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HOUSE BILL NO. 540
INTRODUCED BY D. FERN
A BILL FOR AN ACT ENTITLED: "AN ACT REQUIRING THE PREPARATION OF A SYNOPSIS OF EACH BILL AND EACH AMENDED BILL; AND REQUIRING THE SYNOPSIS TO BE PRINTED WITH THE BILL."
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:
NEW SECTION. Section 1. Requiring preparation of bill synopsis. (1) A bill may not be introduced unless it is accompanied by a synopsis, prepared and attached to the bill by the legislative services division, showing the changes in existing law that are proposed by the bill. A bill may not be printed in a manner in which the body of the bill or the legislative services division's synopsis has been altered unless the alteration has been approved by the chief counsel of the legislative services division. If any bill is presented to the secretary of the senate or the chief clerk of the house of representatives for introduction that does not comply with the requirements of this section, the secretary or the chief clerk shall return it to the legislator who presented it. The synopsis must be printed on the bill as introduced on the first page of the bill.
(2) Whenever a bill is amended in either house, the secretary of the senate or the chief clerk of the house, respectively, shall request the legislative services division to prepare an amended synopsis and cause it to be printed on the first page of the bill as amended. The synopsis must be amended to show changes in the existing law that are proposed by the bill as amended, with any material changes in the synopsis indicated by the use of appropriate type.
(3) If a material error in a printed synopsis referred to in subsection (1) or (2) is brought to the attention of the legislative services division, the legislative services division shall prepare a corrected synopsis that shows the changes made in the synopsis as provided for amendments to bills. The legislative services division shall deliver the corrected synopsis to the secretary of the senate or the chief clerk of the house, respectively. If the correction warrants in the opinion of the president of the senate or the speaker of the house, a corrected print of the bill as introduced shall be ordered with the corrected synopsis printed on the bill.
(4) Whenever a bill is returned to its house of origin for a vote on concurrence in an amendment made in the other house, the legislative services division shall promptly prepare and transmit to the chief clerk of the house and the speaker of the house in the case of a house bill, or to the secretary of the senate and the senate president in the case of a senate bill, a brief synopsis summarizing the effect of the amendment made in the other house. The secretary or chief clerk shall, upon receipt from the legislative services division, cause the synopsis to be printed in the journal immediately following any reference to the bill covered by the synopsis. A motion to concur or refuse to concur in the amendment is not in order until the legislative services division synopsis has appeared in the journal.
NEW SECTION. Section 2. Codification instruction. [Section 1] is intended to be codified as an integral part of Title 5, chapter 4, part 1, and the provisions of Title 5, chapter 4, part 1, apply to [section 1].
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Latest Version of HB 540 (HB0540.01)
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