25-02-2025
Blasted — Indigenous bills advancing through Montana legislature
Kaiden Forman-Webster ICT + MTFP
Two bills that are priorities for the Legislature's American Indian Caucus are back in play after strategic moves by Sen. Jonathan Windy Boy, a Democrat from Box Elder, last Friday afternoon.
At the end of the Senate's floor session, Windy Boy motioned that the Montana Indian Child Welfare and Indian Education for All bills be pulled from the committees where they had previously been voted down and revived by the full chamber.
In Friday's Senate floor session, Windy Boy blasted both bills. For Montana Indian Child Welfare he stated 'It had 26 proponents and zero opponents, and it is a good bill'.
Sen. Dennis Lenz, a Republican from Billings and Chair of Senate Health, Welfare, and Human Safety committee that tabled the bill objected to the motion stating that the issue of MICWA is complex.
The Senate voted 29-21 in favor of the motion, the bill will now be heard for second reading by the Senate.
A blast motion simply allows a bill sponsor to pull a bill from its respective committee after it has been heard and is either voted down, tabled, or the committee chair refuses to take executive action on the bill. The blast requires a simple majority vote by the Senate.
As for the second bill, Windy Boy motioned for it to also be pulled from committee stating 'It had 15 proponents and one opponent, and I did have an amendment that would address that at one point and when the opponent spoke up they said they would support the bill afterwards.'
Sen. John Fuller, a Republican from Kalispell and Chair of the Education and Cultural Resources committee objected to the motion on the grounds that it would be a violation of procedural rulings.
It was another victory for Windy Boy with the Senate voting 26-24, advancing the bill to be heard for second reading along with the other.
It was a successful day for Windy Boy and his bills.
'It feels good,' said Windy Boy, 'It's good for the kiddos.'
Windy Boy joked 'I'll have to buy [Sen. Mike] Yakawich a Happy Meal for supporting both.'
On Monday, Feb 24, both bills were heard on the Senate floor for second reading.
The Montana Indian Child Welfare Act bill involved a very lengthy conversation.
Windy Boy reflected on a personal story of the death of his daughter and the ensuing crisis of finding a home for the seven children left behind after her passing.
Windy Boy and his wife took in all seven grandchildren and relayed what would have happened to the kids if he did not take them in. Explaining that if he did not step up and raise his grandchildren they may have been lost to the foster care system, opening the children up to being separated from one another and the possible severance from their culture.
Windy Boy stated that the cultural compacts within the MICWA bill will be able to address these issues.
Sen. Daniel Emrich, a Republican from Great Falls, encouraged a no vote on the bill on the grounds that the requirement in section one of the bill requires a cultural compact between the guardian and respective tribe of the Indigenous child as a 'serious constitutional concern'.
Windy Boy's answer to this was to refer to the Montana state Constitution article 10 section one subsection 2. 'The state constitution recognizes the unique cultural heritage of the tribes in Montana' said Windy Boy.
The bill was voted on by the Senate body and passed second reading 31-19 and will now be heard for third reading before going to the House.
Indian Education for All was heard for second reading immediately after and involved much less debate.
Windy Boy emphasized the accountability required by the bill, appealing to people's want to ensure government funding is used transparently. Simply put it is an accountability piece of legislation.
'So this basically is an accountability bill to make sure that if you get $1 and that dollar is supposed to be geared towards educating the students at the local school district, it's just to see 'show me what you're doing,'' Windy Boy said.
No one spoke out against the bill with it passing second reading 31-19 and will also be heard for third reading before advancing to the House.
After multiple bills being held up in committees related to Native issues, Montana American Indian Caucus Members look to use the blast motion for their bills to the senate floor, a rare situation, but members believe it is the best way to accomplish their agenda of strengthening Native issues
At a Wednesday meeting of Montana's American Indian Caucus, several members raised concerns about their bills being held up in committees and or being tabled or voted down. With Republicans holding a strong majority in both the Senate and the House, it is an uphill battle to get legislation through, prompting some new strategies by the caucus – who are mostly Democratic lawmakers.
During last Wednesday's meeting, caucus members concluded enough is enough.
Sen. Jonathan Windy Boy, a Democrat from Box Elder said he would have the votes to blast his bill in the Senate, citing the current dysfunction of the chamber.
Windy Boy's Montana Indian Child Welfare Act was tabled by a committee on Feb. 14, though he said other child welfare bills have advanced from the same committee.
The Indian Education for All bill, also from Windy Boy, made several changes to the program that Windy Boy argued created more accountability regarding the reporting of funding. His bill was tabled Jan. 30.
Following Windy Boy, Sen. Susan Webber, Blackfeet and a Democrat from Browning, also spoke to her Senate Bill 180, which aims to include the child's heritage in divorce proceedings. It was voted down Feb. 14, but Webber said she plans to blast it Feb. 25.
Sen. Shane Morigeau, D-Missoula and Salish and Kootenai, also threw his hat in the ring regarding his bill to recognize Indigenous Peoples Day in Montana and is 'On the Jonathan Windy Boy wagon' on blasting his bill as well. Morigeau is confident his bill 'Will not get rid of Columbus Day but will let people celebrate what they want.' Similar legislation has died in previous sessions.
The aforementioned dysfunction of the senate stems from what is known as the nine moderate Republicans. These nine have continually been a thorn in the side for the Republican majority.
When asked if this factors into Moderates being more open to working on key issues for Montana with Democrats, Windy Boy said 'I don't like to read too much into issues like that, but if it happens, no doubt that's probably what those Moderates are thinking.'
Multiple bills this session that have made it to the senate floor have been opposed by the more Conservative Republicans, yet the Moderates have sided with the Democrats on certain matters such as keeping Medicaid Expansion.
When asked about situations where individuals work across the aisle to support a bill they may not fully support in exchange for support on their own bill, Webber acknowledged 'That is a part of it and there is some of that going on.'
She added that for her bill in particular, she's been able to gain support by talking to and explaining it to others.
Morigeau addressed this strategy from a different lens, looking back on last session and explaining a bill to 'establish autism facilities grant program' that was voted down in committee. He then turned to a Republican and asked if they would carry the bill for him.
They did, and the bill was signed into law.
For Windy Boy, engaging with Moderates has been a productive experience bringing forth appreciation that they are open to listening to what he wants to accomplish, which he attributes to these Republicans being a reflection of their voter base that cares for Montana priorities.
Being open to learning from different perspectives from across Montana is an important skill needed to successfully transverse issues, something Windy Boy is well attuned to due to his many years at the Capitol.
'The way I see it is that they're more open minded on looking at that bigger picture, so they understand what the issue is about from our version, our angle,' Windy Boy said.
Currently, caucus members believe the issue of bills being held up in committees creates large setbacks for these lawmakers and that using the ability to blast bills will more than likely continue.
"I think so as of right now, because it is the only way we can really get our bills through,'Webber said.
Windy Boy has been a strong advocate for Indigenous issues for the entire 23 years that he has served the legislature and enjoys stepping up to the plate to cross the aisle and find common ground with Republicans.
Looking at it as an opportunity to address stereotypes inflicted on both sides. Even after he was told that doing so was a lost cause to which he ignored.
'I am the kind of guy that I just walk right up and start talking to them,' Windy Boy said.
He went on to say that people can often be mislabeled.
What I found out are people that are labeled as racist, people that are labeled as discriminatory, all of that,' Windy Boy said. 'My take from it is, they're uneducated, they don't understand me. But at the end of the day, after I turned around and educated them from my approach of what I'm talking about, they have kind of one of those 'Aha moments,' and so those ones there, who have been labeled as racist and discriminatory have become some of my strongest proponents.'
For Windy Boy's bills, they must now pass through the Senate and the House with the possibility that other Montana American Indian Caucus members may use the same strategy of blasting their bills through committee hold ups.
This story is co-published by Montana Free Press and ICT, a news partnership that covers the Montana American Indian Caucus during the state's 2025 legislative session
