June 15, 2009

CONTACT INFORMATION:
Terri McCoy, (406) 444-2807

Deadlines Passed for Lawmakers to Vote to Override Governor's Vetoes

(Helena, MT) – Secretary of State Linda McCulloch today announced that all deadlines have passed for the 61st Legislature to vote to override the remaining six Governor’s vetoes. Anyone interested in seeing how a lawmaker voted in the poll can logon to the Secretary of State’s website at sos.mt.gov.

“I’m pleased to provide the public the final tally of the override poll results. I think it’s important that folks interested in the process can see how votes were cast,” says McCulloch.

The following bills will remain vetoed:

Bill No.	Short Title	House For	House Against	Senate For	Senate Against
HB 629	Revise distribution of certain school revenue	42	53	21	21
SB 291	Montana railroad authority	29	64	23	20
SB 349	Revise state bidding requirements to protect proprietary information	47	46	27	16
SB 371	Clarify applicability of "at work" for work comp purposes	51	44	24	19
SB 403	Revise electricity laws	46	47	22	21
SB 460	Committee to oversee and evaluate stimulus package funding	44	51	26	17

Montana law requires that the Secretary of State poll the Legislature following a Governor’s veto of certain bills. Participation in the poll is voluntary, but it is the only chance state lawmakers have to vote either for or against overriding each veto following a legislative session. If the legislature has adjourned, the Secretary of State is required to mail a poll within five business days of receiving an eligible Governor’s veto. Responses must be received within 30 days of the mailing date. In order to override a Governor’s veto, 2/3rds of the members of each house must vote for an override.

HB 192, introduced by State Representative Janna Taylor, prohibits state legislators from changing their votes on a veto override poll. It became law on March 30, 2009 and took effect immediately.