State of Montana Archives: on Families & Children


Albert Olszewski: I will always support America's traditional values

I support life at all stages, traditional marriage and believe that the moral degradation of our society through government intervention is a blatant attack on our future. I will always support legislation that restores America's traditional values.
Source: 2014 MT State Senate campaign website MattForMontana.com Nov 1, 2014

Amanda Curtis: Oppose needing written parental permission for sex education

HB 239: Define scope/boundaries of human sexuality/reproduction education K-12.

Analysis by Rewire.News: HB 239 would have required a school district to obtain written consent from a parent before instructing students in human sexuality education. HB 239 would have also prohibited school districts from allowing any abortion services provider from offering any materials at schools.

Veto message:The Montana Constitution vests supervision and control of our public schools in locally elected school boards. HB 239 would improvidently intrude upon the constitutional authority of the Board of Public Education and local boards. If parents are concerned about matters relating to the education of their children, they can and should address those concerns with their local school board.

Legislative Outcome: Passed Senate 28-22-0 on Apr/8/13; Passed House 56-41-3 on Apr/13/13; State Rep. Amanda Curtis voted NO; Vetoed by Governor Steve Bullock on Apr/25/13

Source: Rewire.News on Montana legislative voting record HB 239 Apr 13, 2013

Casey Schreiner: Understands living paycheck to paycheck

[On Mike Cooney announcing Schreiner as running mate]: "Montana families deserve folks fighting for them in Helena who knows first-hand the challenges they face. Elected Officials who understand living paycheck to paycheck, the impacts of student loans on a family, and what it is like to deal with medical costs and the impact they have on families," said Schreiner. "Montanans deserve folks in Government that understand the barriers they face everyday not just from reading about them, but from living them right by their side each and everyday."
Source: NBC Montana on 2020 Montana governor race Feb 28, 2020

Bill McChesney: Oppose needing written parental permission for sex education

HB 239: Define scope/boundaries of human sexuality/reproduction education K-12.

Analysis by Rewire.News: HB 239 would have required a school district to obtain written consent from a parent before instructing students in human sexuality education. HB 239 would have also prohibited school districts from allowing any abortion services provider from offering any materials at schools.

Veto message:The Montana Constitution vests supervision and control of our public schools in locally elected school boards. HB 239 would improvidently intrude upon the constitutional authority of the Board of Public Education and local boards. If parents are concerned about matters relating to the education of their children, they can and should address those concerns with their local school board.

Legislative Outcome: Passed Senate 28-22-0 on Apr/8/13; Passed House 56-41-3 on Apr/13/13; State Rep. Bill McChesney voted NO; Vetoed by Governor Steve Bullock on Apr/25/13

Source: Rewire.News on Montana legislative voting record HB 239 Apr 13, 2013

Casey Schreiner: Equal opportunity for women in education & employment

Casey is committed to ensuring that every woman has the autonomy and the support she deserves to live the life she chooses with dignity, equality, and opportunity. He is committed to securing equal opportunities in education, employment, and leadership for every woman and to ensuring safe, healthy, and nurturing environments for all women. To achieve these goals, women must have an equitable role, not only in determining local, state, and national policies, but also in allocating resources to meet the needs of families and communities.
Source: 2020 Montana Lt.Governor campaign website SchreinerForMT.com Nov 1, 2018

Casey Schreiner: Oppose needing written parental permission for sex education

HB 239: Define scope/boundaries of human sexuality/reproduction education K-12.

Analysis by Rewire.News: HB 239 would have required a school district to obtain written consent from a parent before instructing students in human sexuality education. HB 239 would have also prohibited school districts from allowing any abortion services provider from offering any materials at schools.

Veto message:The Montana Constitution vests supervision and control of our public schools in locally elected school boards. HB 239 would improvidently intrude upon the constitutional authority of the Board of Public Education and local boards. If parents are concerned about matters relating to the education of their children, they can and should address those concerns with their local school board.

Legislative Outcome: Passed Senate 28-22-0 on Apr/8/13; Passed House 56-41-3 on Apr/13/13; State Rep. Casey Schreiner voted NO; Vetoed by Governor Steve Bullock on Apr/25/13

Source: Rewire.News on Montana legislative voting record HB 239 Apr 13, 2013

Jon Tester: All couples should have same rights as heterosexual couples

Q: Support gay marriage?

Matt Rosendale (R): No. "Support traditional marriage as being between one man & one woman."

Jon Tester (D): Yes. "All couples should have the same rights to happiness & protections under the law that my wife Sharla & I enjoy."

Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Montana Senate race Oct 9, 2018

Matt Rosendale: Support traditional marriage between one man & one woman

Q: Support gay marriage?

Matt Rosendale (R): No. "Support traditional marriage as being between one man & one woman."

Jon Tester (D): Yes. "All couples should have the same rights to happiness & protections under the law that my wife Sharla & I enjoy."

Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Montana Senate race Oct 9, 2018

Matt Rosendale: Require written parental permission for sex education

HB 239: Define scope/boundaries of human sexuality/reproduction education K-12.

Analysis by Rewire.News: HB 239 would have required a school district to obtain written consent from a parent before instructing students in human sexuality education. HB 239 would have also prohibited school districts from allowing any abortion services provider from offering any materials at schools.

Veto message:The Montana Constitution vests supervision and control of our public schools in locally elected school boards. HB 239 would improvidently intrude upon the constitutional authority of the Board of Public Education and local boards. If parents are concerned about matters relating to the education of their children, they can and should address those concerns with their local school board.

Legislative Outcome: Passed Senate 28-22-0 on Apr/8/13; State Sen. Matt Rosendale voted YES; Passed House 56-41-3 on Apr/13/13; Vetoed by Governor Steve Bullock on Apr/25/13

Source: Rewire.News on Montana legislative voting record HB 239 Apr 8, 2013

Mike Cooney: Recognize civil unions between same-sex couples

Q: Should Montana recognize civil unions between same-sex couples?

A: Yes

Source: 2006 Montana Gubernatorial National Political Awareness Test Nov 1, 2006

Reilly Neill: Oppose needing written parental permission for sex education

HB 239: Define scope/boundaries of human sexuality/reproduction education K-12.

Analysis by Rewire.News: HB 239 would have required a school district to obtain written consent from a parent before instructing students in human sexuality education. HB 239 would have also prohibited school districts from allowing any abortion services provider from offering any materials at schools.

Veto message:The Montana Constitution vests supervision and control of our public schools in locally elected school boards. HB 239 would improvidently intrude upon the constitutional authority of the Board of Public Education and local boards. If parents are concerned about matters relating to the education of their children, they can and should address those concerns with their local school board.

Legislative Outcome: Passed Senate 28-22-0 on Apr/8/13; Passed House 56-41-3 on Apr/13/13; State Rep. Reilly Neill voted NO; Vetoed by Governor Steve Bullock on Apr/25/13

Source: Rewire.News on Montana legislative voting record HB 239 Apr 13, 2013

Ryan Zinke: Prepare kids for tomorrow with family values of grandparents

Promoting Conservative Family Values: My grandmother worked her way through college and became a school teacher at a one room school near Richey, MT. My grandfather helped construct the Fort Peck dam. Their example taught me the value of hard work and gave me the family values I now have. I believe that parents deserve to make the best decisions for their children. I believe we must prepare our children for tomorrow with the family values of my grandparents.
Source: 2014 Montana House campaign website, RyanZinke.com Nov 4, 2014

Sam Rankin: Family is one pillar of society

We need to re-establish the pillars that support a great society. I happen to believe "family" is one of those pillars. That means encouraging what has been shown to produce a high proportion of productive citizens; intact two-parent (protector or guardian) families.
Source: 2012 Montana House campaign website, srankin.qwestoffice.net Oct 14, 2011

Steve Bullock: Unemployment benefits to victims of domestic violence

Last year, Bullock sent three proposals to the state legislature to help address wage inequities, but only one of those bills made into law. That law extended unemployment insurance benefits to victims of domestic violence.

The legislature, however, voted down legislation that would have allowed workers to discuss salaries without repercussions from their employer.

Bullock wants employers to take a hard look at what they pay employees, and to make sure that women are being paid the same as men for comparable work. "When working women prosper, overall, families prosper," the governor said..

Source: The Missoulian on 2016 Montana Gubernatorial race Mar 11, 2016

Steve Bullock: Don't cut workers from Child and Family Services Division

It doesn't make sense to me that you have proposed to cut workers from our Child and Family Services Division--the people on the front lines of helping kids in harm's way; or that you would propose to slash the funding to community nursing homes, that care for those depending on our help.

It also doesn't make sense to me, or to most Montanans, that someone making $9 dollars an hour pays the same tax rate as someone making $250 dollars an hour--especially when the alternative is to cut vital services for our citizens. Increasing the top tax rate for any income over a half a million dollars, and other modest revenue proposals before you, are fair. I ask that you give them fair consideration--and then pass them.

Source: 2017 State of the State address to Montana Legislature Jan 24, 2017

Steve Bullock: Vetoed needing written parental permission for sex education

HB 239: Define scope/boundaries of human sexuality/reproduction education K-12.

Analysis by Rewire.News: HB 239 would have required a school district to obtain written consent from a parent before instructing students in human sexuality education. HB 239 would have also prohibited school districts from allowing any abortion services provider from offering any materials at schools.

Veto message:The Montana Constitution vests supervision and control of our public schools in locally elected school boards. HB 239 would improvidently intrude upon the constitutional authority of the Board of Public Education and local boards. If parents are concerned about matters relating to the education of their children, they can and should address those concerns with their local school board.

Legislative Outcome: Passed Senate 28-22-0 on Apr/8/13; Passed House 56-41-3 on Apr/13/13; Vetoed by Governor Steve Bullock on Apr/25/13

Source: Rewire.News on Montana legislative voting record HB 239 Apr 25, 2013

Greg Gianforte: $5000 adoption tax credit; $7500 adopting out of foster care

We must also make it easier for Montanans to open their happy, healthy, loving homes to children. Every child deserves a home where they can reach their full potential. To get more children into permanent, loving homes, we're proposing an adoption tax credit of $5,000, and if you adopt a kid in our foster care system, we'll bump that credit to $7,500. We heard inspiring testimonies yesterday from parents who opened their homes and adopted kids.
Source: 2023 State of the State Address to the Montana legislature Jan 25, 2023

Greg Gianforte: Let school districts adopt stricter policies on obscenity

HB234: Revise dissemination of obscene material to minors laws

Montana Free Press summaries: State Rep. Rob Stutz (D) said that the final version of HB 234 changed "very little" in the law that has defined obscenity and its criminal charges for the past 50 years. The bill does grant school districts the ability to adopt stricter local policies regarding obscenity (7/27/23).

The support for HB 234 came from the self-styled parental rights movement. The bill's opponents countered that the push for HB 234 is directly tied to "anti-LGBTQ sentiment. These censorship bills have popped up in response to the availability of materials and books that support LGBTQ youth, especially trans youth. Marginalizing and intimidating LGBTQ youth and cutting them off from information is a form of bullying."(1/19/23).

Legislative Summary: Passed Senate 35-15-0 on Apr/8/23; passed House 66-33-1 on Apr/26/23; signed by Governor Greg Gianforte on May/8/23

Source: Montana State Legislature voting records HB234 May 8, 2022

Tanner Smith: Let school districts adopt stricter policies on obscenity

HB234: Revise dissemination of obscene material to minors laws

Montana Free Press summaries: State Rep. Rob Stutz (D) said that the final version of HB 234 changed "very little" in the law that has defined obscenity and its criminal charges for the past 50 years. The bill does grant school districts the ability to adopt stricter local policies regarding obscenity (7/27/23).

The support for HB 234 came from the self-styled parental rights movement. The bill's opponents countered that the push for HB 234 is directly tied to "anti-LGBTQ sentiment. These censorship bills have popped up in response to the availability of materials and books that support LGBTQ youth, especially trans youth. Marginalizing and intimidating LGBTQ youth and cutting them off from information is a form of bullying."(1/19/23).

Legislative Summary: Passed Senate 35-15-0 on Apr/8/23; passed House 66-33-1 on Apr/26/23; State Rep. Tanner Smith voted YES; signed by Gov. Gianforte on May/8/23

Source: Montana State Legislature voting records HB234 Apr 26, 2022

Ryan Busse: Protested state rejecting federal money for child nutrition

Busse has also appeared recently at political events, such as a July rally at the state Capitol to call on Governor Gianforte publicly to reverse his decision to not accept $10 million in federal funding for a pandemic-era child nutrition program.
Source: Helena Independent Record on 2024 Montana Gubernatorial race Sep 14, 2023

Ryan Busse: Supported federal program to help feed schoolchildren

Busse was among several speakers at a July event in which Democrats urged Gianforte and his administration to opt back into a federal program that would have sent $10 million to Montana to help feed schoolchildren. Gianforte declined to opt into the program, and his public health department said that was because it was a "significant administrative burden."
Source: Daily Montanan on 2024 Montana Gubernatorial race Sep 14, 2023

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2024 Presidential contenders on Families & Children:
  Candidates for President & Vice-President:
V.P.Kamala Harris (D-CA)
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.(I-CA)
Chase Oliver(L-GA)
Dr.Jill Stein(D-MA)
Former Pres.Donald Trump(R-FL)
Sen.J.D.Vance(R-OH)
Gov.Tim Walz(D-MN)
Dr.Cornel West(I-NJ)

2024 presidential primary contenders:
Pres.Joe_Biden(D-DE)
N.D.Gov.Doug Burgum(R)
N.J.Gov.Chris_Christie(R)
Fla.Gov.Ron_DeSantis(R)
S.C.Gov.Nikki_Haley(R)
Ark.Gov.Asa_Hutchinson(R)
Former V.P.Mike Pence(R-IN)
U.S.Rep.Dean_Phillips(D-MN)
Vivek_Ramaswamy(R-OH)
S.C.Sen.Tim_Scott(R)
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