House Bill No. 299

Introduced By _______________________________________________________________________________



A Bill for an Act entitled: "An Act submitting to the qualified electors of Montana an amendment to Article II, section 4, of the Montana Constitution to provide that the state, a local governmental entity or subdivision of the state, or one of their educational institutions may not grant preferential treatment to an individual or group on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, or sex in public employment, public education, or public contracting."



Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Montana:



Section 1.  Article II, section 4, of The Constitution of the State of Montana is amended to read:

"Section 4.  Individual dignity. (1) The dignity of the human being is inviolable. No person shall be denied the equal protection of the laws. Neither the state nor any person, firm, corporation, or institution shall discriminate against any person in the exercise of his civil or political rights on account of race, color, sex, culture, social origin or condition, or political or religious ideas.

(2) (a) Neither the state nor a county, city, town, school or school district, special district, or other local governmental entity or subdivision of the state, nor the state university system or other postsecondary education institution of the state or of a local governmental entity or subdivision, shall grant preferential treatment to an individual or group on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, or sex in public employment, public education, or public contracting.

(b) Subsection (2)(a) does not prohibit bona fide qualifications based on sex that are reasonably necessary to the normal operation of public employment, public education, or public contracting.

(c) Subsection (2)(a) does not prohibit a law or action necessary to establish or maintain eligibility for a federal program if ineligibility would result in a loss of federal funds to the governmental entity subject to the law or action.

(d) Subsection (2)(a) applies to the maximum extent allowed under the constitution and laws of the United States, and a provision of this subsection (2) held invalid is severable from the remaining provisions of this section."



NEW SECTION. Section 2.  Submission to electorate. This amendment shall be submitted to the qualified electors of Montana at the general election to be held in November 1998 by printing on the ballot the full title of this act and the following:

[] FOR prohibiting state and local governments from giving preferential treatment in employment, education, and contracting based on race, color, ethnicity, national origin, or sex.

[] AGAINST prohibiting state and local governments from giving preferential treatment in employment, education, and contracting based on race, color, ethnicity, national origin, or sex.

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