Legislature must stay focused

It’s not unusual for Montana legislative sessions to be tangled with seemingly frivolous and constitutionally questionable bills, and the current session is no exception.

But this time around, we had higher expectations that lawmakers would avoid distracting legislation and focus on the serious matters facing  the state, most notably Montana’s struggling economy. To be sure, the Republican majorities in the House and Senate have dealt with many important issues head on, such as workers’ compensation reform and reducing the state’s business equipment tax, but they have also wandered into a number of areas that will leave many voters scratching their heads and wondering, “Why are they wasting their time on that?”

A bill legalizing the use of hand-thrown spears for game hunting. Come on. Really?

A bill that regulates golf-cart operation? Isn’t that a tad below par?

A bill that would require Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks to bear the cost of removing road kill from highways? Is that really an appropriate or justified use of hunting license dollars?

And while it may be well intended, adopting the “Code of the West” as the “Code of Montana” is still an imposition of a certain set of values on every citizen.

It’s not all Republican-sponsored legislation. Democrats were behind a bill requiring the state to monitor “childhood body mass index trends,” a creepy nanny-state measure that died a merciful death in committee. Another one would require bars to mount security cameras to monitor all persons entering the business. Never mind the costs of it all; government knows best!

To be fair though, Democrats seem to be holding back on some measures they have trotted out in the past, such as a tax on big box stores, apparently knowing they wouldn’t stand a chance.

According to Legislative Services, 2,196 bills have been drafted so far this session, slightly less than the 2,369 that were drafted in 2009. Legislative Legal Services has identified about 20 bills that have questionable constitutional credibility. We have to wonder why lawmakers are advancing bills that could lead to costly court challenges.

Gov. Brian Schweitzer, a Democrat, has warned that there will be plenty of vetoes, and he stresses that the Legislature should be focused on creating jobs and helping the state economy.

If Republicans don’t police themselves somewhat, the governor could come out looking good by putting the brakes on wasteful or unnecessary legislation.

That’s perhaps one of the better parts of our governing system: Bad legislation usually gets weeded out, one way or another.