Senate Bill No. introduced by R. Tempel aims to amend the existing exhaust noise limitation statute in Montana, specifically Section 61-9-435, MCA. The bill establishes that individuals cannot operate a motor vehicle with an exhaust system that produces noise exceeding 95 decibels, in accordance with the Society of Automotive Engineers' standard J1169 (May 1998).

A significant change proposed in this bill is the elimination of a defense for individuals charged with violating the noise limitation. Previously, a person could avoid conviction if they had reasonable grounds to believe their vehicle was not in violation of the noise standard. This defense has been removed, tightening the enforcement of the noise limitation. Additionally, the bill clarifies that the noise limitation does not apply to motorcycles or quadricycles that fall under a different statute (61-9-418).

Statutes affected:
LC Text: 61-9-435
SB0264_1(1): 61-9-435
SB0264_1(2): 61-9-435
SB0264_1(3): 61-9-435
SB0264_1(4): 61-9-435
SB0264_1(5): 61-9-435
SB0264_1(6): 61-9-435
SB0264_1(7): 61-9-435
SB0264_1(8): 61-9-435
SB0264_1(9): 61-9-435
SB0264_1: 61-9-435