Title 81, Title 81

The sheriff of a county and undersheriffs and deputy sheriffs located at the county seat but not elsewhere shall receive and examine skins and pelts presented for bounty in their respective counties. The sheriff shall receive 10 cents for each skin examined, this amount to be pai…

(1) A sheriff, undersheriff, and deputy sheriff, to prevent fraud, shall carefully examine each skin presented. If the examination discloses that the scalp and ears with the skin from the entire head of the animal have not been severed, punched, patched, or marked, the officer sh…

(1) Upon receiving the affidavit required pursuant to 81-7-113, the officer shall deliver to the person claiming a bounty a certificate addressed to the county clerk of the officer's county and immediately deliver to the county clerk a duplicate of the certificate, showing the da…

(1) The county clerk shall, on receipt of each certificate, file the certificate in the order in which it is received and safely keep it until the arrival of the skin or skins mentioned in the certificate. On receipt of the skin or skins, the county clerk shall call upon either t…

Bounty claims and certificates issued by the county clerk and recorders under 81-7-115 shall be filed with the department and registered in a book provided for that purpose.

The department shall examine and investigate every bounty claim and certificate filed with the department. When it makes the examination and investigation, the department may require the holder of a certificate or claim to furnish the department with the additional evidence or pr…

The department of revenue shall annually prescribe the fee recommended by the department to be assessed against livestock of all classes for paying for the destruction of predatory animals killed in this state. The money received must be used only for the payment of claims approv…

(1) If, at the end of a bounty paying season, there is surplus money available for the administration of 81-7-111 through 81-7-118 and 81-7-120 through 81-7-122, the surplus may be used to hire salaried hunters and trappers to hunt and trap predatory animals and to purchase and s…

A person who falsely makes, alters, forges, or counterfeits any of the certificates or orders and any person who falsely swears to any affidavit provided for by 81-7-111 through 81-7-118 and 81-7-120 through 81-7-122 or procures the same act to be done by another, with the intent…

A person who patches up a skin or scalp or presents a punched or patched skin or scalp or who brings in any skin or skins from other states or territories with the intent to fraudulently obtain a bounty or an officer who signs a certificate without first counting and examining th…

(1) There is a voluntary wolf mitigation account in the state special revenue fund established in 17-2-102. The account is statutorily appropriated, as provided in 17-7-502, and must be used pursuant to subsection (3) of this section. (2) The voluntary wolf mitigation account is …

(1) Whenever the owners or agents of the owners of not less than 51% of the livestock of any county in this state present a petition to the board of county commissioners asking for the imposition of a fee upon the livestock of the county for the purpose of paying bounties on pred…

The tax collected under this part must be credited by the county treasurer to a fund to be known as "county bounty fund" and must be paid out by the treasurer upon properly drawn warrants issued on the fund by the county clerk.

A person claiming bounty on a predatory animal under this part shall present the green skin or pelt of the animal, with all four feet attached, to one of the bounty inspectors provided for in 81-7-112 or 81-7-201 and shall make an affidavit that the animal was killed within the c…

The county clerk shall provide the necessary forms of affidavits and claims for carrying out the provisions of this part.

Nothing in this part contained shall be construed as interfering with, in any way, or repealing any part of the existing laws of the state relative to the levying of taxes for and paying of the bounties on predatory animals under such state laws.

The word "owners" or "persons" shall include natural persons, partnerships, corporations, trusts, and estates.

For the protection of sheep against depredations peculiar to such animals, the board of county commissioners of any county shall upon the recommendation of organized associations of sheep growers in the county have power, either alone or in conjunction with other counties, to con…

(1) To defray the expense of protection, the board of county commissioners of a county may require all owners or persons in possession of a sheep 9 months of age or older in the county on the regular assessment date of each year, as provided in 15-24-903, to pay a per capita lice…

All furs, skins, and so forth taken by the expenditure of license funds shall be sold and the proceeds of such sale deposited in said predatory animal control fund for the use in carrying out the purpose of this part.

(1) In conducting a predatory animal control program, the board of county commissioners shall give preference to recommendations for a program made by organized associations of sheep growers in the county. Upon petition of the resident owners of at least 51% of the sheep in the c…

(1) As used in this section, "harasses" means worries, chases, or runs after livestock, including ostriches, rheas, and emus, in a manner that may lead to subsequent injury to the livestock. (2) A dog, whether licensed or not, that, while off the premises owned or under control o…

(1) The owner of livestock or poultry injured or killed by any dog may recover as liquidated damages from the owner of the dog the actual value of the animals killed or the value of the damages sustained by reason of the injuries as the case may be. If two or more dogs kept by tw…

Any person who permits or directs any dog owned by the person or in the person's possession to chase or run any cattle or other livestock of which the person is not the owner or the person in charge upon the open range or government lands or away from any watering place upon the …

(1) Except as provided in 81-7-505, a person, except an employee of the state, its subdivisions, or the federal government who is acting within the scope of the person's employment, may not engage in the aerial hunting of predatory animals, as defined in 81-7-101, without first o…

The department of livestock may adopt rules to effectuate the purposes of this part and to implement and conduct the aerial hunting permit system provided for by this part.

The department of livestock shall establish a fee for the permit, and each permit shall be valid for a period set by the department not to exceed 3 years. Fees collected pursuant to this section must be deposited in the state special revenue fund to the credit of the department f…

Any landowner having residence and domicile in Montana may engage in the aerial hunting of predatory animals, as defined in 81-7-101, over that person's own land without a permit, provided the landowner annually notifies the department in writing that the landowner will be engage…

While engaged in flying an aircraft, no person, whether or not lawfully authorized to aerially hunt, may knowingly harass, injure, or attempt to injure any livestock except with the express permission of the owner of that livestock.

Any person convicted of violating a provision of this part is punishable by a fine of not less than $500 or more than $1,000. In addition, the permit, if any, of such person must be revoked for such period as the court may determine.

(1) Investigations of violations of this part, arrests, and seizures may be made by any peace officer, or agent of the department designated by the department. (2) To enforce this part, the department may enter into agreement with federal agencies with predatory animal control. S…

As used in this part, the word "owners" or "persons" includes natural persons, partnerships, corporations, trusts, and estates.

Upon the recommendation of an organized association of cattle producers in the county, the board of county commissioners may, either alone or in conjunction with the county commissioners of other counties, establish a predatory animal control program for the protection of cattle …

(1) To defray the expense of protection, the board of county commissioners may require all owners or persons in possession of cattle 9 months of age or older in the county on the regular assessment date of each year, as provided in 15-24-903, to pay a per capita license fee in an…

All furs, skins, and other portions of predatory animals taken through the expenditure of license fees must be sold and the proceeds of the sale deposited in the predatory animal control fund for use in carrying out the purpose of this part.

(1) In conducting a predatory animal control program, the board of county commissioners shall give preference to recommendations for a program made by an organized association of cattle producers in the county. Upon petition of the resident owners of at least 51% of the cattle in…

As used in this part, the following definitions apply: (1) "Owners" or "persons" include natural persons, partnerships, corporations, trusts, and estates. (2) "Predatory animal" has the meaning provided in 81-7-101.

On the recommendation of an organized association of goat producers in the county, the board of county commissioners may, either alone or in conjunction with the county commissioners of other counties, establish a predatory animal control program for the protection of goats in th…

(1) To defray the expense of protection, the board of county commissioners may require all owners or persons in possession of a goat 9 months of age or older in the county on the regular assessment date of each year, as provided in 15-24-903, to pay a per capita license fee in an…

All furs, skins, and other portions of predatory animals taken through the expenditure of license fees must be sold and the proceeds of the sale deposited in the predatory animal control fund for use in carrying out the purpose of this part.

(1) In conducting a predatory animal control program, the board of county commissioners shall give preference to recommendations for a program made by an organized association of goat producers in the county. On petition of the resident owners of at least 51% of the goats in the …

This part may be cited as the "Montana Livestock Marketing Act".

The purpose of this part is to: (1) simplify, clarify, and modernize the law governing livestock marketing businesses and livestock marketing transactions; (2) encourage, stimulate, and stabilize the livestock economy of the state; and (3) promote open, free, and competitive fact…

As used in this part, the following definitions apply: (1) "Board" means the board of livestock provided for in 2-15-3102. (2) "Custodial account for shippers' proceeds" or "custodial account" means a separate account established and maintained by a livestock market or livestock …

(1) A person not a livestock market operator authorized under this part conducting the sale of livestock in a breed sale, a breed association sale, or at a test station sale, except when all of the livestock are owned by that person and are being sold from that person's own place…

If the livestock inspector at a sale finds any livestock afflicted with an infectious or contagious disease, the inspector shall immediately take possession of the livestock and place the livestock in quarantine, to be disposed of as directed by the department.