back one value in the constitution in particular.

“Our right to privacy is very important to us,” Abbott said at the time.

Numerous proposals point to Article X, Section 9 of the constitution, which gives the Board of Regents full authority over the Montana University System. The judiciary, redistricting, defining gender, privacy and run-off elections are in the mix too.

Want to give your electeds an earful about any or all of it? Ellsworth said remote testimony will be up and running again.

“It’s a great way for people to get involved where they don’t necessarily have to come to Helena,” he said.

Senate Majority Leader Steve Fitzpatrick, R-Great Falls, has a couple of the proposals related to redistricting, but he doesn’t see even his own potential bills easily moving ahead.

“It’s very hard to get 100 votes. It’s just really difficult,” Fitzpatrick said.

He said his own proposals are about making maps based less on partisan interests and more around similar neighborhoods and communities — but even if he can’t get the votes, he anticipates some wins for conservatives.

“I think it’ll be a good session,” Fitzpatrick said. “I think it will definitely be interesting with the large number of Republicans. We’ll have a lot of opportunities, obviously.”

At the same time, he said greater numbers can mean greater disagreement.

“I think anybody will tell you, sometimes it does get more difficult as your margins increase,” Fitzpatrick said.

Sen. Greg Hertz, R-Polson, also has a proposal to amend the constitution, this one to allow for run-off elections. In other words, if no one earns more than 50 percent of the vote, he said, the constitution would allow another round of voting for statewide offices.

“It’s probably something the public would support,” Hertz said.

But he too said it will take a lot of work to get two-thirds of the legislature to agree on a constitutional amendment.

However, Hertz also said the glut of bill draft requests so far, 4,340 altogether, probably won’t translate into actual proposed legislation, and with duplication, he anticipates a number closer to 1,500 or so.

At the same time, he said Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte will likely add some 200 bills to the mix from a task force to reduce red tape.

Hertz too encouraged people to speak their minds even remotely: “You don’t have to drive to Helena in the bad weather. As long as you sign up, you can participate.”

This article originally appeared on Great Falls Tribune: Constitution in focus as Montana's legislative session opens