Terms Used In Montana Code > Title 1 > Chapter 2 - Statutory Construction

• Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
• Affidavit: means a sworn written declaration made before an officer authorized to administer oaths or an unsworn written declaration made under penalty of perjury as provided in 1-6-105. See Montana Code 1-1-203
• Agency: means any board, bureau, commission, department, authority, or officer of the executive branch of state government authorized or required by law to make rules. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• Agency: means an office, position, commission, committee, board, department, council, division, bureau, section, or any other entity or instrumentality of the executive department of state government. See Montana Code 2-8-102
• Agency: means an office, position, commission, committee, board, department, council, division, bureau, section, or any other entity or instrumentality of the executive, legislative, or judicial branch of state government. See Montana Code 2-8-301
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• breach: means the unauthorized acquisition of computerized data that:

  (a)materially compromises the security, confidentiality, or integrity of the personal information maintained by a state agency or by a third party on behalf of a state agency; and

  (b)causes or is reasonably believed to cause loss or injury to a person. See Montana Code 2-6-1501

• Chief information security officer: means an employee at the department of administration designated by the chief information officer who is responsible for protecting the state's information assets and citizens' data by:

  (a)advising and overseeing information security strategy and programs for executive branch state agencies without elected officials;

  (b)advising and consulting information security strategy and programs for executive branch state agencies with elected officials and the legislative and judicial branches; and

  (c)advising information security strategy and programs for city, county, consolidated city-county, and local governments and for school districts, other political subdivisions, or tribal governments. See Montana Code 2-6-1501

• committee: means an advisory committee established under 2-5-106 and authorized under 2-4-304 to consider and discuss issues for the purpose of reaching a consensus in the development of a proposed rule. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• Committee membership: Legislators are assigned to specific committees by their party. Seniority, regional balance, and political philosophy are the most prominent factors in the committee assignment process.
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Confidential information: means information that is accorded confidential status or is prohibited from disclosure as provided by applicable law. See Montana Code 2-6-1002
• Consensus: means unanimous concurrence among the interests represented on a negotiated rulemaking committee established under 2-5-106 unless the committee agrees upon another specified definition. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• Constitutional officer: means the governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, superintendent of public instruction, or auditor, who are the constitutionally designated and elected officials of the executive branch of government. See Montana Code 2-6-1002
• Constitutional officer record: means a public record prepared, owned, used, or retained by a constitutional officer. See Montana Code 2-6-1002
• Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
• Convener: means a person who impartially assists an agency in determining whether establishment of a negotiated rulemaking committee is feasible and appropriate for a particular rulemaking procedure. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• Counterclaim: A claim that a defendant makes against a plaintiff.
• Customary: means according to usage. See Montana Code 1-1-206
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
• Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• Executive branch agency: means a department, board, commission, office, bureau, or other public authority of the executive branch of state government. See Montana Code 2-6-1002
• Executor: A male person named in a will to carry out the decedent
• Facilitator: means a person who impartially aids in the discussions and negotiations among the members of a negotiated rulemaking committee to develop a proposed rule. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
• Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Government entity: means the state and political subdivisions, including but not limited to:

  (a)political subdivisions as defined in 2-9-101(5);

  (b)the legislature, legislative committees, and legislators acting in their official capacity; and

  (c)employees of the state or a political subdivision. See Montana Code 2-9-901

• Health care provider: means a health care professional, whether the health care professional works for a health care provider or a government health care provider, health care facility, home health care facility, assisted living facility, or any other person or facility otherwise authorized or permitted by any federal or state statute, regulation, order, or public health guidance to administer health care services or treatment. See Montana Code 2-9-901
• Historic record: means a public record found by the state archivist to have permanent administrative or historic value to the state. See Montana Code 2-6-1002
• Indemnification: In general, a collateral contract or assurance under which one person agrees to secure another person against either anticipated financial losses or potential adverse legal consequences. ^{Source: FDIC}
• Individual: means a human being. See Montana Code 2-6-1501
• Interest: means , with respect to an issue or matter, multiple parties that have a similar point of view or that are likely to be affected in a similar manner. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• Joint committee: Committees including membership from both houses of teh legislature. Joint committees are usually established with narrow jurisdictions and normally lack authority to report legislation.
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
• Local government: means a city, town, county, consolidated city-county, special district, or school district or a subdivision of one of these entities. See Montana Code 2-6-1002
• Local government records committee: means the committee provided for in 2-6-1201. See Montana Code 2-6-1002
• Negotiated rulemaking: means rulemaking through the use of a negotiated rulemaking committee. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• Performance audit: means an examination of the effectiveness of administration and its efficiency and adequacy in terms of the program of a state agency authorized by law to be performed and the conformance of expenditures with legislative intent. See Montana Code 2-8-102
• Permanent record: means a public record designated for long-term or permanent retention. See Montana Code 2-6-1002
• Person: means an individual, partnership, corporation, association, governmental subdivision, agency, or public or private organization of any character. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• Person: means an individual, a partnership, a corporation, an association, or a public organization of any character. See Montana Code 2-6-1501
• Person: means an individual, corporation, nonprofit corporation, estate, trust, partnership, limited liability company, business or similar trust, association, joint venture, place of worship, personal representative, trustee, government entity, or any other legal or commercial entity. See Montana Code 2-9-901
• Personal information: means a first name or first initial and last name in combination with any one or more of the following data elements when the name and data elements are not encrypted:

  (i)a social security number;

  (ii)a driver's license number, an identification card number issued pursuant to 61-12-501, a tribal identification number or enrollment number, or a similar identification number issued by any state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, or American Samoa;

  (iii)an account number or credit or debit card number in combination with any required security code, access code, or password that would permit access to a person's financial account;

  (iv)medical record information as defined in 33-19-104;

  (v)a taxpayer identification number; or

  (vi)an identity protection personal identification number issued by the United States internal revenue service. See Montana Code 2-6-1501

• Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
• Premises: includes any real property and any appurtenant building or structure, as well as any other location, vehicle, or place serving a commercial, residential, educational, religious, governmental, cultural, charitable, or health care purpose. See Montana Code 2-9-901
• Presiding officer: A majority-party Senator who presides over the Senate and is charged with maintaining order and decorum, recognizing Members to speak, and interpreting the Senate's rules, practices and precedents.
• Private sector: means any entity or individual not principally a part of or associated with a governmental unit that is associated with or involved in commercial activity. See Montana Code 2-8-301
• Privatize: means an agency contracting with the private sector to provide services that are currently or normally conducted directly by the employees of the state. See Montana Code 2-8-301
• Program: means any legislatively or administratively created function, project, or duty of an agency. See Montana Code 2-8-102
• Program: means a legislatively or administratively created function, project, or duty of an agency. See Montana Code 2-8-301
• Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
• Public agency: means the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of Montana state government, a political subdivision of the state, a local government, and any agency, department, board, commission, office, bureau, division, or other public authority of the executive, legislative, or judicial branch of the state of Montana. See Montana Code 2-6-1002
• Public health guidance: includes guidance related to covid-19 issued by the following:

  (a)the centers for disease control and prevention of the United States department of health and human services;

  (b)the centers for medicare and medicaid services of the United States department of health and human services;

  (c)the federal occupational safety and health administration;

  (d)the office of the governor;

  (e)a state agency, including the Montana department of public health and human services; or

  (f)a local government, including a local government health department or local government board of health. See Montana Code 2-9-901

• Public information: means information prepared, owned, used, or retained by any public agency relating to the transaction of official business, regardless of form, except for confidential information that must be protected against public disclosure under applicable law. See Montana Code 2-6-1002
• Public officer: means any person who has been elected or appointed as an officer of state or local government. See Montana Code 2-6-1002
• Public record: means public information that is:

  (a)fixed in any medium and is retrievable in usable form for future reference; and

  (b)designated for retention by the state records committee, judicial branch, legislative branch, or local government records committee. See Montana Code 2-6-1002

• Records manager: means an individual designated by a public agency to be responsible for coordinating the efficient and effective management of the agency's public records and information. See Montana Code 2-6-1002
• Redaction: means the alteration of personal information contained within data to make all or a significant part of the data unreadable. See Montana Code 2-6-1501
• Rule: means an agency regulation, standard, or statement of general applicability that implements, interprets, or prescribes law or policy or describes the organization, procedures, or practice requirements of an agency. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• Security incident: means an occurrence that:

  (a)actually or potentially jeopardizes the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of an information system or the information the system processes, stores, or transmits; or

  (b)constitutes a violation or imminent threat of violation of security policies, security procedures, or acceptable use policies. See Montana Code 2-6-1501

• Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
• Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
• State agency: means an agency, authority, board, bureau, college, commission, committee, council, department, hospital, institution, office, university, or other instrumentality of the legislative or executive branch of state government. See Montana Code 2-6-1501
• State records committee: means the state records committee provided for in 2-6-1107. See Montana Code 2-6-1002
• Statute of limitations: A law that sets the time within which parties must take action to enforce their rights.
• Third party: means :

  (a)a person with a contractual obligation to perform a function for a state agency; or

  (b)a state agency with a contractual or other obligation to perform a function for another state agency. See Montana Code 2-6-1501

• Tort: A civil wrong or breach of a duty to another person, as outlined by law. A very common tort is negligent operation of a motor vehicle that results in property damage and personal injury in an automobile accident.
• Uniform Commercial Code: A set of statutes enacted by the various states to provide consistency among the states' commercial laws. It includes negotiable instruments, sales, stock transfers, trust and warehouse receipts, and bills of lading. ^{Source: OCC}