--- type: "Bill" title: "Revise child abuse and neglect laws involving adjudication" description: "Revise child abuse and neglect laws involving adjudication" jurisdiction: "us/states/mt" legislature: "Montana Legislature" session: "2025" identifier: "SB 249" citation: "Montana SB 249 (2025)" classification: ["bill"] subjects: ["Courts", "Evidence", "Family Law", "Minors"] status: "enacted" primary_sponsors: ["Dennis Lenz"] version_count: 16 action_count: 41 vote_count: 6 first_action: "2024-10-04T20:16:49+00:00" last_action: "2025-04-17T20:43:45+00:00" source: "openstates" source_identifier: "ocd-bill/3a2029f7-2cf5-443d-ba3a-06380d3e9547" source_url: "https://bills.legmt.gov/#/laws/bill/2/LC0487?open_tab=sum" source_hash: "6dfa32c84ba11c45b27e44de8aad87f1c33bc43f8f1677eec0035e6db6b6f71a" 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 SB 249 (2025) — Revise child abuse and neglect laws involving adjudication ## Version chain The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment. 1. **LC0487.pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=276079) 2. **SB0249_1(1).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=277600) 3. **SB0249_1(2).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=279288) 4. **SB0249_1(3).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=285755) 5. **SB0249_1(4).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=295127) 6. **SB0249_1(5).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=300624) 7. **SB0249_1.pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=277599) 8. **SB0249_2.pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=300623) 9. **SB0249_X(1).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=316595) 10. **SB0249_X(2).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=317464) 11. **SB0249_X(3).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=317465) 12. **SB0249_X(4).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=317466) 13. **SB0249_X(5).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=320867) 14. **SB0249_X(6).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=324345) 15. **SB0249_X(7).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=325844) 16. **SB0249_X.pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=310642) ## Votes - Do Concur — **61–38** (pass) · lower - Do Pass — **50–0** (pass) · upper - be_concurred_in — **12–9** (pass) · lower - Do Concur — **62–38** (pass) · lower - Do Pass — **50–0** (pass) · upper - do_pass — **11–0** (pass) · upper ## Sponsors - Dennis Lenz — primary (person) ## Timeline The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote. - **2024-10-04T20:16:49+00:00** (LC) Drafter Assigned - **2024-11-06T14:12:06+00:00** (LC) Draft On Hold - **2024-12-30T22:25:22+00:00** (LC) Draft Taken Off Hold - **2024-12-30T22:29:57+00:00** (LC) Draft Taken Off Hold - **2025-01-06T16:04:24+00:00** (LC) Draft On Hold - **2025-01-06T16:04:27+00:00** (LC) Draft On Hold - **2025-01-27T16:56:33+00:00** (LC) Draft Taken Off Hold - **2025-01-28T15:45:23+00:00** (LC) Draft in Legal Review - **2025-01-28T18:59:30+00:00** (LC) Draft in Edit - **2025-01-28T21:02:37+00:00** (LC) Draft in Input/Proofing - **2025-01-29T00:34:18+00:00** (LC) Draft in Final Drafter Review - **2025-01-29T15:00:44+00:00** (LC) Draft in Assembly - **2025-01-29T20:31:26+00:00** (LC) Draft Ready for Delivery - **2025-01-30T23:45:37+00:00** (LC) Draft Delivered to Requester - **2025-01-31T15:11:38+00:00** (S) Introduced - **2025-01-31T20:26:00+00:00** (S) First Reading `reading-1` - **2025-02-05T17:25:37+00:00** (S) Referred to Committee - (S) Public Health, Welfare and Safety `referral-committee` - **2025-02-07T00:22:12+00:00** (S) Hearing - (S) Public Health, Welfare and Safety - **2025-02-14T23:33:49+00:00** (S) Committee Executive Action--Bill Passed - (S) Public Health, Welfare and Safety `committee-passage` - **2025-02-15T15:21:00+00:00** (S) Committee Report--Bill Passed - (S) Public Health, Welfare and Safety `committee-passage` - **2025-02-20T20:00:00+00:00** (S) Scheduled for 2nd Reading `reading-2` - **2025-02-20T21:46:00+00:00** (S) 2nd Reading Passed `reading-2, reading-2` - **2025-02-21T20:00:00+00:00** (S) Scheduled for 3rd Reading `reading-3` - **2025-02-21T21:33:00+00:00** (S) 3rd Reading Passed `passage, reading-3` - **2025-02-21T22:30:01+00:00** (S) Transmitted to House - **2025-02-22T15:13:33+00:00** (H) Referred to Committee - (H) Human Services `referral-committee` - **2025-02-22T16:10:30+00:00** (H) First Reading `reading-1` - **2025-03-05T22:22:57+00:00** (H) Hearing - (H) Human Services - **2025-03-18T23:31:40+00:00** (H) Committee Executive Action--Bill Concurred - (H) Human Services - **2025-03-19T19:35:00+00:00** (H) Committee Report--Bill Concurred - (H) Human Services - **2025-03-27T19:00:00+00:00** (H) Scheduled for 2nd Reading `reading-2` - **2025-03-27T20:31:00+00:00** (H) 2nd Reading Concurred `reading-2, reading-2` - **2025-03-28T19:00:00+00:00** (H) Scheduled for 3rd Reading `reading-3` - **2025-03-28T19:29:00+00:00** (H) 3rd Reading Concurred `passage, reading-3` - **2025-03-28T19:30:20+00:00** (S) Sent to Enrolling - **2025-03-30T14:22:34+00:00** (S) Returned from Enrolling - **2025-04-02T18:00:52+00:00** (S) Signed by President `passage` - **2025-04-08T14:36:00+00:00** (S) Transmitted to Governor `executive-receipt` - **2025-04-08T15:45:31+00:00** (H) Signed by Speaker `passage` - **2025-04-16T18:00:00+00:00** (S) Signed by Governor `executive-signature` - **2025-04-17T20:43:45+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/3a2029f7-2cf5-443d-ba3a-06380d3e9547`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Montana legislature records).