RESEARCH TIP: Changes to Montana Legislature’s website
Posted by mtlawlibrary on December 11, 2006
If you compile legislative histories of Montana statutes, you’ll be glad to hear about a few changes that the Legislative Services Division has implemented on the legislature’s website.
- Minutes Now Available in Adobe Acrobat Format:
All minutes from the 1999 session forward are now posted in .pdf format. As a result all of the exhibits from the 2005 session are now just a simple click away from the minutes themselves. Just click on the Exhibit number from within the minutes and you’ll be able to see and print the exhibits directly from the web.
- Current Bill Text Now Available in Adobe Format:
In addition, LSD has added a direct link to the .pdf version of each current bill from within the bill status page. If you are following bills this session, you will now easily be able to print the current version of the bill, complete with line numbers, just as the legislators themselves would see it.
- Lookup Bill Information Using Chapter Number:
Beginning with the 2007 session, you will now be able to lookup bill information by the Laws of Montana chapter number (that is, the session law number). You no longer need to convert the chapter number, which is found in the history portion at the end of each statute, into the bill number. Simply enter the chapter number on the Look Up Bill Information page and the appropriate bill will be returned!
For more information on legislative history research in general, take a look at our Montana Legislative History Research Guide. For more specific information about these changes or additional assistance, contact the Reference Librarian at mtlawlibrary@mt.gov or call 406-444-3636.
