AN ACT PROVIDING FOR AN INTERIM STUDY OF THE NECESSITY OF REDISTRICTING THE STATE'S JUDICIAL DISTRICTS; PROVIDING FOR THE PREPARATION OF PROPOSED REDISTRICTING LEGISLATION IF THE STUDY COMMITTEE DETERMINES THAT REDISTRICTING IS NECESSARY; AND PROVIDING AN IMMEDIATE EFFECTIVE DATE.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:

Section 1. Study of necessity of redistricting state judicial districts. (1) The legislative council is requested to designate an appropriate legislative interim committee to study the issue of whether the state's judicial districts should be redistricted. The committee shall report the results of its study to the 57th regular session of the legislature. If the committee determines that redistricting is necessary based on the factors listed in subsection (2), the committee shall prepare for introduction in the 57th regular session of the legislature legislation redistricting the state's judicial districts.

(2) Factors to be considered by the committee shall include but not be limited to:

(a) the population of the districts as determined by the latest estimates prepared and issued by the United States bureau of the census and made available to the census and economic information center of the Montana department of commerce;

(b) each district's case load;

(c) the relative proportions of civil, criminal, juvenile, and family law cases in each district's case load;

(d) the extent to which special masters, alternative dispute resolution techniques, and other measures have been used in the districts;

(e) the distances between county seats in existing districts and any districts that may be proposed by the committee;

(f) the impact on counties of any changes proposed in the districts; and

(g) other factors that the committee determines to be significant to the determination of whether the state's judicial districts should be redistricted.

(3) For the purposes of this study, subcommittees of the committee must include, to the extent allowed by law, judges, county commissioners, and other affected parties.

(4) The legislative council may accept gifts, grants, donations, and other funding to assist in this study.

Section 2. Effective date. [This act] is effective on passage and approval.

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I hereby certify that the within bill,

HB 0339, originated in the House.

Chief Clerk of the House

Speaker of the House

Signed this	day

of	, .

President of the Senate

Signed this	day

of	, .

HOUSE BILL NO. 339

INTRODUCED BY P. SLITER, A. ELLIS

AN ACT PROVIDING FOR AN INTERIM STUDY OF THE NECESSITY OF REDISTRICTING THE STATE'S JUDICIAL DISTRICTS; PROVIDING FOR THE PREPARATION OF PROPOSED REDISTRICTING LEGISLATION IF THE STUDY COMMITTEE DETERMINES THAT REDISTRICTING IS NECESSARY; AND PROVIDING AN IMMEDIATE EFFECTIVE DATE.