MT HJ62

Requests the Legislative Council to designate an interim committee to study wildfire prevention and resilience in Montana, with findings due to the 70th Legislature

Study must examine wildfire impacts on communities, including economic, social, and ecological costs in the wildland-urban interface, and compare costs of post-fire recovery versus pre-fire home hardening

Directs review of wildfire-focused land use planning, including the role of defensible space, fire-resistant building materials, and maintaining access routes for emergency response

Requires analysis of barriers to adoption of existing wildfire resilience laws and potential solutions including tax incentives, cost-share programs, grants, and statewide building material regulations

Study must be completed by September 15, 2026; Montana has the second-highest share of at-risk properties in the Western U.S., with over 1,400 structures destroyed by wildfires in the past 20 years