House Bill No. introduced by D. Bedey and J. Fuller aims to revise the laws surrounding elector registration in Montana by implementing new requirements related to United States citizenship status. The bill mandates that the Secretary of State record the citizenship status of registered electors and establish procedures to verify the citizenship of new applicants, particularly in the event of a contingency. New applicants will be required to provide proof of citizenship, and those who fail to demonstrate their citizenship may be removed from the voter rolls. The bill also includes provisions for rulemaking authority to facilitate these changes and amends several sections of the Montana Code Annotated (MCA) to reflect these updates.

Key amendments include the addition of rules for maintaining the statewide voter registration list that now encompass recording citizenship statuses, as well as establishing procedures for verifying the citizenship of new applicants. Additionally, the bill specifies that the Secretary of State must adopt rules to assist in verifying citizenship status for applicants using their Montana driver's license. The effective date of the bill is set for October 1, 2025, unless federal law changes, in which case certain sections will take effect upon certification by the Secretary of State.

Statutes affected:
LC Text: 13-2-108, 13-2-109, 13-2-110, 13-2-402, 61-14-301
HB0286_1(1): 13-2-108, 13-2-109, 13-2-110, 13-2-402, 61-14-301
HB0286_1(2): 13-2-108, 13-2-109, 13-2-110, 13-2-402, 61-14-301
HB0286_1(3): 13-2-108, 13-2-109, 13-2-110, 13-2-402, 61-14-301
HB0286_1(4): 13-2-108, 13-2-109, 13-2-110, 13-2-402, 61-14-301
HB0286_1(5): 13-2-108, 13-2-109, 13-2-110, 13-2-402, 61-14-301
HB0286_1: 13-2-108, 13-2-109, 13-2-110, 13-2-402, 61-14-301