- [Jackie] Happening now on "The Rundown."

- Thank you for your service safe travels home and God bless Montana.

- I'm Jackie coffin and "The Rundown Capital Report" starts now.

"The Rundown" is made possible by the Greater Montana Foundation, encouraging communication on issues, trends and values of importance to Montanans.

"The Rundown" Capitol report takes place primarily in Helena which is the original land of the Salish, Pend d'Oreille Blackfeet, Shoshone, Belknap, and Apsáalooke people.

Welcome, and thank you for joining me for the last installment of the "Capitol Report."

The legislature officially wrapped up with sine die on Thursday and there's a lot to look back on and still a lot to come even if the session is over.

My last special guest is Attorney General, Austin Knudsen let's begin.

- Do solemnly swear.

- Do solemnly swear.

- [Jackie] Following a deep red wave in the November elections.

The set up for the session was one that had not been seen for a while.

One party control with Republicans holding strong majorities in both the House and the Senate.

And for the first time in 16 years a Republican Governor.

- I Greg Gianforte.

- I Greg Gianforte.

- [Jackie] This set up a flood of bills, carrying a conservative wishlist that in previous sessions ended with a veto from democratic governors, Steve Bullock and Brian Schweitzer.

And it ranged from social issues to wildlife, elections to guns.

Consolidating power in the legislature allocating stimulus funds and taxpayer money to packages of tax cuts.

All in all more than 1300 bills were already introduced and dozens have already been signed into law.

One issue dominating the session was COVID-19.

Internally from how legislators would safely meet to broader efforts to challenge the power of the executive branch in issuing disaster orders.

The power of local governments and health departments to regulate emergencies in business and to turn power from the governor and local governments over to the legislature.

The first bill from the session signed into law by Governor Gianforte was Senate Bill 65, carried by Representative Steve Fitzpatrick a Republican from Great Falls.

That provides a liability shield for businesses, schools, hospitals and more from getting sued over COVID-19 illnesses or deaths.

This was critical.

And Gianforte removing the mask mandate.

- And we will emphasize personal responsibility over mandates.

- [Jackie] Four bills challenged the governor's ability to issue extended declarations of emergency or disaster.

Now requiring legislative approval.

House Bill 121 targets, local health board and officer actions saying in emergency situations, local governing like County commissioners would need to approve such orders and are allowed to amend them.

It also provides for religious freedoms and emergency situations.

Three of the COVID bills have already been signed into law by the Governor.

Some of the last bills tied to COVID-19 that moved through the session were all about vaccines.

This week, the House and Senate approved House Bills 702 and 703.

These companion bills prohibit discrimination on vaccine or immunization status and prohibit vaccine passports.

- This is the foot in the door.

The cab was not under the tent, the foot in the door.

This is the opportunity to not just have vaccine status, a lot of passport but your religious preference your political identity, what you believe, what you think.

- [Member] I just also wanna remind everybody that there have been over 3 million deaths worldwide due to this virus that's out there.

- This is a huge win for Montana's anti-vax advocates.

And they let legislators know that.

- We want senators having- (crowd applauding) - [Legislator] Have order in the Chamber.

- [Jackie] Governor Gianforte recently issued an executive order prohibiting COVID-19 vaccine passports.

But House Bills 702 and 730 are all about vaccines broadly, including those preventing viruses like polio, measles, mumps, and rubella and more.

Finally on the COVID-19 front mid session, the legislature took on the huge task of appropriating, nearly $3 billion.

Federal Stimulus Funds from the American Rescue Plan Act meant to provide relief and community re-investment after COVID.

- We're going to invest in places like Sun Prairie like Circle like Billings and Bozeman, especially Kalispell or we're gonna be rebuilding Portland and Seattle.

Because this money does not go back to work on the debt.

It goes back to a pool that other places will take the money from.

I refuse to have my kids help pay for this debt without making sure that we have the long-term strategic plans that will help move this state forward.

And that will provide for their success.

- ARPA funds, had a lot of specifications around how they had to be allocated and spent ranging from schools to housing and assistance and a lot into the healthcare sector.

And capital improvements and infrastructure.

For Montana this turned into a big opportunity for broadband and connectivity.

- But these money here, if done the right way through the commission process is gonna change the face of connectivity in the State of Montana.

It is gonna give rural communities throughout this State, the ability to control their own economic future.

- Let's move now to the second bill signed into law that represented a big priority for the Republican majority legislature.

House Bill 102 which is all about guns.

House Bill 102 sponsored by Seth Berglee A Republican from Joliet is hailed by some, as some of the most significant gun legislation Montana has ever seen.

It no longer requires a permit for concealed carry of firearms and expands the areas where open carry is allowed.

And it allows the concealed carry of firearms on college campuses becoming the most wide open campus carry law in the country.

- And we must allow Montanans to defend themselves.

- And it erases the invisible line around our colleges and allows adults to include veterans that have served overseas to carry on college campuses.

Second Amendment has been a priority for the Republican majority and I thank Governor Gianforte for signing this Bill.

- Along with guns another priority that emerged early in the session was social issues.

In particular abortion and the rights of LGBT Montanans.

And these bills drew some of the largest turnout of opponents and supporters.

- This is what democracy looks like.

- [Protestors] This is what democracy looks like.

- Tell me what democracy looks like.

- [Protestors] This is what democracy looks like.

- [Jackie] Four bills restricting access to abortion were introduced in the first week of session.

House Bill 136 which prohibits abortion after 20 weeks.

House Bill 140 which requires a physician to offer a pregnant person pregnancy details, like seeing an ultrasound or hearing a fetal heartbeat before an abortion.

House Bill 167 which will put a referendum on the 2022 ballot establishing the Born-Alive Infants Protection Act.

And house bill 171 which prohibits abortion drugs from being sent in the mail as part of telemedicine.

Later on a few more anti-abortion bills emerged prohibiting organizations that provide abortion services to teach sex ed in public schools and prohibiting insurance reimbursements to clinics that provide abortion services.

This six passed.

- Our State will be blessed by our God because of what we are doing today.

- [Jackie] On Monday House Bill 136, 140 and 171 were signed into law by Governor Gianforte on the steps of the Capitol.

- As a christian who has taken on the name of Jesus Christ.

I stand today as a witness that this practice of fetus dying because they are not wanted or not planned is an abomination in God's eyes.

And I will continue to fight for the most vulnerable.

We are their voice.

- [Jackie] Also on controversial social issues.

Two bills limiting the rights of transgender Montanans.

House Bill 112 requires student athletes participate in sports based on their sex at birth.

House Bill 427 prevents transgender youth from receiving gender affirming healthcare.

Both were carried by representative John Fuller a Republican from Whitefish.

House Bill 427 died in the Senate.

While House Bill 112 made it all the way to the Governor's desk.

The NCAA has issued a statement saying if HB 112 is signed into law Montana universities will no longer be allowed to host playoff or FCS games.

A third bill from Senator Carl Glimm a Republican from Kila requires proof of surgery and a court order before people are allowed to change their sex or other vital statistics on documents like a birth certificate or driver's license.

Already signed into law by the Governor was Senate Bill 215 the The Religious Freedom Restoration Act also carried by Senator Glimm.

Proponents say it gives important legal protections to religious freedom cases in court.

Opponents say it opens the door for discrimination against LGBT Montanans.

- Some proponents think that trans people should just not exist.

The problem with that is that we do exist.

Trans and non-binary people exist as your neighbors.

Probably as your family members who are too scared to tell you and they exist in this building.

We talk to you everyday about policy.

We come to you during every single one of these hearings and ask you to just leave us alone.

And we're not mentally ill. We're people with jobs and families that we're trying to support.

We're people who pay our mortgages pay our rents and generally just try to go about our lives without being harassed.

Trying to maintain our physical safety and make Montana a better place to live for everybody.

We're part of that.

- Now I want to move from social issues to elections and the way Montanans vote.

Following the November, 2020 elections many Americans believed there was widespread fraud in our election system.

This has led to a wave of bills, nationwide, changing, restricting and abolishing common voting practices.

That includes in Montana.

(protestors chanting) With only one recorded instance of confirmed voter fraud happening in Montana in 2011.

Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen presented a package of bills related to Montana elections.

Carried by Republican senators in the House and Senate.

- Voters is one of the most important and sacred privilege we have in this great United States of America and in the great State of Montana.

That's a rhetorical question but it that we have the privilege to vote and the responsibility to vote.

And in doing so, making sure that our ballots get collected appropriately.

- [Jackie] House Bill 176 carried by representative Sharon Greef ends election day voter registration a practice long held in Montana and supported by voters statewide through a ballot initiative.

Senate Bill 169 carried by Senator Mike Cuffe requires Montanans to present valid ID when voting and registering to vote.

And changes what types of ID are accepted.

Notably student IDs from colleges and universities are no longer accepted.

A bill protecting tribal and native American voting rights carried by Representative Sharon Stewart-Peregoy a Democrat from Crow Agency made it through the second reading in the House, but died then on the third reading by a narrow margin.

After some Republicans shifted their positions.

The day after House Bill 176 and Senate Bill 169 were signed into law by Governor Gianforte the Democratic Party filed a lawsuit against Denton Yellowstone County district court.

This is the second lawsuit filed so far against bills passed this session and signed into law by Governor Gianforte.

The legislature is currently wrapped up in a lawsuit against Senate Bill 140 which was signed by governor Gianforte right before St. Patrick's day.

Senate Bill 140 carried by Senator Keith Regier a Republican from Kalispell.

Changes the way vacancies in the judicial branch are filled in Montana.

Specifically it does away with the Judicial Standards Committee which has been responsible for picking judicial nominees for the last 50 years.

And instead SB 140 allows the Governor to directly pick replacements.

Opponents of the bill and plaintiffs in the lawsuit say this is unconstitutional and tramples on the separation of powers between our three branches of government.

Since then the lawsuit has opened a can of worms into perceived judicial impartiality in Montana.

And legislative Republicans say set of released emails show.

The judicial branch is pre-judging the legality of bills moving through the legislature.

Before we moved to money bills I want to talk quickly about some of the most significant legislation that passed this session affecting wildlife.

On wildlife management a series of controversial bills, legalizing Wolf snaring in Montana lengthening the Wolf trapping season increasing the number of wolves that can be hunted and allowing private companies to reimburse Wolf trappers.

Which proponents say as a predator management tool and opponents say establishes a bounty system in our State all passed.

These bills were carried by freshmen representative Paul Fielder and Senator Bob Brown both Republicans from Thompson Falls.

Already some of the Wolf bills have been signed into law by Governor Gianforte who got into hot water in March.

When news came out that he illegally trapped and killed a collared Yellowstone Wolf on a private ranch.

- But in hindsight, I wouldn't have done it differently.

- Finally, I want to update you on the big money bills of this session.

And this session was unique for how many spending and appropriation bills there were.

First is House Bill Two, the State budget which is the only thing the legislature has to pass.

House Bill Two appropriates $12.6 billion over the 2022, 2023 biennium into a vast array of state agencies and services.

It comes in about $400 million under what governor Gianforte recommended worked out in a bipartisan committee.

- The only job that our legislature actually has to do is pass a budget.

In our history we only failed to do so once and had to come back in a special session to work upon this budget.

I don't wanna be that legislature.

And the nice part about our budget is that, we have in our constitution, a line that says "Appropriations by the legislature shall not exceed anticipated revenues."

We have a balanced budget requirement something I wish that the Fed did have.

So let's talk quickly about House Bill Two and then we'll turn it over to our, our chairs of the sections to explain to you details of work.

So iN quick summary all funds that State, State Special Revenue and Federal and General Fund.

House Bill Two directs about $12.6 billion of the funding.

The largest section, if you look at all, funds is Section B which is public health and human services.

And it has a total of about 6.1 billion that's 48% of all funds.

The next largest section is section E education.

It's about $2.8 billion.

And section C is about $2.1 billion.

As it currently sets.

All funds is about $418 million lower than the budget proposed by Governor Gianforte.

So again, I'm very proud of the work this committee did in searching for efficiencies and gains.

- The budget is an expression of our values.

And while this budget has a little bit of ways to go it's a pretty good start.

And thank you to Mr. Chairman and my Co-vice Chairs for again being very respectful to the Democrats and the Public.

- [Jackie] The second bill appropriating millions of dollars was one the legislature was not necessarily expecting.

This was $2.7 billion in federal stimulus, ARPA Funds which we touched on earlier.

One of the hardest to sort out is Montana's new legalized Recreational Marijuana Law passed by two thirds of Montanans on the 2020 ballot.

How the new streams of revenue will be spent still seems a bit uncertain.

- Because of our focused and unified approach to lawmaking this session.

Montana families, business, and economy are looking at a bright future.

While the session may be over.

I look forward to continuing policy progress in the interim.

Thank you for your service safe travels home and God bless Montana.

- [Jackie] So what happens after sine die new bills will continue to stream into the Governor's Office.

And he has 10 days upon receiving a bill to sign it into law.

If he does nothing the bill becomes law without a signature.

If he vetoes a bill the legislature can vote to try to overturn that veto or do nothing in the bill will not become a law.

As for legislators they form what's called interim committees.

Interim meaning between sessions and they work on different resolutions studies and other tasks assigned by the legislature and established during the session with resolutions.

Some of the interim studies will be on the cost of childcare.

Topics relating to Medicaid and echoing a lot of the sentiment amongst the majority Republican party during the session looking into the operations of the judicial branch.

So while the legislature is over the impact of the session has just begun.

One goal of my coverage this session was to help you get to know your elected and appointed state leaders.

Over the course of the session.

I've introduced you to the heads of various agencies from agriculture to education.

Corrections to FWP, the Secretary of State and the State Auditor.

This week, I sat down with Montana's new Attorney General Austin Knudsen.

- I am Austin Knudsen.

I am the Attorney General for the State of Montana.

I'm a farm and ranch kid from Bainville.

Which is as far North and East, almost as far North and East, as you can get in Montana.

But family farm and ranch.

They're about 12 miles from the North Dakota border.

Graduated from Culbertson High School in Roosevelt County.

And I've been there my whole life when I wasn't in college or Law School.

So that's what I grew up doing, raising spring wheat and cutting hay and chasing cows on horseback.

And all those rural things that we do in Northeastern Montana.

I had been a local County attorney back in my home County in Roosevelt County.

Prior to that, I had been just a practicing civil attorney for going on a decade.

What I had seen in Northeastern Montana being around the block and oil fields and the Fort Peck Indian Reservation was a real serious crime problem coming out of that.

And that's why I ran for County attorney and I really got educated about the meth problem that we've got in the State.

And that is, I think why I ran for attorney general.

Well broadly I'm the top law enforcement officer in the State of Montana.

I have supervisory control over all the County attorneys in the state that is very rarely used but technically in statute, that is a thing.

But I think probably most importantly I oversee a lot of the law enforcement in Montana.

I oversee the Montana Highway Patrol.

I oversee the Division of Criminal Investigation which is akin to our State version of the FBI.

I oversee the Gambling Control Division.

I oversee the Forensic Science Division or our State Crime Labs.

Another very important part of our criminal prosecution toolbox.

There's also some non law enforcement stuff that we do here in the Department of Justice.

I've got the Legal Services Division.

So whenever the state gets sued, we're the state's attorney.

We've also got a Prosecution Services Bureau that helps County attorneys.

If there's a particularly complicated usually a major crime, if there's a homicide case or a particularly bad sex assault case that possibly your local County attorney doesn't have expertise handling.

We do have that expertise from a prosecution standpoint.

So we'll come in and we'll help that local prosecutor with that trial.

So a couple of different legal divisions that we help out with the State.

The Office of Consumer Protection.

That's another big one that we've got.

Whenever there's a S there's a potential scam or telemarketing scams, all sorts of things large class action settlements like the tobacco settlements that all went through our Office of Consumer Protection.

So that's a very important one.

Probably the one that touches the most people that they don't realize is under the Department of Justice is the Motor Vehicle Division.

So anytime you're getting a new driver's license or getting your title on your vehicle redone or renewing a license plate.

That painful process is all done at the Motor Vehicle Division.

And there's some issues there, but we're working on that and trying to fix the COVID issues, that have arisen at the Motor Vehicle Division.

But in broad strokes, that's the Department of Justice and that's what we do here.

Well, I think the biggest opportunities we've got, is to really protect Montana's constitutional rights to me that has to come first.

There's a lot of other things that we do here but at the end of the day, I think the primary job of the attorney general and the Department of Justice is to defend Montanans individual constitutional freedoms.

And I take that very seriously particularly when we've got a president, I think right now who has taken certain steps that at least are looking like he could be dancing on the edge of unconstitutionality.

When you start talking about infringing on the Second Amendment, that's one in particular.

I'm very passionate about like a lot of Montanans.

So that's one that we're going to be very aggressive.

We've made it clear to the Biden Administration that any a infringing on the Second Amendment we are going to sue and I don't back down from that.

(upbeat music) There's several things I mean, first of all, it's gonna start at the Federal level.

We know 100% of the methamphetamine coming into Montana is coming to us from the Mexican drug cartels.

That's not hyperbole, that's not my opinion.

You talk to any drug investigator in the Federal system or the State system anywhere.

That's a fact, we know where the stuff is being made.

We know how it's getting here and we know who's doing it.

So the problem starts at the Southern border.

If we've got an unsecured Southern border that's so porous that tons literally tons of methamphetamine are being smuggled across that border and make it to Montana.

Within a couple of days we've got a problem on that Southern border.

And this is one where we've frankly communicated very strongly to president Biden.

Our position on the Southern border.

People might ask why I chose to join Arizona's immigration lawsuit.

That's why.

That Southern border has a very direct effect on what's going on in Montana with our methamphetamine problem and our crime rates.

Montana's crime rates and specifically our violent crime rates have just absolutely skyrocketed since 2013.

And it's due to methamphetamine.

No question.

So the Southern border now, as a State Attorney General I don't have a lot of say over that.

Other than I can try to encourage the Federal government we can get involved in some lawsuits but at the end of the day that's up to the Federal Congress and to the President.

Once it's in the State of Montana, well then it becomes a law enforcement problem.

We've had some trouble with retaining and keeping law law enforcement in Montana, specifically in the Highway Patrol.

So that was one area that we actually did increase some budget.

We went to the legislature and we asked for a 5% raise for highway patrol troopers because they're the ones who are out on the highways in Montana and where they can interdicting the stuff as it comes in, making the stops, making the busts.

Those are great busts.

We have to keep our Montana Highway Patrol Troopers here 'cause right now they're getting poached away by other agencies.

We do a great job of training our troopers.

Other agencies recognize that and they come and hire them away.

That's a loss to us.

So retaining highway patrol troopers I think is key to combating methamphetamine.

We've gotta have more canine resources.

Drug sniffing canines are probably a number one the best tool we have from a law enforcement standpoint in Montana fighting methamphetamine.

If we make a stop if we've got a reason to run a canine around that vehicle and that dog indicates that it smells drugs that makes a case right there and we can get a successful prosecution.

Prosecution is the back end of it.

That's the last part.

We can be making good arrests, but if we're not making solid prosecutions and winning trials and getting bad guys behind bars that are bringing the stuff in we're not moving the needle drug.

Drug treatment certainly has to be part of this conversation.

It isn't enough just to, lock up drug, drug dealers, and drug users and throw away the key that doesn't work.

We know it doesn't work.

We've gotta have some options for treatment.

And so I'm happy to work with Governor Gianforte on that.

He's made drug treatment courts a priority.

I think those definitely have shown some positive effect.

I have some concerns over the cost and the use of resources that those drug courts seem to have but they do show some success.

I'm concerned that you end up seeing the same people over and over.

And just from my own experience, as a prosecutor you deal with a lot of methamphetamine users and dealers that tell you they just want treatment and just need treatment.

When often they just want out of jail or don't want to go to jail.

So we have to be mindful of that too.

But I mean I think those are the ways that we're gonna combat methamphetamine in Montana.

More resources to local law enforcement.

That's what I ran on.

And that's what we're trying to do here at DOJ.

Get more funding and more cops out in the rural areas, especially.

Look I'm just as rural as rural get farm and ranch kid from Montana, and we're committed to running an aggressive conservative Attorney General's Office.

That's what I'd like to leave your listeners with.

- After 18 weeks, the "Capital Report" is wrapping up but my job bringing you Montana news coverage is not done.

This summer I'm going to hit the road, visiting Montana towns large and small digging deep into some of the biggest issues impacting Montanans.

And though the legislature is over the new laws being implemented will have huge impacts and I'm going to follow them.

You can follow my work on air and online and thank you so much for joining me.

"The Rundown" is made possible by the Greater Montana Foundation, encouraging communication on issues, trends, and values of importance to Montanans.