Greetings from Helena!
In Judiciary committee we heard bills about landlords and tenants, protecting individual rights from government, the abuse of the judicial system, and etc. It seems like there is a lot of concern about parent’s rights. From all over the state of Montana, schools and courts and child protective services have claimed responsibility for kids over parents. There have been several bills dealing with this issue. SB337 by Senator Manzella was one of these bills.
In Public Health and Human Safety committee we had an array of bills. One of the bills, SB308 by Senator Bognar, dealt with patient visitations in care facilities. It is fresh in all our memories how these institutions abused sick and elderly people by barring them from their families when they needed them the most during the so-called pandemic. This bill would allow family to help their own by giving them visitation rights. This bill seemed to have a lot of traction. SB334, by Senator Esp, dealt with petroleum storage tanks and who should have the final authority for clean-up and paying for cleanup. There were storage tank people from all over the state testifying on this bill, including from Glendive. There was a lot of discussion around Glendive about SB284, which we heard. This bill deals with a study allowing an official to see if there is any correlation between the registry of prescription drugs (narcotics) and suicide. There is a lot of money spent on studying suicides in Montana which I don’t vote for in most cases. This bill does not have a fiscal note. I do not like the drug registry, and did not vote for it. However, it is there and has been for a few years.
In Fish and Game committee we had bills dealing with bird dog trainers, grizzly bears, out of state hunters, crossbows, FWP authority, conservation easements and many other things. One bill I carried was to require Fish and Game to contact the county Sheriff when they set up a check station. The chief law enforcement officer should be aware of every investigation in his county for the safety of all. Another bill that I had was to change perpetuity for conservation easements to 40 years for easements that used state funds. Who knows what is going to happen in 40 years, let alone in perpetuity. I am concerned about corridors for roads, pipelines, power lines, etc., being tied up forever. If you study Agenda 21 and Biden’s 30x30 Plan to control 30% of the land by 2030 you will see that perpetuity easements are one of their tools. The government controls all of the land in countries like China and Russia. Let’s not get started down that road.
On Monday, Presidents Day, we had the Congressional Delegation in a joint floor session. It was interesting to see how Senator Tester explained his positions on the Keystone Pipeline and the southern border. It doesn’t line up with his votes. Maybe it is because later in the week he announced he is running for reelection. He always tries to appear more conservative when he is running. Please remember that when he is asking for your vote in November 2024. The star of the show was our Congressman, Matt Rosendale.
I saw County Commissioners from across the state this week, including Wibaux and Richland Counties, who were here for MACO. Thanks, guys, for looking me up.
If you are ever in Helena, be sure to look us up. If you want to look up the text of a bill you can find it at https.leg.mt.gov.
For Freedom,
Senator
Steve Hinebauch
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