---
type: "Bill"
title: "Clarify value of caselaw interpreting a statute after subsequent legislative action"
description: "Clarify value of caselaw interpreting a statute after subsequent legislative action"
jurisdiction: "us/states/mt"
legislature: "Montana Legislature"
session: "2025"
identifier: "SB 286"
citation: "Montana SB 286 (2025)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Law Enforcement"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Daniel Emrich"]
version_count: 24
action_count: 35
vote_count: 6
first_action: "2024-08-28T13:45:14+00:00"
last_action: "2025-05-08T20:50:39+00:00"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/5a6ece96-99b7-44f5-a655-0ecb0212df77"
source_url: "https://bills.legmt.gov/#/laws/bill/2/LC0057?open_tab=sum"
source_hash: "121be877fc04434171518bd2c654372eebf719aaa7335d4b9342b0584d00a589"
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 286 (2025) — Clarify value of caselaw interpreting a statute after subsequent legislative action

## Version chain

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

1. **LC0057.pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=279514)
2. **SB0286_1(1).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=280521)
3. **SB0286_1(2).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=280522)
4. **SB0286_1(3).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=286961)
5. **SB0286_1(4).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=303907)
6. **SB0286_1(5).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=309190)
7. **SB0286_1(6).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=309192)
8. **SB0286_1.pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=280018)
9. **SB0286_X(1).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=309194)
10. **SB0286_X(10).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=321844)
11. **SB0286_X(11).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=321845)
12. **SB0286_X(12).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=321846)
13. **SB0286_X(13).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=324751)
14. **SB0286_X(14).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=325571)
15. **SB0286_X(15).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=327230)
16. **SB0286_X(2).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=309195)
17. **SB0286_X(3).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=309396)
18. **SB0286_X(4).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=309397)
19. **SB0286_X(5).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=309495)
20. **SB0286_X(6).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=309496)
21. **SB0286_X(7).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=310969)
22. **SB0286_X(8).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=316906)
23. **SB0286_X(9).pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=320481)
24. **SB0286_X.pdf** (committee substitute) — [source](https://api.legmt.gov/docs/v1/documents/getContent?documentId=309193)

## Votes

- do_pass — **5–3** (pass) · upper
- Do Pass — **26–24** (pass) · upper
- be_concurred_in — **12–8** (pass) · lower
- Do Concur — **58–42** (pass) · lower
- Do Pass — **25–24** (pass) · upper
- Do Concur — **56–43** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- Daniel Emrich — primary (person)

## Timeline

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

- **2024-08-28T13:45:14+00:00** (LC) Drafter Assigned
- **2025-02-04T18:20:25+00:00** (LC) Draft in Legal Review
- **2025-02-04T22:49:12+00:00** (LC) Draft in Edit
- **2025-02-06T15:05:38+00:00** (LC) Draft in Input/Proofing
- **2025-02-06T19:41:54+00:00** (LC) Draft in Final Drafter Review
- **2025-02-06T21:56:43+00:00** (LC) Draft in Assembly
- **2025-02-07T14:23:24+00:00** (LC) Draft Ready for Delivery
- **2025-02-07T19:08:55+00:00** (LC) Draft Delivered to Requester
- **2025-02-07T19:12:32+00:00** (S) Introduced
- **2025-02-10T17:08:00+00:00** (S) First Reading `reading-1`
- **2025-02-10T17:27:23+00:00** (S) Referred to Committee - (S) Judiciary `referral-committee`
- **2025-02-14T18:45:00+00:00** (S) Hearing - (S) Judiciary
- **2025-02-19T17:48:13+00:00** (S) Committee Executive Action--Bill Passed - (S) Judiciary `committee-passage`
- **2025-02-19T20:27:00+00:00** (S) Committee Report--Bill Passed - (S) Judiciary `committee-passage`
- **2025-02-21T20:00:00+00:00** (S) Scheduled for 2nd Reading `reading-2`
- **2025-02-21T20:36:00+00:00** (S) 2nd Reading Passed `reading-2, reading-2`
- **2025-02-24T20:00:00+00:00** (S) Scheduled for 3rd Reading `reading-3`
- **2025-02-24T21:56:00+00:00** (S) 3rd Reading Passed `passage, reading-3`
- **2025-02-24T22:52:03+00:00** (S) Transmitted to House
- **2025-02-25T18:06:50+00:00** (H) Referred to Committee - (H) Judiciary `referral-committee`
- **2025-02-25T20:10:30+00:00** (H) First Reading `reading-1`
- **2025-03-28T21:12:28+00:00** (H) Hearing - (H) Judiciary
- **2025-04-03T18:11:16+00:00** (H) Committee Executive Action--Bill Concurred - (H) Judiciary
- **2025-04-04T00:34:00+00:00** (H) Committee Report--Bill Concurred - (H) Judiciary
- **2025-04-10T14:30:00+00:00** (H) Scheduled for 2nd Reading `reading-2`
- **2025-04-10T20:03:00+00:00** (H) 2nd Reading Concurred `reading-2, reading-2`
- **2025-04-11T21:00:00+00:00** (H) Scheduled for 3rd Reading `reading-3`
- **2025-04-11T23:39:00+00:00** (H) 3rd Reading Concurred `passage, reading-3`
- **2025-04-11T23:39:09+00:00** (S) Sent to Enrolling
- **2025-04-13T06:24:22+00:00** (S) Returned from Enrolling
- **2025-04-21T22:00:51+00:00** (S) Signed by President `passage`
- **2025-04-25T21:15:16+00:00** (H) Signed by Speaker `passage`
- **2025-04-25T22:00:05+00:00** (S) Transmitted to Governor `executive-receipt`
- **2025-05-05T18:50:00+00:00** (S) Signed by Governor `executive-signature`
- **2025-05-08T20:50:39+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/5a6ece96-99b7-44f5-a655-0ecb0212df77`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Montana legislature records).