Efforts of Public Service

This page contains information relating to two different types of effort:

1)  Activities in the public domain that are not bills for the Legislature, and

2)  Bills for the Legislature or bill ideas - Good Bills.

Click on the link provided to view the individual item.


Activities

1.  An 11/13/06 LETTER to the Commissioner of Political Practices informing him of a state law that prohibits personnel of the Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks from lobbying the Legislature, and asking the Commissioner to reject lobbyist registrations from FWP.

2.  An 11/16/06 LETTER to the Commissioner of Political Practices asking him to reject lobbyist registrations from any public employees unless he can ascertain that the money used to pay for the registration is NOT public money appropriated for other purposes.

3.  A 12/06 NEWS RELEASE from the Montana Shooting Sports Association announcing a recall of concealed weapon permit cards that bear the permittee's Social Security Number.



Good Bills - not in any particular order of importance

1.  "Alaska Carry."  In the gun culture, this means a concealed weapon regulatory scheme whereby a person DOES NOT need a permit to legitimately carry concealed, but citizens MAY OBTAIN PERMITS, if they choose, for out-of-state travel or to facilitate firearms purchase under the Brady Law.  This is accomplished with this bill by specifying that the crime of carrying a concealed weapon only applies to somebody committing another crime at the same time - non-criminals are free to carry.  The repealer in the draft repeals the current section of Montana law that creates a list of people not subject to the crime of carrying a concealed weapon, a list which includes people with concealed weapon permits.  This repealed exceptions section becomes unnecessary if the crime of carrying concealed only applies to criminals.

2.  Constitutional Rights Protection.  This bill would provide a simple and clear process for citizens to sue public officials for violation of citizens' constitutional rights.  This option has been available under federal law since 1868, but has become very complex law to practice.

3.  Reform of civil asset forfeiture.  Currently, civil asset forfeiture can be used to take a person's property whether or NOT the person has been arrested for, accused of, or convicted of a crime.  For example, authorities can take and keep your bank account, your home, your car, or your cash by simply alleging that the property has some connection with a crime.  In another state, forfeiture laws were used to take an elderly woman's ancestral home simply because her visiting grandson had one marijuana joint stashed in his bedroom dresser drawer in the grandmother's house.  No criminal charges were filed or proven against the woman.  Civil asset forfeiture laws turn police into bounty hunters.  Forfeiture has become a significant and corrupting source of income for many police agencies.  This bill requires that there must be a criminal conviction before forfeiture can be invoked.  As drafted by the LSD, it was a long bill, because many parts of the M.C.A. had to be amended to relate back to the effective part of the bill.  Only the effective part (two pages) is posted here.

4.  Fully Informed Juries.  The U.S. Supreme Court has in recent times upheld the good tradition that jurors have the unquestionable power to vote to acquit a person accused of a crime if a juror believes that the person is being tried under an unfair law or a law being improperly applied.  However, judges usually do their best to prevent jurors from knowing they have this power, including by squelching attorneys who try to tell jurors about this, or rejecting jurors who know about their power to judge the law.  The fact that jurors can judge the acceptability and application of the law is already enshringed in the Montana Constitution, but only for matters of slander and libel.  This bill would extend the principle to other matters.  A good example of jury power was applied to the federal Fugitive Slave Act, a law before the Civil War making it a felony for anyone to aid or abet a runaway slave.  Northern juries refused to convict people of violating this law because they felt the law was improper.  As a result of losing too many cases, northern prosecutors quit prosecuting people for helping slaves seeking freedom.  This bill would require judges to allow jurors to be informed about this unquestioned power.

5.  Game Wardens.  An act requiring that law enforcement practices of game wardens be consistent with similar practices of other law enforcement entities; revising the enforcement powers of wardens regarding search and seizure.

6.  Grand Juries by Petition.  Montana has an absolute judicial culture of NO GRAND JURIES.  This is a leftover from the Copper Kings era when everything was corrupt.  The primary purpose of state grand juries is to ferret out corruption in government.  During the Copper King era, the Kings didn't want any pesky grand juries looking into their common and ongoing corruption.  Currently, empaneling grand juries is totally at the discretion of district court judges, and they WON'T DO IT.  The last known grand jury in Montana was in 1972 when the Attorney General asked a district court judge to bring a grand jury to investigate corruption in the Work Comp program.  The judge refused (such is the strength of the negative judicial culture).  The AG asked the Montana Supreme Court to order the judge to empanel a grand jury, which it did.  This is what it took to get the last grand jury in Montana.  The problem for the "system" is that prosecutors cannot control the lifespan or area of investigation of a state grand jury (unlike federal grand juries).  Once empaneled, a state grand jury can look into anything it wants, for as long as it wants.  This inability to control grand juries (possible "rogue" grand juries) scares the socks off all establishment types.  Because the exclusive power of district court judges to empanel grand juries is in the Montana constitution, fixing this would require a constitutional amendment.  This bill is to amend the Montana Constitution to allow citizens to create a grand jury by petition, with additional features.

7.  Home Guard Reformation. (Updated 11/11/08) The Montana Constitution, at Article VI, says:  "Section 13. Militia. (1) The governor is commander-in-chief of the militia forces of the state, except when they are in the actual service of the United States. He may call out any part or all of the forces to aid in the execution of the laws, suppress insurrection, repel invasion, or protect life and property in natural disasters.  (2) The militia forces shall consist of all able-bodied citizens of the state except those exempted by law. "  Montana statutes say that the militia is divided into the organized and unorganized militia.  The organized militia is divided into the National Guard and the Home Guard.  According to Perpich v. U.S., the National Guard are federal troops whenever the feds call.  There is very little about the Home Guard in statute.

This bill is to flesh out the laws and processes relating to the Home Guard, so resources may be available in-state and under sole state control, if needed here.  This is set up here as an all-volunteer force, with no expense to the State, except for costs of consumed goods or lost or damaged equipment if the Home Guard is actually called to service.  I've set up three ways companies could be formed, based on the model of Revolutionary times.  I've allowed for specialty companies (and partial companies) such as medical, transport, commo, and others.  One important feature of this bill is to keep the Home Guard totally separate from any federal control.

8.  Registering Hunters and Anglers to Vote.  This bill would require DFWP to provide voter registration cards to anyone purchasing a hunting or fishing license.

9.  Illegal Aliens.  This bill would increase the penalties for an employer hiring illegal aliens and would allow an interested person to sue and collect damages from an employer hiring illegals.  It appears that Senator Curtiss will sponsor this bill in 2007.

10.  Lobbying by Public Employees.  This bill defines what constitutes lobbying by purlic employees and prohibits use of puflic funds by public employees for lobbying purposes.  the bill allows public employees to provide information to the Legislature upon request.

11.  RKBA for Militia Service.  A resolution urging all Montana citizens to own and maintain arms and equipment suitable for militia service.

12.  Non-enforcement of federal laws in conflict with the Montana Constitution.  This bill would prohibit Montana peace officers from enforcing, or assisting to enforce, any federal laws that are in conflict with the Montana Constitution (e.g., parts of the Patriot Act).

13.  Kids out of school to hunt.  This would allow kids up to three days of excused absence from school to hunt with a licensed adult, with parental permission.

14.  Public Funds in Elections Prohibited.  Public employees may not use any public resources, including paid employee time, to take sides in any election, including effective enforcement remedies.

15.  Eliminate "Cause" for Recall.  The Recall Act passed by initiative in 1976 was emasculated by the next session of the Legislature which required proven "cause" for effective recall.  Since then, there has never been a successful recall in Montana when the challenged official has gone to court to protest the "cause" alleged.  The current recall is totally toothless (probably a great comfort to currently-elected officials).  This bill removes the requirement for "cause" and would allow voters to simply "throw the rascal out."

16.  Prohibit state agency regulation of firearm possession or use.  This would prohibit any state agency or or agent from regulating the use, possession, transport, transfer or sale of firearms without specific legislative authority to do so, and listing exceptions to the rule.

17.  Sheriffs First (or no more Wacos).  This bill would make it a state crime for a federal officer to arrest, search, or seize in Montana without first getting the written permission of the elected county sheriff of the county in which the action is to take place.  Locally-elected sheriffs are accountable to the people and are supposed to the the chief law enforcement officer of the county, bar none.  This bill puts teeth into the expectation that federal agents must operate with the approval of the sheriff, or not at all.  There are exceptions for "hot pursuit", customs and border patrol, corrupt sheriffs, and more.

18.  Shooting Range, Shooting Competition and Gun Shows Liability Protection.  This bill protects shooting ranges and competition, and other recreational activities, from liability for any inherent risks, but does not excuse negligence.

19.  Exempt State Employees with CWP from Disarmament Policy.  This bill would exempt state employees who have concealed weapons permits from the state employmnent policy of disarming all employees.