Montana lawmakers declined to override eight vetoes from Gov. Greg Gianforte on bills that saw close votes when passed during the 2021 legislative session.
None of the eight vetoes Gianforte handed down were overturned during a poll of lawmakers released last week, but one came close to receiving the two-thirds vote needed. House Bill 277would have required state agencies to provide annual performance reviews to the Legislature.
Lawmakers are automatically polled on a veto if the bill passed with a two-thirds majority in the statehouse.
Some Democratic lawmakers urged the Legislature to overturn the veto of a bill that aimed to incentivize construction of affordable housing, but that effort failed. Gianforte wrote in his veto letter that the policy is unnecessary as state and federal dollars are already going to the issue.
Montana lawmakers overturned only one of Gianforte’s vetoesduring the session. That law gives the Legislature more power to repeal rules set forth by state agencies.