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A campaign for a constitutional abortion rights amendment in Montana may soon begin collecting signatures to put the measure before voters this fall. But that process has been pushed back by Republican officials challenging the initiative’s content and by legal rulings.
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Republican lawmakers have ordered the Secretary of State to send a proposed ballot initiative to a legislative committee for review before signature-gathering begins. The request escalates tensions between the lawmakers and the state Supreme Court, which said this week such a review wasn’t required.
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Three bills moving through the state Legislature would give lawmakers broader authority to oversee both the judicial and executive branches.
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The Capitol Talk team remembers a dear colleague. Rep. Rosendale keeps hanging out with some bad guys. The Legislature buckles down on budget work. And Sen. Steve Daines may back an unknown Bozeman businessman to challenge Jon Tester for his Senate seat.
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The Governor celebrates a major win midway through the legislative session. Democrats hope to fend off attempts to weaken the judiciary. And speculation grows over who will challenge Jon Tester for his Senate seat.
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Ahead of a deadline for general policy bills to advance, Montana lawmakers have voted down four different proposals that would have made judicial elections partisan. But efforts to alter how judges reach the bench aren’t over.
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Montana lawmakers are continuing to urge change to how the state’s judiciary operates. One bill to require judicial elections to become partisan has advanced.
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A bill to restrict judges’ power to block policies, laws or projects during litigation has passed both chambers of the state Legislature and is headed for the governor’s desk.
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Montana Republicans calling for more legislative oversight of the state’s courts and judges are starting to see those demands turn into policy.
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Republican lawmakers have adopted an official report accusing the Montana judicial branch of misconduct. The state’s chief supreme court justice has demanded a retraction of the report and called it “libelous.”