Title 76, Title 76

(1) The board of adjustment shall adopt rules to govern its procedures. The rules must be in accordance with this chapter and with the ordinance establishing the board of adjustment. (2) The board shall elect a presiding officer from among its members. Meetings of the board must …

(1) A qualified elector may file a petition with the board of adjustment alleging that there are great practical difficulties or unnecessary hardship in the way of the elector carrying out upon the elector's lands the strict letter of the land use regulations prescribed by ordina…

(1) The board of adjustment shall fix a time for the hearing of the petition and cause due notice of the hearing to be given. (2) The supervisors of the district and the department are entitled to appear and be heard at the hearing. A qualified elector within the district who obj…

(1) If, upon the facts presented at the hearing, the board of adjustment determines that there are great practical difficulties or unnecessary hardship in the way of applying the strict letter of any of the land use regulations upon the lands of the petitioner, it shall make and …

(1) A petitioner aggrieved by an order of the board of adjustment granting or denying, in whole or in part, the relief sought, the supervisors of the district, or an intervening party may obtain a review of the order in any district court of the county in which the lands of the p…

(1) Upon the filing, the court shall cause notice of the filing to be served upon the parties, and the court has jurisdiction of the proceedings and of the questions determined or to be determined in the proceedings, may grant temporary relief as it considers just and proper, and…

Petitions for changing the name of a district organized under this chapter may be filed with the department. The petition shall be signed by a majority of the district supervisors and shall state the present name of the district and the proposed new name. If the department determ…

Petitions for including additional territory within an existing district may be filed with the department, and the proceedings provided for in part 2 in the case of petitions to organize a district shall be followed in the case of petitions for the inclusion. The department shall…

(1) A petition may be filed with the department for the division of any district, for the combination of any two or more districts, or for the division of a district and the combination of any divided part of a district with any other district. Any or all of these actions may be …

(1) At any time after 5 years after the organization of a district under this chapter, 10% or more of the qualified electors within the boundaries of the district may file a petition with the department requesting the termination of the operations of the district or a part of the…

(1) Within 60 days after the petition has been received by the department, it shall give due notice of the holding of a referendum and shall supervise the referendum and issue appropriate regulations governing the conduct thereof. The question is to be submitted by ballots upon w…

(1) In the case of petitions for discontinuance of a district, the department shall publish the result of the referendum and shall consider and determine whether the continued operation of the district within the defined boundaries is administratively practicable and feasible. (2…

(1) In the case of petitions for discontinuance of part of a district, the department shall publish the result of the referendum and shall consider and determine whether the continued operation of a part of the district within the defined boundaries is administratively practicabl…

(1) In making the determination, the department shall give due regard and weight to the attitudes of the qualified electors lying within the district, the number of qualified electors eligible to vote in the referendum who voted, the proportion of the votes cast in the referendum…

(1) Upon certification of the department that the department has determined that the continued operation of the district or part of the district is not administratively practicable and feasible, pursuant to 76-15-804 through 76-15-810, the supervisors shall immediately proceed to…

(1) Upon issuance of a certificate of dissolution under 76-15-809, all ordinances and regulations theretofore adopted and in force within the district or in that part of the district are void. (2) All contracts previously entered into, to which the district or supervisors are par…

This part may be cited as the "Coal Bed Methane Protection Act".

(1) The legislature finds that the need for an economical supply of clean-burning energy is a national and state priority. (2) The legislature further finds that Montana possesses plentiful reserves of clean-burning natural gas contained in coal beds. (3) The legislature further …

As used in this part, unless the context requires otherwise, the following definitions apply: (1) "Agricultural production" means the production of: (a) any growing grass, crops, or trees attached to the surface of the land; or (b) farm animals with commercial value. (2) "Coal be…

(1) There is a coal bed methane protection account in the state special revenue fund. (2) All money paid into the account must be invested by the board of investments. Earnings from investments must be deposited in the account. (3) Subject to the conditions of subsections (4) and…

(1) There is a coal bed methane protection program administered by conservation districts that have coal beds within the exterior boundary of the district or whose water sources may be adversely affected by the extraction of coal bed methane. The purpose of the coal bed methane p…

This chapter may be cited as the "Grass Conservation Act".

The purpose of this chapter is to provide for the conservation, protection, restoration, and proper utilization of grass, forage, and range resources of the state of Montana, to provide for the incorporation of cooperative nonprofit state districts, to provide a means of cooperat…

Unless the context requires otherwise, in this chapter, the following definitions apply: (1) "Animal unit" means one cow, one horse, or five sheep, 6 months of age or older. (2) "Animal unit month" or "AUM" means one cow/calf pair, one horse, or five sheep, grazed individually fo…

(1) The commission shall assist in carrying out the purposes of this chapter, act in an advisory capacity with the boards of county commissioners, and supervise and coordinate the formation and operation of state districts that may be incorporated under this chapter. (2) The comm…

(1) The commission may impose fees against the state districts in an amount not in excess of 10 cents per animal unit month of grazing preference, based upon the number of animal unit months per year for which the state district grants permits, to defray expenses incurred by the …

In each state district a sufficient carrying capacity of range must be reserved for the maintenance of a reasonable number of wild game animals to use the range in common with livestock grazing in the state district. The commission may act in an advisory capacity to the departmen…

(1) Grazing preferences or rights under this chapter through the creation of the state district or the issuance of permits based on AUMs of grazing preference are statutory and do not create any vested right, title, interest, or estate in or to the lands owned or controlled by th…

(1) Notice of a decision of a state district must be given in writing by the secretary of the state district to the interested parties or their attorneys by certified mail at the address as shown on the records of the state district. (2) A person affected by the decision of a sta…

The Montana Administrative Procedure Act applies to this chapter.

In all cases where notices are given to permittees under this chapter by certified mail and addressed to the post-office address of the permittee as shown by the records of the state district, the notices must be considered received by the permittee when deposited in the United S…

(1) There is a Montana grass conservation commission. The commission is composed of five members appointed by the governor to serve staggered 3-year terms. (2) (a) The governor, after giving full consideration to representation by both large and small operators, shall appoint: (i…

The commission has all the powers enumerated in this chapter and any other powers necessary or incidental to carrying out the full purpose and intent of this chapter, including but not limited to: (1) conducting hearings on issues brought before the commission and conducting inve…

(1) If three or more persons who own or control commensurate property and are livestock operators within the area proposed to be created into a state district decide to incorporate a state district, they shall submit a statement in writing to the commission together with a plat s…

(1) The persons deciding to incorporate the state district shall cause notice of the hearing to be given by publishing a notice prescribed by the commission once a week for 2 consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the area. The first publication must be at lea…

If the creation of the state district appears feasible, beneficial, and desirable to those who own or control more than 50% of the lands to be included in the state district, the commission may issue a certificate of approval.

(1) Upon the issuance of the certificate of approval, three or more persons who own or control commensurate property and are livestock operators within or near the proposed state district may prepare articles of incorporation and file them in the office of the secretary of state …

If the articles substantially comply with the requirements set forth in 76-16-204 and are accompanied by the certificate of approval, the secretary of state shall issue to the state district a certificate of incorporation.

(1) A state district may amend its articles of incorporation by a two-thirds vote of all members present at any regular or special meeting of its members and the approval of the commission. The only notice of the meeting that is necessary is the notice of meetings of members as r…

A state district shall, upon completion of its organization, file with the commission and the county clerk and recorder of each county in which its lands lie a map or plat of the external boundaries of the state district showing the allocation of individual allotments, members ru…

(1) A state district incorporated under this chapter shall within 60 days after its incorporation adopt bylaws approved by the commission. The bylaws may be amended or revised with the approval of the commission. Each incorporated state district shall review and update its bylaws…

(1) A state district may change the boundaries of the state district, merge with another state district organized under this chapter, or subdivide. (2) A merger may not be made unless consented to by a majority of the members of each merging state district and approved by the com…

A state district, with the written consent of three-fourths of its permittee members, may at any time request the commission to dissolve the state district subject to the preferences of this chapter. The commission shall establish procedures for the dissolution of any state distr…

(1) If a state district ceases to function in accordance with its bylaws and this chapter and it appears to the commission that the reinstatement and future operation of the state district is no longer feasible, beneficial, and desirable to the majority of members of the state di…

(1) When a hearing on the request for dissolution has been held before the commission and the consent of the board of directors has been given, the directors shall distribute the assets of the state district, either in items of property or in cash or both. Distribution must first…

A final report of all dissolution proceedings must be made to the commission by the directors. Upon the approval of the report, the commission shall order the state district dissolved.