Montana Legislature 2027: Jan. 4 Start, Bill Requests Due Dec. 5

The 70th Montana Legislature convenes in Helena at noon on Monday, Jan. 4, 2027, and the Dec. 5, 2026 bill request deadline comes first, according to the Montana Legislative Services Division (LSD). Legislators can ask for an unlimited number of bill drafts until 5:00 p.m. Mountain Time (7 p.m. ET) that Saturday; after that each is limited to seven. The LSD “2027 Session Calendar” gives every later deadline by legislative day, and the free printable tracker below lists them in date order.

The calendar carries the header “Draft- Leadership Adopted- Updated-8-3-26.” It says “Legislative leadership holds the authority to further revise the schedule, including the days the Legislature meets and proposed breaks.” Every 2027 date here comes from that Aug. 3, 2026 draft.

Montana Legislature 2027 session dates by legislative day

Montana Code Annotated (MCA) 5-2-103 has each regular session convene “at 12 noon on the first Monday of January of each odd-numbered year.” The LSD calendar adds that if Jan. 1 is a Monday, the session starts on the first Wednesday. Jan. 1, 2027 is a Friday, so day 1 is Monday, Jan. 4. The table repeats the calendar’s wording, with capitals lowered where the calendar prints them. Times are Mountain Time (MT).

Date	Weekday	Legislative day	What the calendar says
Dec. 5, 2026	Saturday	before	“5:00pm deadline to Submit unlimited Legislator Bill Requests” (7 p.m. ET)
Dec. 15, 2026	Tuesday	before	“5:00 pm Deadline for agency/committee Bill Pre Introduction” (7 p.m. ET)
Dec. 30, 2026	Wednesday	before	“5:00pm deadline for Legislator Pre Introduction” (7 p.m. ET)
Jan. 4, 2027	Monday	1	Legislature convenes (labeled day 1)
Jan. 15	Friday	10	“Last day to request General bills and Resolutions”
Jan. 22	Friday	15	“Last day to request Revenue Bills”
Feb. 12	Friday	30	“Last day for Committee or Leadership to request General Bills.”
Feb. 23	Tuesday	37	“Last day to introduce General Bills”
Mar. 1	Monday	42	“Last day to request Appropriation bills”
Mar. 4	Thursday	45	“Transmittal of General Bills to another chamber”
Mar. 17	Wednesday	52	“Last day for committees or Leadership to request Appropriations, Revenue, or Referenda bills.” and “Last day to introduce bills implementing HB2”
Mar. 25	Thursday	59	“Last day to introduce Appropriation, Revenue & Bills proposing Referenda and General Joint Resolutions.”
Mar. 26	Friday	60	“Transmittal of Estimating Revenue resolutions”
Mar. 27-29	Saturday to Monday	none	Easter break
Apr. 2	Friday	64	“Last day to Introduce Study resolutions”
Apr. 6	Tuesday	67	“Transmittal of Revenue Bills and bills proposing Referenda and General joint Resolutions & Appropriation Bills”
Apr. 10	Saturday	71	“Transmittal of Amendments to General Bills”
Apr. 12	Monday	72	“Transmittal of Interim Study Resolutions”
Apr. 23	Friday	82	“Transmittal of Senate amendments to Appropriation bills and Amendments to Revenue Bills”
May 3	Monday	90	Last legislative day on the calendar (labeled day 90)

The calendar also lists a “Legislator Orientation Caucus” on Nov. 9-13, 2026. The “HB2” in the March 17 row is House Bill 2 (HB 2); the calendar does not say more about it.

What is the Montana bill draft request deadline for 2027?

Dec. 5, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. MT is the cutoff for unlimited requests. The LSD guide “From Idea to Introduction,” dated October 2024 for the 2025 session, says that “after the general election, but before 5 p.m. on December 5 preceding a regular session, all legislators (including holdover senators, unopposed legislators, and newly elected legislators) may request an unlimited number of bills or resolutions to be drafted (see Joint Rule 40-40).”

The same guide gives the limit after that time: “After 5 p.m. on December 5, you may request no more than seven bill drafts, at least five of which must be requested before the session convenes.” That guide is the 2025 edition, so the rule is as LSD wrote it for the last session; the 2027 calendar repeats the Dec. 5 date. The calendar then lists Dec. 15 for agency and committee pre-introduction and Dec. 30 for legislator pre-introduction, both at 5:00 p.m. MT.

When do bill request and introduction deadlines close in 2027?

Requests for general bills and resolutions close Friday, Jan. 15 (day 10), and revenue bill requests Friday, Jan. 22 (day 15). Committees and leadership can request general bills through Friday, Feb. 12 (day 30). Introduction of general bills ends Tuesday, Feb. 23 (day 37). Appropriation bill requests close Monday, March 1 (day 42).

Later cutoffs follow the bill type. Committees and leadership can request appropriations, revenue or referenda bills through Wednesday, March 17 (day 52), and those bills can be introduced through Thursday, March 25 (day 59). The same March 17 row sets the last day to introduce bills implementing HB 2. Study resolutions can be introduced through Friday, April 2 (day 64).

How long is the Montana 2027 session?

Article V, Section 6 of the Montana Constitution says “The legislature shall meet each odd-numbered year in regular session of not more than 90 legislative days.” It adds that “any legislature may increase the limit on the length of any subsequent session.” The 2027 calendar’s last entry is Monday, May 3, labeled legislative day 90. It has no adjournment label, so the sine die date is not on the calendar. Day 90 is the limit, and the leadership draft can change which days the Legislature meets.

The calendar shows an Easter break on Saturday, March 27 to Monday, March 29. Transmittal deadlines run later: April 6 (day 67), April 10 (day 71), April 12 (day 72) and April 23 (day 82). The House has 100 members elected to 2-year terms and the Senate 50 members elected to 4-year terms, according to the legislature’s “About” page.

How does Montana’s 2027 calendar compare with 2025?

The LSD calendar for the 69th Legislature in 2025 started on Monday, Jan. 6, 2025, and planned legislative day 90 for Tuesday, May 6, 2025. The 2027 calendar starts two days earlier on the calendar and ends on day 90 three days earlier.

Milestone	2025 (69th Legislature)	2027 (70th Legislature)
Legislative day 1	Mon., Jan. 6, 2025	Mon., Jan. 4, 2027
Last day to request general bills	Tue., Jan. 21, 2025 (day 12)	Fri., Jan. 15, 2027 (day 10)
Last day to introduce general bills	Wed., Feb. 26, 2025 (day 40)	Tue., Feb. 23, 2027 (day 37)
Legislative day 90	Tue., May 6, 2025 (planned)	Mon., May 3, 2027

The 2027 general-bill request and introduction dates both come earlier in the session than in 2025 by legislative day, and the 2025 introduction date and day 90 are the planned dates on that calendar.

Print the Montana Legislature 2027 session tracker

The free two-page tracker lists the three December deadlines, opening day, every request and introduction cutoff, the transmittal dates and day 90, each with a box to check off. Pair it with a January 2027 calendar or a yearly calendar. Other states open earlier or later in January: see the Colorado Legislature 2027 session, the Maryland General Assembly 2027 session and the Texas bill-filing deadlines.

Not yet announced: an adjournment date for the 2027 session, and any revision by legislative leadership to the Aug. 3 draft.