The Montana State Legislature convenes for up to 90 working days in odd numbered years to create, repeal, and refine state law. The Montana State Legislature is a citizen legislature which means it is made up of everyday Montanans that have other personal and professional roles outside of the legislative sessions. Laws enacted by the Legislature often have a huge impact on municipal governmental operations. 

The City of Bozeman participates in the legislative session in a few ways. The first is via a lobbyist contracted by the City to lobby on issues important to managing a responsive local government. City Staff does not have capacity to attend all hearings during the entire session, a lobbyist assists Staff in tracking, drafting, and amending bills as well as providing testimony on behalf of the City. Expert City Staff also participates in the Legislative process by providing testimony during hearings. Testimony can be written or oral. All copies of both written and oral testimony from City Staff on behalf of the City of Bozeman can be found in the folders shown below. 

The 69th Session of the State Legislature begins January 6, 2025. Through a competitive RFP process, Central House Strategies was selected to represent the City of Bozeman in the 2025 Legislative Session. The City will primarily focus on bills that directly impact existing city operations and adopted City Plans. All bills City Staff reviews will be recorded weekly and dropped into the “Weekly Reports” folder below for expert staff follow-up. 

If you have questions about the City’s involvement in the Legislature, please reach out to Brit Fontenot (bfontenot@bozeman.net) or Jesse DiTommaso (jditommaso@bozeman.net). If you would like to know more about the Montana State Legislature in general, more information is available on their website.