# Montana SB 262: Exempt subdivision, water/sewer plans from environmental review Montana SB 262, Exempt subdivision, water/sewer plans from environmental review, is a 69th Legislature, Regular Session (2025) Senate bill sponsored by Forrest Mandeville (Republican); status signed, last action 2025-05-08 (Chapter Number Assigned) (as of 2026-10-19). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MT-SB262-2025 - As of: 2026-10-19 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: Montana SB 262 - State: Montana - Session: 69th Legislature, Regular Session (2025) - Title: Exempt subdivision, water/sewer plans from environmental review - Status: signed - Chamber: Senate - Introduced: 2025-02-04 - Last action: 2025-05-08, Chapter Number Assigned - Sponsor: Forrest Mandeville (Republican) - Cosponsors: 1 - Subjects: Environmental Protection, Water, Local Government, Rule Making - Touches household money: no - Roll calls: 4 (191 yes, 108 no in all) - Economic provisions PRIA read: 4 ## Summary No summary available. ## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read - Certified local and private connection reviews: mixed, low. The Department can certify local health departments and, in limited cases, independent reviewers to review subdivisions that connect to existing approved municipal or county water or sewer systems. Certification only applies when no system extension is needed. The Department sets the standards to g… - Independent reviewers: rules, pay, and workload: mixed, low. If 110 or more new files arrive in a month, the Department assigns that month’s applications to independent reviewers unless none are available. Independent reviewers are paid the same rate the Department pays certified local reviewers. Before assignment, an independent reviewer must disclose any c… - Less state review for water, sewer, subdivisions: mixed, low. The Department no longer performs a separate state environmental study when it reviews water or sewer plans or subdivision applications. This removes one Title 75, chapter 1, parts 1 and 2 review step. Other health and water protection standards still apply. Approvals can move faster, but one layer… - Local governments take on more reviews: mixed, low. The Department delegates reviews of small public water and sewer systems, and changes to existing systems, when a local division asks and has a satisfactory program. When a local division reviews a file, it keeps 90% of the review fee; the Department keeps 10%. Local reviewers must finish all paper… ## Sponsors and cosponsors - Sponsor: Forrest Mandeville (Republican), Senate - Cosponsor: Larry Brewster (Republican), House ## Roll call votes | Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 2025-04-11 | House | Do Concur | pass | 57 | 42 | | | 2025-04-10 | House | Do Concur | pass | 59 | 41 | | | 2025-02-21 | Senate | Do Pass | pass | 39 | 11 | | | 2025-02-20 | Senate | Do Pass | pass | 36 | 14 | | ## Actions (28) - 2025-05-08: Chapter Number Assigned (Senate) - 2025-05-05: Signed by Governor (Senate) - 2025-04-25: Transmitted to Governor (Senate) - 2025-04-25: Signed by Speaker (House) - 2025-04-21: Signed by President (Senate) - 2025-04-12: Returned from Enrolling (Senate) - 2025-04-11: Sent to Enrolling (Senate) - 2025-04-11: 3rd Reading (House) - 2025-04-10: 2nd Reading (House) - 2025-03-28: Committee Report (House) - 2025-03-27: Committee Executive Action (House) - 2025-03-07: Hearing (House) - 2025-03-06: Hearing (House) - 2025-02-22: 1st Reading (House) - 2025-02-22: Referred to Committee (House) - 2025-02-21: Transmitted to House (Senate) - 2025-02-21: 3rd Reading (Senate) - 2025-02-20: 2nd Reading (Senate) - 2025-02-18: Committee Report (Senate) - 2025-02-17: Committee Executive Action (Senate) - 2025-02-07: Hearing (Senate) - 2025-02-07: Fiscal Note Printed (Senate) - 2025-02-07: Fiscal Note Unsigned (Senate) - 2025-02-07: Fiscal Note Unsigned (Senate) - 2025-02-07: Fiscal Note Received (Senate) - 2025-02-05: Referred to Committee (Senate) - 2025-02-04: 1st Reading (Senate) - 2025-02-04: Introduced (Senate) ## Bill text - Enrolled, 2025-04-12: [PDF](https://docs.legmt.gov/download-ticket?ticketId=4933cd9c-c3fa-4b93-a88a-fe620dc2a557) - Introduced, 2025-02-04: [PDF](https://docs.legmt.gov/download-ticket?ticketId=8396cde0-3dcf-406a-9e32-5a1f50eb7839) ## Related bills - SB 437: Revise definition of sex in Montana law (signed) - HB 831: Increase elderly homeowner and renter income tax credit (vetoed) - HB 628: Revise early literacy targeted intervention laws (vetoed) - SB 410: Provide for Montana genomic security act (vetoed) - SB 424: Revising the disabled veteran property tax assistance program (vetoed) - SB 422: Generally revise laws relating to insurance coverage relating to cancer (vetoed) ## Sources - [Enrolled (PDF)](https://docs.legmt.gov/download-ticket?ticketId=4933cd9c-c3fa-4b93-a88a-fe620dc2a557) - [Introduced (PDF)](https://docs.legmt.gov/download-ticket?ticketId=8396cde0-3dcf-406a-9e32-5a1f50eb7839) ## Related - [SB 437: Revise definition of sex in Montana law](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MT-SB437-2025) - [HB 831: Increase elderly homeowner and renter income tax credit](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MT-HB831-2025) - [HB 628: Revise early literacy targeted intervention laws](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MT-HB628-2025) - [SB 410: Provide for Montana genomic security act](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MT-SB410-2025) - [SB 424: Revising the disabled veteran property tax assistance program](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MT-SB424-2025) - [SB 422: Generally revise laws relating to insurance coverage relating to cancer](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MT-SB422-2025) - [Montana bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/montana/bills) - [Montana state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/montana) - [All state legislation](https://policyrisk.com/state-bills) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MT-SB262-2025 (as of 2026-10-19).