Montana Legislature, Day 3

On Monday, January 5, I and my fellow Representatives and Senators were sworn in to office at high noon. Before that, at ten a.m. in the beautiful Capitol rotunda, Governor Schweitzer, Lieutenant Governor Bohlinger,
and our statewide officers took their oaths of office. I’m so honored to serve my second term in the House, and the action is already full-speed ahead; I will present two of my bills before House committees tomorrow!

House Bill 155 is a bill requiring state government to develop secure processes for keeping personal information, and processes by which to deter computer security breaches–and to notify people if a security breach happens.

House Bill 63 is a bill that gives the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Parks authority to revoke fur dealers’ licenses for illegal activity. Currently, even if someone is dealing in poached pelts or is tagging pelts unlawfully, FWP cannot revoke the license, and in fact, has to renew the license!

I serve on the House Taxation committee, and in this year of property reappraisal for residential, forest, and agricultural land, my service on House Tax will be paramount. I serve on the House Fish, Wildlife, and Parks committee also, the committee to whom I’ll present HB63 tomorrow.

I’m honored to serve as Vice Chair of the House Natural Resources committee, the body which will hear bills this session on energy, water, oil and gas, state lands, forests–just about everything that makes Montana wonderful.

Do contact me with questions, concerns, points of interest, anything at all. I’ll send updates on a regular basis from the capitol!