---
type: "Bill"
title: "Allow counties to pay reserve deputy sheriff's officers"
description: "Allow counties to pay reserve deputy sheriff's officers"
jurisdiction: "us/states/mt"
legislature: "Montana Legislature"
session: "2025"
identifier: "HB 323"
citation: "Montana HB 323 (2025)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Counties", "County Officers", "Local Government", "Wages and Salaries"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Steve Fitzpatrick"]
version_count: 38
action_count: 42
vote_count: 6
first_action: "2024-12-16T19:34:51+00:00"
last_action: "2025-05-08T16:40:04+00:00"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/b78163bf-655b-4f0a-9620-c8b0c68b2420"
source_url: "https://bills.legmt.gov/#/laws/bill/2/LC2402?open_tab=sum"
source_hash: "5ac876cef17e3d601f3c1aa5112d9d64c336b5b60492a22cffee5a7970b7ae80"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-mt"]
---

# Montana HB 323 (2025) — Allow counties to pay reserve deputy sheriff's officers

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **HB0323.001.001_Amendments-in-Context_final-full(1).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=295593)
2. **HB0323.001.001_Amendments-in-Context_final-full.pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=280503)
3. **HB0323.001.002_Amendments-in-Context_final-full(1).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=281175)
4. **HB0323.001.002_Amendments-in-Context_final-full.pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=281174)
5. **HB0323_1(1).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=275896)
6. **HB0323_1(2).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=276719)
7. **HB0323_1(3).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=281549)
8. **HB0323_1(4).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=281550)
9. **HB0323_1(5).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=281551)
10. **HB0323_1(6).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=281552)
11. **HB0323_1.pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=275757)
12. **HB0323_2(1).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=281555)
13. **HB0323_2(10).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=311500)
14. **HB0323_2(11).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=311501)
15. **HB0323_2(12).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=311564)
16. **HB0323_2(13).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=311565)
17. **HB0323_2(2).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=281556)
18. **HB0323_2(3).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=281557)
19. **HB0323_2(4).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=281622)
20. **HB0323_2(5).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=281626)
21. **HB0323_2(6).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=281628)
22. **HB0323_2(7).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=281642)
23. **HB0323_2(8).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=285197)
24. **HB0323_2(9).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=306082)
25. **HB0323_2.pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=281553)
26. **HB0323_X(1).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=311569)
27. **HB0323_X(10).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=324802)
28. **HB0323_X(11).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=326592)
29. **HB0323_X(2).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=311570)
30. **HB0323_X(3).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=311826)
31. **HB0323_X(4).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=311827)
32. **HB0323_X(5).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=317056)
33. **HB0323_X(6).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=320623)
34. **HB0323_X(7).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=322089)
35. **HB0323_X(8).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=322090)
36. **HB0323_X(9).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=322091)
37. **HB0323_X.pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=311566)
38. **LC2402.pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=272960)

## Votes

- be_concurred_in — **10–0** (pass) · upper
- Do Pass — **91–8** (pass) · lower
- Do Pass — **91–9** (pass) · lower
- do_pass_as_amended — **16–1** (pass) · lower
- Do Concur — **47–1** (pass) · upper
- Do Concur — **48–0** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Steve Fitzpatrick — primary (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2024-12-16T19:34:51+00:00** (LC) Drafter Assigned
- **2024-12-16T19:34:52+00:00** (LC) Draft On Hold
- **2025-01-15T16:45:10+00:00** (LC) Draft Taken Off Hold
- **2025-01-17T23:43:36+00:00** (LC) Draft in Legal Review
- **2025-01-20T12:46:21+00:00** (LC) Draft in Edit
- **2025-01-20T22:33:59+00:00** (LC) Draft in Input/Proofing
- **2025-01-21T18:29:10+00:00** (LC) Draft in Final Drafter Review
- **2025-01-22T22:14:22+00:00** (LC) Draft in Assembly
- **2025-01-25T22:24:10+00:00** (LC) Draft Ready for Delivery
- **2025-01-28T15:52:08+00:00** (LC) Draft Delivered to Requester
- **2025-01-28T16:08:21+00:00** (H) Introduced
- **2025-01-28T17:58:31+00:00** (H) Referred to Committee - (H) Local Government `referral-committee`
- **2025-01-28T20:03:21+00:00** (H) First Reading `reading-1`
- **2025-01-30T23:03:29+00:00** (H) Hearing - (H) Local Government
- **2025-02-11T23:37:45+00:00** (H) Committee Executive Action--Bill Passed as Amended - (H) Local Government `committee-passage`
- **2025-02-12T00:08:26+00:00** (H) Committee Executive Action--Bill Passed as Amended - (H) Local Government `committee-passage`
- **2025-02-12T20:30:00+00:00** (H) Committee Report--Bill Passed as Amended - (H) Local Government `committee-passage`
- **2025-02-19T20:00:00+00:00** (H) Scheduled for 2nd Reading `reading-2`
- **2025-02-19T20:09:00+00:00** (H) 2nd Reading Passed `reading-2, reading-2`
- **2025-02-20T20:00:00+00:00** (H) Scheduled for 3rd Reading `reading-3`
- **2025-02-20T21:45:00+00:00** (H) 3rd Reading Passed `passage, reading-3`
- **2025-02-20T22:17:25+00:00** (H) Transmitted to Senate
- **2025-02-21T20:24:42+00:00** (S) First Reading `reading-1`
- **2025-03-03T21:01:00+00:00** (S) Fiscal Note Requested
- **2025-03-07T14:12:00+00:00** (H) Fiscal Note Received `receipt`
- **2025-03-07T15:11:40+00:00** (H) Fiscal Note Unsigned
- **2025-03-08T01:10:00+00:00** (H) Fiscal Note Printed
- **2025-03-19T14:28:00+00:00** (S) Referred to Committee - (S) Local Government `referral-committee`
- **2025-03-20T22:51:00+00:00** (S) Hearing - (S) Local Government
- **2025-04-07T22:32:45+00:00** (S) Committee Executive Action--Bill Concurred - (S) Local Government
- **2025-04-09T19:43:00+00:00** (S) Committee Report--Bill Concurred - (S) Local Government
- **2025-04-10T19:00:00+00:00** (S) Scheduled for 2nd Reading `reading-2`
- **2025-04-10T22:32:00+00:00** (S) 2nd Reading Concurred `reading-2, reading-2`
- **2025-04-11T16:00:00+00:00** (S) Scheduled for 3rd Reading `reading-3`
- **2025-04-11T22:08:00+00:00** (S) 3rd Reading Concurred `passage, reading-3`
- **2025-04-11T22:16:32+00:00** (H) Sent to Enrolling
- **2025-04-16T16:04:34+00:00** (H) Returned from Enrolling
- **2025-04-23T23:30:00+00:00** (H) Signed by Speaker `passage`
- **2025-04-25T19:00:35+00:00** (S) Signed by President `passage`
- **2025-04-25T21:32:14+00:00** (H) Transmitted to Governor `executive-receipt`
- **2025-05-05T18:37:31+00:00** (H) Signed by Governor `executive-signature`
- **2025-05-08T16:40:04+00:00** Chapter Number Assigned `became-law`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/b78163bf-655b-4f0a-9620-c8b0c68b2420`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Montana legislature records).