2023 Capitol Tracker

The lawmakers, bills and votes of the 68th Montana Legislature

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Last update: 3:17 PM Mar 31, 2023
📑 Key bills🗂 All bills🔎 Find a bill🔎 Find a lawmaker🏡 Your district🗓 Calendar📝 What's happened🙋 How to participate
🏛 House
GOP-held 68-32
🏛 Senate
GOP-held 34-16
🖋 Governor
Greg Gianforte (R)
Rep. Jonathan Karlen, HD 96

Rep. Jonathan Karlen

First-session Democrat from Missoula
Representing House District 96
Northwest Missoula
(406) 851-9226 • Jonathan.Karlen@legmt.gov
Committees •Bills •Key votes •Voting stats •2022 election margin •MTFP Coverage

2023 is the first session Karlen has served in the Legislature.

Committee assignments

House Business and Labor
House Natural Resources
House Fish, Wildlife and Parks
House Legislative Administration

Bills sponsored

📋 HB 235: Revise social security income taxation
Jonathan Karlen (D)📃 Bill text💵 Fiscal note
❌1st Cmte.
⚪️House
⚪️Senate
⚪️Gov.
📋 HB 252: Youth behavioral health screening
Jonathan Karlen (D)📃 Bill text💵 Fiscal note
✅1st Cmte.
❌House
⚪️Senate
⚪️Gov.
📋 HB 258: Providing a one-time refund for occupying a Montana residence
Jonathan Karlen (D)📃 Bill text💵 Fiscal note
❌1st Cmte.
⚪️House
⚪️Senate
⚪️Gov.
📋 HB 280: Providing for circuit breaker income tax credit for property taxes paid
Jonathan Karlen (D)📃 Bill text💵 Fiscal note📰 2 MTFP stories
✅1st Cmte.
❌House
⚪️Senate
⚪️Gov.
📋 HB 421: Revise laws related to reporting financial abuse of elderly and disabled persons
Jonathan Karlen (D)📃 Bill text
❌1st Cmte.
⚪️House
⚪️Senate
⚪️Gov.
📋 HB 465: Revise local government acceptable uses of building permit fees
Jonathan Karlen (D)📃 Bill text
✅1st Cmte.
✅House
✴️Senate
⚪️Gov.
📋 HB 773: Generally revise fish and wildlife laws
Jonathan Karlen (D)📃 Bill text
❌1st Cmte.
⚪️House
⚪️Senate
⚪️Gov.
📋 HB 845: Provide electronic Montana code annotated to state employees at cost
Jonathan Karlen (D)📃 Bill text💵 Fiscal note
✅1st Cmte.
✴️House
⚪️Senate
⚪️Gov.
📋 HB 889: Revise the Residential Mobile Home Lot Rental Act
Jonathan Karlen (D)📃 Bill text💵 Fiscal note
✅1st Cmte.
✴️House
⚪️Senate
⚪️Gov.
📋 HB 911: Generally revise individual income tax laws
Jonathan Karlen (D)📃 Bill text
❌1st Cmte.
⚪️House
⚪️Senate
⚪️Gov.
Showing 10 of 10
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Key bill votes

Most recent floor votes on bills identified as notable by MTFP staff.
Motion / BillKarlen (D)OutcomeRepublicansDemocrats
Do Pass /
HB 2: General Appropriations Act		NO
Y
67-31
Y
67-0
N
0-31
Do Pass /
HB 13: State Employee Pay Plan and revising laws governing state employees		YES
Y
89-7
Y
59-7
Y
30-0
Do Pass /
HB 29: Revise laws related to involuntary commitment of people with dementia or TBI		YES
Y
91-6
Y
64-2
Y
27-4
Do Pass /
HB 37: Generally revise child abuse and neglect laws		YES
Y
96-2
Y
65-2
Y
31-0
Do Pass /
HB 55: An act establishing a tax on electric vehicle charging stations		YES
Y
92-6
Y
65-3
Y
27-3
Do Pass /
HB 60: An act providing for an annual fee on electric vehicles registered in the state		YES
Y
92-8
Y
65-3
Y
27-5
Do Pass /
HB 172: Revise laws related to post-election audits		NO
Y
81-19
Y
65-3
N
16-16
Do Pass /
HB 192: Use surplus revenue for income tax and property tax refunds and payment of bonds		NO
Y
70-29
Y
68-0
N
2-29
Do Pass /
HB 196: Revise election laws related to the counting of votes		NO
Y
65-33
Y
65-2
N
0-31
Do Pass /
HB 212: Increase business equipment tax exemption		NO
Y
67-32
Y
67-1
N
0-31
Do Pass /
HB 222: Provide rebates of property taxes paid on a principal residence		NO
Y
69-30
Y
68-0
N
1-30
Do Pass /
HB 225: Establish adoption tax credit		YES
Y
91-8
Y
66-2
Y
25-6
Do Pass /
HB 234: Revise dissemination of obscene material to minors laws		NO
Y
53-45
Y
53-14
N
0-31
Do Pass /
HB 251: Provide budget stability through investment and liability reduction		NO
Y
70-25
Y
65-0
N
5-25
Do Pass /
HB 267: Create SAFER account for federal highway grants		YES
Y
99-0
Y
68-0
Y
31-0
Do Pass /
HB 268: Establish a child tax credit through the individual income tax		YES
Y
77-21
Y
51-15
Y
26-6
Do Pass As Amended /
HB 280: Providing for circuit breaker income tax credit for property taxes paid		YES
N
38-62
N
6-62
Y
32-0
Do Pass /
HB 284: Revise laws related to approval of electricity supply resources		NO
Y
74-24
Y
63-3
N
11-21
Do Pass /
HB 296: Revising laws relating to real estate transaction disclosures		YES
Y
96-0
Y
66-0
Y
30-0
Do Pass /
HB 303: Implement Medical Ethics and Diversity Act		NO
Y
63-33
Y
63-4
N
0-29
Do Pass /
HB 317: Provide for the Montana Indian Child Welfare Act		YES
Y
64-35
N
33-35
Y
31-0
Do Pass /
HB 326: Revise laws relating to the appointment of the judicial standards commission		NO
Y
66-32
Y
66-1
N
0-31
Do Pass /
HB 332: Generally revise laws related to school employee health benefits		YES
Y
68-31
Y
37-30
Y
31-1
Do Pass /
HB 338: Revise laws related to Indian Education for All		YES
Y
73-24
Y
41-24
Y
32-0
Do Pass /
HB 352: Provide targeted interventions to support 3rd grade reading proficiency		YES
Y
77-20
Y
46-20
Y
31-0
Do Pass /
HB 359: Prohibit minors from attending drag shows		NO
Y
64-32
Y
64-2
N
0-30
Do Pass /
HB 535: Revising education laws to provide a definition of "financial literacy"		YES
Y
66-32
Y
63-4
N
3-28
Do Pass /
HB 544: Provide requirements for coverage of abortion under Medicaid and CHIP		NO
Y
66-32
Y
66-2
N
0-30
Do Pass /
HB 546: Authorize additional funding for coal trust loan program for housing		YES
Y
65-33
Y
35-33
Y
30-0
Do Pass /
HB 549: Authorizing establishment of public charter schools		YES
Y
79-21
Y
57-11
Y
22-10
Do Pass /
HB 562: Authorize establishment of community choice schools		NO
Y
63-37
Y
62-6
N
1-31
Do Pass /
HB 575: Prohibit abortion of unborn viable children		NO
Y
68-31
Y
68-0
N
0-31
Do Pass /
HB 588: Revise TEACH Act incentives to increase starting teacher salary		YES
Y
89-0
Y
61-0
Y
28-0
Do Pass /
HB 625: Infant safety and care act		NO
Y
66-32
Y
66-1
N
0-31
Cloture-Gunderson /
HB 649: Implement rates from provider rate study		YES
Y
84-14
Y
59-8
Y
25-6
Do Pass /
HB 695: Revise TRO standard for suits against the state and subdivisions of government		NO
Y
73-25
Y
67-0
N
6-25
Do Pass /
HB 721: Restrict unborn child from dismemberment abortion		NO
Y
67-31
Y
67-0
N
0-31
Do Concur /
SB 70: Revise the Quality Educator Loan Assistance Program		YES
Y
59-37
N
31-37
Y
28-0
Do Concur /
SB 99: Provide for a youth health protection act		NO
Y
65-35
Y
65-3
N
0-32
Do Concur /
SB 121: Reduce top marginal income tax rate and increase EITC		NO
Y
68-30
Y
68-0
N
0-30
Do Concur /
SB 191: Revise preliminary injunction laws		NO
Y
67-30
Y
67-0
N
0-30

Floor vote statistics

Calculations based on 1,440 House floor votes in 2023 involving bills.
🥇 80%
of votes cast on winning side
Average for House Democrats is 83%.
🔴 76%
of votes cast on side taken by most Republicans
Average for House Democrats is 80%.
🔵 94%
of votes cast on side taken by most Democrats
Average for House Democrats is 96%.
Karlen has been marked absent or excused for 0 votes. Average for House lawmakers is 10.5.

HD 96 election results

Last in-cycle for House election in 2022. House seats are elected every two years, Senate seats every four.

General election vote, 2022

(D) JONATHAN KARLEN(D) 53%(R) 47%
Won by 6% (347 votes)

Party primary vote, 2022

(D) JONATHAN KARLEN(D) 67%(D) 33%
Won by 33% (491 votes)

Governor vote in district, 2020

(D) COONEY(D) 49%(R) 46%
Won by 3% (216 votes)

Montana Free Press coverage

MTFP legislative reporting involving Karlen.
📰 Environment
$1 million wildlife crossings fund passes legislative committee
Mar 29, 2023 • Amanda Eggert
📰 2023 Legislature
Republicans vote down long-term property tax relief bill
Feb 15, 2023 • Eric Dietrich
📰 2023 Legislature
Tax rebate package muscled through initial House votes
Feb 1, 2023 • Eric Dietrich

About the 2023 Montana Free Press Capitol Tracker

This guide is an effort to make the quantifiable aspects of the Montana Legislature more accessible to the public by compiling information about lawmakers, proposed bills and the legislative process. This is a project of Montana Free Press, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit newsroom that aims to provide Montanans with in-depth, nonpartisan news coverage.

The information presented here is collected from a variety of sources including the Montana Legislature’s public roster and its official bill-tracking system, the Legislative Automated Workflow System, or LAWS. Reporting and web design was done primarily by MTFP Deputy Editor Eric Dietrich. Please contact him at edietrich@montanafreepress.org with bug reports, questions or suggestions.

Think there's a potential news story to be done about a bill or lawmaker you see here? Tell us at tips@montanafreepress.org.

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