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SB 161MONTANASession 2025State BillSigned into law

Enacted

Montana regulates aquaculture sales, exempts products from standard commodity measures, and defines commercial aquatic farming

Original title: Provide for regulation and sale of aquaculture

Last action · May 5, 2025: Chapter Number AssignedSponsor: Greg Hertz

Bill progressHistory & official text ↓

Introduced

Committee

Floor Vote

Passed

Law

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What This Bill Does

Montana Senate Bill 161 establishes regulatory standards and definitions for products, exempts them from general commodity weight and measure rules, and allows direct sales under homemade food exemptions. The law takes effect immediately upon passage and approval in 2025.

Why it matters

producers gain explicit legal definitions and exemptions from standard retail food facility permitting for direct-to-consumer sales, while raw aquaculture items are formally integrated into state agricultural and food safety statutes.

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

Aquaculture producers

Aquaculture producers operate under newly codified statutory definitions, specific commodity measure exemptions, and direct-sale guidelines.

Directly affected

Retail food establishments

Retail food establishments handle raw agricultural commodities including aquaculture products under updated definitions and exemptions.

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

What is aquaculture under SB 161?

is defined as the commercial production of aquatic organisms under throughout part or all of their life cycle.

Are aquaculture products subject to standard commodity weight and measure rules?

No. Section 30-12-301, MCA, is amended to exempt products from the requirement that commodities be sold strictly by weight, measure of length, area, or count.

Do natural lakes and rivers qualify as controlled conditions for aquaculture?

No. The law explicitly states that do not include a pond, lake, reservoir, river, ocean, or stream.

What else do you want to know?

News Coverage

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Where This Stands

Current status: Signed into law.

Procedural history

45 actions

May 5, 2025Senate
Chapter Number Assigned
May 1, 2025SenateEnrolled
(S) Signed by Governor
Apr 22, 2025Senate
(S) Transmitted to Governor
Apr 18, 2025House
(H) Signed by Speaker
Apr 13, 2025Senate
(S) Signed by President
Apr 5, 2025Senate
(S) Returned from Enrolling

Show 39 earlier actions

Apr 4, 2025Senate
(S) Sent to Enrolling
Apr 4, 2025Senate
(S) 3rd Reading House Amendments
Apr 4, 2025Senate
(S) Scheduled for 3rd Reading
Apr 3, 2025Senate
(S) 2nd Reading House Amendments
Apr 3, 2025Senate
(S) Scheduled for 2nd Reading
Apr 1, 2025House
(H) Returned to Senate with Amendments
Apr 1, 2025House
(H) 3rd Reading
Apr 1, 2025House
(H) Scheduled for 3rd Reading
Mar 28, 2025House
(H) 2nd Reading
Mar 28, 2025House
(H) 2nd Reading Motion to Amend
Mar 28, 2025House
(H) Scheduled for 2nd Reading
Mar 21, 2025HouseCommittee
(H) Committee Report
Mar 20, 2025HouseCommittee
(H) Committee Executive Action
Mar 17, 2025House
(H) Hearing
Feb 25, 2025Senate
(S) Fiscal Note Printed
Feb 24, 2025Senate
(S) Fiscal Note Unsigned
Feb 24, 2025Senate
(S) Fiscal Note Received
Feb 19, 2025Senate
(S) Fiscal Note Requested
Feb 19, 2025House
(H) 1st Reading
Feb 19, 2025HouseCommittee
(H) Referred to Committee
Feb 18, 2025Senate
(S) Transmitted to House
Feb 18, 2025Senate
(S) 3rd Reading
Feb 18, 2025Senate
(S) Scheduled for 3rd Reading
Feb 15, 2025Senate
(S) 2nd Reading
Feb 15, 2025Senate
(S) Scheduled for 2nd Reading
Jan 31, 2025SenateCommittee
(S) Committee Report
Jan 31, 2025SenateCommittee
(S) Committee Executive Action
Jan 24, 2025Senate
(S) Hearing
Jan 17, 2025SenateCommittee
(S) Referred to Committee
Jan 16, 2025Senate
(S) 1st Reading
Jan 15, 2025SenateIntroduced
(S) Introduced
Jan 15, 2025House
(LC) Draft Delivered to Requester
Jan 14, 2025House
(LC) Draft Ready for Delivery
Jan 14, 2025House
(LC) Draft in Assembly
Jan 13, 2025House
(LC) Draft in Final Drafter Review
Jan 13, 2025House
(LC) Draft in Input/Proofing
Jan 8, 2025House
(LC) Draft in Edit
Jan 8, 2025House
(LC) Draft in Legal Review
Nov 11, 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

Integration of Aquaculture into Raw Agricultural Standards

SB 161 systematically amends multiple chapters of Montana code to classify aquaculture products alongside traditional raw agricultural commodities and exempt them from standard retail food permitting.

Connected Entities

Department of Public Health and Human Services, Department of Livestock, Greg Hertz

OrganizationDepartment of Public Health and Human Services“Department defined in 2-15-2201”Map →

OrganizationDepartment of Livestock“State department receiving records from small dairies”Map →

PersonGreg Hertz“Republican Senator, District 7, who introduced SB 161”Map →

Sources

Open source document

bills.legmt.gov

Analysis Score

0–100

Significance60
How much this matters to a regular citizen
Controversy10
Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
Entertainment5
Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
Buzz20
Current news / social attention level

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