Title 75

Approval for proposed projects or alternate plans does not relieve the applicant of the responsibility of complying with Title 76, chapter 5, parts 1 through 4, floodway management and regulation, where designated flood plains or designated floodways have been established in acco…

(1) It is unlawful to place junked motor vehicles or the body portion of junked motor vehicles between the channel banks of any stream or to reinforce banks of a stream with junked motor vehicles or the body portion of junked motor vehicles. (2) A person who violates subsection (…

(1) A person planning to engage in a project shall present written notice of the proposed project to the supervisors before any portion of the project takes place. (2) The notice must include the location, general description, and preliminary plan of the project. (3) At the time …

(1) Upon acceptance of a notice of a proposed project, the district or the district's authorized representative shall, within 10 working days, notify the department of the project. If at any time during the review process the supervisors determine that provisions of this part do …

(1) The provisions of this part do not apply to those actions that are necessary to safeguard life or property, including growing crops, during periods of emergency. The person responsible for taking action under this section shall notify the supervisors in writing within 15 days…

The arbitration panel shall consist of three members chosen by the senior judge of the judicial district in which the dispute takes place. The members must be residents of that judicial district at the time of selection. This panel shall sit for only that period of time necessary…

Cost of the arbitration panel, computed as for jurors' fees under 3-15-201, shall be borne by the contesting party or parties; all other parties shall bear their own costs.

(1) If the final decision of the arbitration panel or district court requires modifications or alterations from the original project plan as approved by the supervisors, then the arbitration panel or district court shall include in its decision any part or percent of these modifi…

(1) The department of natural resources and conservation, after consultation with the association of conservation districts, shall adopt and may revise rules setting minimum standards and guidelines for the purposes of this part. (2) The supervisors of each district shall adopt a…

(1) Any review of final action by the supervisors under 75-7-112 or 75-7-113 may be by arbitration or by the district court of the county where the project is located. Judicial review of an arbitration action is under the provisions of Title 27, chapter 5, part 3, and must be bro…

Except for emergency action, a project engaged in by any person without prior approval or activities performed outside the scope of written consent of the supervisors, as prescribed in this chapter, is declared a public nuisance and subject to proceedings for immediate abatement.

(1) A person who initiates a project without written consent of the supervisors, performs activities outside the scope of written consent of the supervisors, violates emergency procedures provided for in 75-7-113, or violates 75-7-106 is: (a) guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conv…

(1) (a) The supervisors shall determine the applicability, interpretation, or implementation of any statutory provision or any rule or written consent of the supervisors under this part. (b) The supervisors' determination pursuant to subsection (1)(a) must be made, in accordance …

The legislature finds and declares that the natural lakes of Montana are high in scenic and resource values and that the conservation and protection of these lakes is important to the continued value of lakeshore property as well as to the state's residents and visitors who use a…

As used in this part, the following definitions apply: (1) "Lake" means a body of standing water and the area within its lakeshore occurring naturally rather than by virtue of constructed impoundments (although a natural lake whose level is raised and whose area is increased by t…

A local governing body may by resolution change the minimum size in the definition of a lake so that this part may apply to natural lakes in the county no smaller than 20 acres in water surface area.

(1) A person who proposes to do any work that will alter or diminish the course, current, or cross-sectional area of a lake or its lakeshore must first secure a permit for the work from the local governing body. (2) Without limitation, the following activities, when conducted bel…

A person who performs work in a lake without a permit for that work shall, if required by the local governing body or the district court, restore the lake to its condition before the person disturbed it.

Work or development authorized or approved under this part shall not create a vested property right in the permitted development other than in the physical structure, if any, so developed.

(1) Before January 1, 1976, every governing body having jurisdiction over an area containing a lake shall adopt regulations in the form of criteria for the issuance or denial of permits for work in lakes. (2) Where a planning board has been created under 76-1-104 for an area cont…

The regulations shall favor issuance if the proposed work will not during either its construction or its utilization: (1) materially diminish water quality; (2) materially diminish habitat for fish or wildlife; (3) interfere with navigation or other lawful recreation; (4) create …

Upon petition of five owners or 30% of the owners of land abutting a lake, whichever is smaller, the department of natural resources and conservation may adopt regulations under 75-7-207 and 75-7-208 for the particular lake. The department may then exercise the powers conferred u…

(1) A person seeking a permit for work in a lake or on a lakeshore shall apply to the local governing body and shall pay a permit fee established by the governing body under subsection (2). (2) The local governing body shall establish a permit fee as provided in subsection (1). T…

(1) Where a planning board has been created under 76-1-104 for the area containing the lake in question, the governing body shall seek the recommendation of the planning board as to the compliance of the proposed work with the criteria for the issuance of a permit. The planning b…

(1) Unless the applicant agrees to an extension of time, the governing body shall grant or deny permission for the work within 90 days of receiving an application for a permit. (2) If the governing body finds that the proposed work conforms to the criteria for issuing a permit, i…

A governing body which proposes to grant a variance from its regulations under this part shall first prepare an environmental impact statement, at the expense of the applicant, which conforms to the requirements of regulations adopted pursuant to this part, distribute this statem…

If a lake, as defined by this part, is located under the jurisdiction of more than one governing body, the governing bodies are empowered and encouraged to enter into agreements to effectuate the purposes of this part and establish compatible criteria for denial or issuance of pe…

The district court may hear and decide the following cases arising under this part within the district: (1) a complaint and petition of a governing body or an interested person for an order to restore a lake to its previous condition or to enjoin further work in a lake; (2) a pet…

(1) A person who violates an order issued under this part or who knowingly violates a regulation made under this part commits a misdemeanor and on conviction may be sentenced to 30 days in the county jail or fined $500, or both. (2) Fines collected under this section, except thos…

In compliance with 1-2-112, the administration of this part is declared a public purpose of a city or county which may be paid out of permit application fees collected under 75-7-210 and federal revenue sharing moneys.

(1) (a) As applied to any clearly visible boat ramp, boat house, boat shore station, boat rail system, dock system, pier, wharf, retaining wall, road, or other structure located within the lakeshore protection zone, the period prescribed for the commencement of an action against …

(1) The department of environmental quality shall adopt a model rule to provide standards that counties may adopt under 75-7-411 to prohibit the sale and distribution of certain phosphorus compounds used for cleaning. (2) The standards in the model rule must be designed to protec…

The department shall send to the governing body of each county a notice of any rulemaking proceeding or hearing under 75-7-401, a copy of the model rule, and a copy of any amendment proposed or adopted.

The department may not enforce any standard or provision of the model rule. As provided in 75-7-411, the governing body of a county may adopt and enforce as an ordinance the standards contained in the model rule.

(1) The governing body of a county may adopt, through the procedures of 7-5-103 through 7-5-107, an ordinance prohibiting the sale and distribution of certain phosphorus compounds used for cleaning purposes. The governing body may rescind, modify, or repeal the ordinance at any t…

(1) A person involved in the sale or commercial distribution of any phosphorus compound prohibited by an ordinance adopted under 75-7-411 must be notified by the county and must be given 30 days from receipt of such notice to comply with the ordinance. Failure to comply with the …