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Senate Committee Defeats Hannah’s Act

Bill would have added resources to investigate missing and murdered Indigenous women

By Tristan Scott
Montana State Capitol. Beacon file photo

Even as lawmakers say the epidemic of missing and murdered Indigenous women has become a human rights crisis in Montana and nationally, a state senate panel on March 25 defeated a bill that would have added resources to address the problem.

House Bill 21 would have established Hannah’s Act, which authorizes the Department of Justice to become involved in all missing persons cases and requires the employment of a missing persons specialist in Montana. An earlier version of the bill called for $100,000 from the general fund to pay for the services.

Last month, Hannah’s Act passed the House with a 99-0 vote before heading to the Senate Judiciary Committee, which tabled the bill on a 5-5 vote.

The bill’s defeat prompted criticism from lawmakers, who urged the Senate panel to reconsider.

Gov. Steve Bullock tweeted his disappointment in the bill’s failure.

“The epidemic of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women is a human rights crisis in Montana that we have a moral obligation to address,” the governor wrote. “The Republicans who just voted against Hannah’s Act must do the right thing and reconsider.”

Sen. Jennifer Fielder, R-Thompson Falls, took issue with the bill’s creation of a new position in state government and expressed her desire to see tribal governments pitch in.

Sen. Diane Sands, D-Missoula, urged the committee to pass the bill, which she said affects Indigenous women on and off of the state’s reservations.

“This problem is really at a crisis level,” she said.