Montana legislation · 2025 Regular Session
Montana HB791: Generally revise nuisance laws
Status: Signed into law, May 13, 2025
What the bill says
An act generally revising nuisance laws; revising the definition of public nuisance; providing for preemption; revising laws relating to liabilities for public nuisances; providing for public nuisance actions by the government; providing for a private cause of action for a public nuisance; providing for abatement of a public nuisance by the government; providing for private nuisances, for liabilities of private nuisances, and for remedies for private nuisances; providing for emergency abatement of private nuisances by injured persons; amending sections 27-30-101 and 27-30-204, mca…
From the engrossed text:
AN ACT GENERALLY REVISING NUISANCE LAWS; REVISING THE DEFINITION OF PUBLIC NUISANCE; PROVIDING FOR PREEMPTION; REVISING LAWS RELATING TO LIABILITIES FOR PUBLIC NUISANCES; PROVIDING FOR PUBLIC NUISANCE ACTIONS BY THE GOVERNMENT; PROVIDING FOR A PRIVATE CAUSE OF ACTION FOR A PUBLIC NUISANCE; PROVIDING FOR ABATEMENT OF A PUBLIC NUISANCE BY THE GOVERNMENT; PROVIDING FOR PRIVATE NUISANCES, FOR LIABILITIES OF PRIVATE NUISANCES, AND FOR REMEDIES FOR PRIVATE NUISANCES; PROVIDING FOR EMERGENCY ABATEMENT OF PRIVATE NUISANCES BY INJURED PERSONS; AMENDING SECTIONS 27-30-101 AND 27-30-204, MCA; REPEALING SECTIONS 27-30-102, 27-30-103, 27-30-104, 27-30-105, 27-30-201, 27-30202, 27-30-203, 27-30-301, AND 27-30-302, MCA; AND PROVIDING APPLICABILITY DATES. Section 1. Section 27-30-101, MCA, is amended to read: "27-30-101. Definition of public nuisance. (1) Anything that is injurious to health, indecent or offensive to the senses, or an obstruction to the free use of property, so as to interfere with the comfortable enjoyment of life or property, or that unlawfully obstructs the free passage or use, in the customary manner, of any navigable lake, river, bay, stream, canal, or basin or any public park, square, street, or highway is a nuisance. (2) Nothing that is done or maintained under the express authority of a statute may be deemed a public or private nuisance. (1) A public nuisance is: (a) a condition arising out of the use of real property …