Redistricting, Supreme Court and Board of Regents: Legislators consider constitutional amendments

Voters may have a lengthy ballot of constitutional amendments to consider in the fall of 2024 if legislative proposals pass through both chambers, though the list has already started to whittle down in committee.

Republicans discussed Wednesday their proposals to amend the constitution regarding how justices are selected for the Supreme Court, the state’s independent Districting and Apportionment Commission and the Board of Regents, among other topics. 

Lawmakers have proposed more than a dozen amendments during the legislative session thus far. It takes 100 votes from both chambers to send an amendment to be considered by the voters. 

Democrats have been opposed to making changes to the state’s constitution, with Rep. SJ Howell, D-Missoula, saying during executive action in the House Judiciary Committee that they’ve heard from constituents who don’t want to see changes to the constitution, “especially not to do it in a frivolous way.” 

“It does feel like a level of unnecessary and troublesome monkeying with the Constitution that has served the state well for the last 50 years,” Howell said. 

The House Judiciary Committee heard two constitutional amendments on Wednesday. Chair Rep. Amy Regier, R-Kalispell, said the committee would be taking executive action on all House bills on Thursday.

This activity is in the lead up to next week’s deadline for appropriation bills and bills proposing constitutional amendments or referendums to make it past the floor to the other chamber. 

House Bill 915 would change selection of state Supreme Court justices from election by the people to appointment by the governor and confirmation by two-thirds of the legislature. 

Justices are currently selected by the electorate. 

Committee members of both parties asked questions about the impact on checks and balances. Bill sponsor Rep. Bill Mercer, R-Billings, said the process would mirror how mid-term vacancies are currently filled and the process at the federal level. 

Opponent Al Smith with the Montana Trial Lawyers Association said this proposal doesn’t mirror the federal Supreme Court because those are lifetime appointments. Smith said if a justice is up for reappointment by the governor and rules differently to their wishes on something like a challenge to a bill, that could have a “very chilling effect on somebody.” 

This concern comes in the wake of Republican-endorsed candidate for Supreme Court James Brown losing to incumbent Justice Ingrid Gustafson.  

House Bill 934, sponsored by Rep. Lola Sheldon-Galloway, R-Great Falls, and one of a handful of Constitutional amendments on redistricting, would strip the voting power of the nonpartisan chair on the redistricting commission appointed by the Supreme Court. The chair of the committee was often the deciding vote on the committee with two Democrats and two Republicans. 

Proposed Constitutional Amendments that passed out of the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday included: 

• House Bill 372: Establishing the right to hunt and preference for hunting in wildlife management, in the constitution, with an amendment added for clarity on water rights, sponsored by Rep. Paul Fielder, R-Thompson Falls. 
• House Bill 551: Including language about the right to concealed carry of firearms, sponsored by Rep. Casey Knudsen, R-Malta. 
• House Bill 517: Would shift the power of authority over the Montana University System from the Board of Regents to the legislature, sponsored by Rep. Mike Hopkins, R-Missoula. 

Rep. Braxton Mitchell, R-Columbia Falls, said of HB 517 there’s a “very clear power grab over students” and said from talking to students he sees a lot of support for the bill. Rep. Laurie Bishop, D-Livingston, said students and faculty under the MUS will still have access to due process under Montana law, but this amendment would put the MUS at risk of “meddling from the legislature,” and she opposed that interference. 

Another bill heard on Wednesday was a proposal from Sen. Theresa Manzella, R-Hamilton, to put constitutional sheriffs on the ballot for voter approval. Senate Bill 272 was heard in Senate Judiciary after a constitutional sheriff bill brought earlier this session failed. 

The bill would make county sheriffs the “chief law enforcement officer” in that jurisdiction, an ideology that already led to a federal investigation being tampered with in Cascade County last year, as reported by Lee Newspapers. 

The constitutional sheriff movement has been tied to extremism in the U.S., according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Wednesday featured executive action that some proposals did not survive. 

Bills were tabled from Sheldon-Galloway for an amendment for citizen-initiated grand juries and from Rep. Brandon Ler, R-Savage, to eliminate the nonpartisan chair on the redistricting commission. 

Rep. Paul Green, R-Hardin, introduced a bill that would require the redistricting commission to receive legislative approval of their proposed map, instead of just allowing them to make recommendations, as is the process now. House Bill 895, which will be heard Thursday, would give legislators more influence as they would be able to approve the lines of the districts they represent.  

Another proposal for amending the constitution surrounding the redistricting commission would change language to require divisions of cities and towns be as minimal as possible and would not allow political leanings of a district to be considered in the map drawing process. 

Senate Bill 534, sponsored by Sen. Tom McGillvray, R-Billings, passed out of Senate State Administration Wednesday evening, yet another dealing with redistricting. 

Republicans were largely upset with the final map put forward by the most recent commission, which ended their work earlier this year. The chair broke the tied vote with Democrats in support for the final map that was submitted to the Secretary of State. 

“The most recent redistricting commission spent way more time debating how they should draw legislative districts based on who’s a Republican and who’s a Democrat than they did on the constitutional requirements of equal population and compactness,” said Senate Majority Leader Steve Fitzpatrick, R-Great Falls, in a press release. “If approved by the voters, SB 534 will restore the nonpartisan process envisioned in the state constitution.” 

Dan Stusek, who served as one of the two Republicans on the commission, testified as a proponent on the bill. 

Sen. Janet Ellis, D-Helena, said during executive action on the bill that she was concerned the political leanings for each of the districts would be calculated behind the scenes and out of sight from the public, and was contradictory to the Public Service Commission map proposal that she said divided townships across the state to the benefit of the majority party. 

During executive action, Sen. Wendy McKamey, R-Great Falls, said ultimately the proposal is up to the electorate to decide, before voting in favor of it.