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SB 514MONTANASession 2025State BillSigned into law

Enacted

Montana requires Fish and Wildlife Commission to give residents a 10-day head start on upland game bird hunting over nonresidents

Original title: Generally revise laws related to upland game bird seasons

Last action · May 16, 2025: Chapter Number AssignedSponsor: Gregg Hunter

Bill progressHistory & official text ↓

Introduced

Committee

Floor Vote

Passed

Law

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What This Bill Does

Montana law now requires the Fish and Wildlife Commission to let state residents begin hunting upland game birds 10 days before nonresidents, except for . The rule takes effect on March 1, 2026, and does not apply to privately owned lands outside of state s.

Why it matters

Gives state residents priority access to upland game bird hunting seasons ahead of out-of-state hunters, altering timing across public and participating private lands starting in 2026.

Who It Affects

Groups the bill's text affects, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.

Directly affected

residents

State residents gain a 10-day head start on hunting upland game birds compared to nonresidents.

Directly affected

nonresidents

Nonresident hunters face a delayed start of 10 days for upland game bird seasons relative to residents.

Directly affected

Fish and Wildlife Commission

The commission is required to structure upland game bird seasons to comply with the new 10-day resident priority rule.

Key Facts

You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the 10-day resident head start apply to mountain grouse?

No, are explicitly excluded from the 10-day resident hunting priority.

When does this new hunting requirement go into effect?

The act becomes effective on March 1, 2026.

Does the rule apply to all private lands?

No, it does not apply on privately owned lands that are not part of a under sections 87-1-246 through 87-1-249 and 87-1-265.

What else do you want to know?

News Coverage

No news coverage found yet. Articles are indexed twice daily.

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Votes, people, money & the original source

Where This Stands

Current status: Signed into law.

Procedural history

37 actions

May 16, 2025Senate
Chapter Number Assigned
May 13, 2025SenateEnrolled
(S) Signed by Governor
May 5, 2025Senate
(S) Transmitted to Governor
May 5, 2025House
(H) Signed by Speaker
May 2, 2025Senate
(S) Signed by President
Apr 29, 2025Senate
(S) Returned from Enrolling

Show 31 earlier actions

Apr 28, 2025Senate
(S) Sent to Enrolling
Apr 24, 2025House
(H) Returned to Senate
Apr 24, 2025House
(H) 3rd Reading
Apr 24, 2025House
(H) Scheduled for 3rd Reading
Apr 23, 2025House
(H) 2nd Reading
Apr 23, 2025House
(H) Scheduled for 2nd Reading
Apr 18, 2025HouseCommittee
(H) Committee Report
Apr 17, 2025HouseCommittee
(H) Committee Executive Action
Apr 8, 2025HouseCommittee
(H) Tabled in Committee
Apr 2, 2025House
(H) Hearing
Mar 17, 2025House
(H) 1st Reading
Mar 17, 2025HouseCommittee
(H) Referred to Committee
Mar 7, 2025Senate
(S) Transmitted to House
Mar 6, 2025Senate
(S) 3rd Reading
Mar 6, 2025Senate
(S) Scheduled for 3rd Reading
Mar 6, 2025Senate
(S) 2nd Reading
Mar 6, 2025Senate
(S) Scheduled for 2nd Reading
Mar 3, 2025SenateCommittee
(S) Committee Report
Feb 27, 2025SenateCommittee
(S) Committee Executive Action
Feb 26, 2025Senate
(S) Hearing
Feb 26, 2025SenateCommittee
(S) Referred to Committee
Feb 26, 2025Senate
(S) 1st Reading
Feb 25, 2025SenateIntroduced
(S) Introduced
Feb 24, 2025House
(LC) Draft Delivered to Requester
Feb 18, 2025House
(LC) Draft Ready for Delivery
Feb 17, 2025House
(LC) Draft in Assembly
Feb 17, 2025House
(LC) Draft in Final Drafter Review
Feb 17, 2025House
(LC) Draft in Input/Proofing
Feb 14, 2025House
(LC) Draft in Edit
Feb 14, 2025House
(LC) Draft in Legal Review
Dec 15, 2024House
(LC) Drafter Assigned

Version history

Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.

View official text →

Lobbying Activity

No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.

Full breakdown

Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.

Discoveries

1 pattern noticed across the record

Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.

policy shift95% confidence

Resident Hunting Priority Implementation

The legislation mandates a statutory shift giving residents a 10-day head start for most upland game birds, creating a two-tiered season structure starting in 2026.

Fish and Wildlife Commission

Connected Entities

Fish and Wildlife Commission, Gregg Hunter, Montana and 1 more

OrganizationFish and Wildlife Commission“Commission responsible for fixing seasons, bag limits, and hunting rules”Map →

PersonGregg Hunter“Primary sponsor of SB 514”Map →

locationMontana“State where the legislation applies”Map →

PersonM. Yakawich“Introduced SB 514”Map →

Sources

Open source document

bills.legmt.gov

Analysis Score

0–100

Significance60
How much this matters to a regular citizen
Controversy50
Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
Entertainment5
Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
Buzz25
Current news / social attention level

Publisher tools

Montana requires Fish and Wildlife Commission to give residents a 10-day head start on upland game bird hunting over nonresidents

What This Bill Does

Who It Affects

Key Facts

Frequently Asked Questions

News Coverage

Where This Stands

Procedural history

Version history

Lobbying Activity

Full breakdown

Sponsors

Discoveries

Resident Hunting Priority Implementation

Connected Entities

Sources

Analysis Score

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