House Bill No. introduced by L. Schubert and others aims to revise the laws governing parenting proceedings, specifically concerning the best interests of children transitioning genders. The bill stipulates that a parent's support for a child's gender transition must be considered not in the child's best interests, while a parent's opposition to such a transition may not be viewed as detrimental to the child's welfare. This introduces new criteria into the existing law, specifically in Section 40-4-212 of the Montana Code Annotated, which outlines various factors the court must consider when determining a parenting plan.

The amendments include specific provisions that categorize a parent's encouragement or support of a child's gender transition as comparable to acts of physical abuse against the child, while opposing a child's transition is explicitly stated as not being against the child's best interests. The bill also establishes an immediate effective date upon passage and approval, indicating the urgency of these changes in the legal framework surrounding parenting and gender identity issues.

Statutes affected:
LC Text: 40-4-212
HB0730_1(1): 40-4-212
HB0730_1(2): 40-4-212
HB0730_1: 40-4-212