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March 19, 2007

Thank you

Thanks to all who spent their Sunday's stuffing Mailers for JP. Here's a list:
Alex Russell
Lain Kay
Sue Roughton
Don Bachman
Drusha Mayhue
Elizabeth Darrow
Jim Walseth
Elizabeth Marum
Gary Bogar
Gordon Julian and Sarah Williams
Kristen Walser
Lynea Seher
June Schweitzer
Debra DeBode

Doughnuts from Robert McWilliams/Granny's Donuts

Posted by admin at 04:16 PM | Comments (0)

March 15, 2007

From JP: Dear Valued Voter,

15 March 2007

Dear Valued Voter,

I'm writing with a mid-session report of our work in the Montana Legislature!

The 2007 session is going well, and I've introduced bills to protect your privacy, help disabled hunters, give our counties greater power to complete projects, more strictly classify a prescription drug, help the Montana Conservation Corps, and much more.

First, I must say how honored I am to serve in our Legislature. I work every day among the best people that Montana has to offer, and we all work sincerely at crafting state policy to serve the best interests of Montana.

I was fortunate to be appointed to serve on excellent committees. I serve on the House Taxation Committee, where I've voted for property and income tax relief, business tax relief, and tax credits for elderly homeowners and for energy audits of homes. I also serve on the House Natural Resources Committee, and I've voted to protect water rights as well as clean air and water standards, to prohibit the export of mercury, to protect the Big Hole River, and to keep our access to our rivers and streams.

One of the most important bills I've sponsored is House Bill 450, a pro-privacy and pro-hunting and fishing bill. HB450 would allow for partial Social Security Numbers (last four digits) to be collected on hunting and fishing licenses instead of full SSNs. The biggest hurdle is that the federal government must issue the state an exemption from the requirement to collect full SSNs. To collect just the last four digits and keep your information from being compromised, we need both state statute and the federal exemption. HB 450 helps prevent identity theft. Good news-HB 450 passed the House of Representatives on February 20, and on February 27, the federal government granted our exemption! Now, the bill goes to the Senate. Once it passes there and is signed into law by the governor, Montana recreationists will have greater privacy and much lower chances of identity theft, while enjoying our world-class Montana hunting and fishing.

I've sponsored a bill to authorize Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (nurse practitioners) and Physician's Assistants to make medical determinations for issuance of disabled hunting permits, and to allow anyone to appeal to the Board of Medical Examiners about disabled hunting permits. The bill will grant our citizens more access to our Montana heritage of hunting and fishing.

In addition, I'm proud to have carried House Bill 51 for the Montana Conservation Corps (MCC) and the Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Parks, to remove state oversight from the MCC. The Montana Conservation Corps is a success story. Formed in 1989 under the State Parks Division, the MCC became an independent non-profit organization just one year later and is now a model of conservation efforts. The Corps has offices around the state with its main office in Bozeman! Now that the MCC is independent, its work on trail-building, historic preservation, and habitat restoration serves FWP and many other agencies. The MCC is widely regarded as an exemplary program.

Unfortunately, some of you may have received a disturbing and graphic mailer from the Republican State Central Committee about House Bill 340. The mailer stated my position as against self-defense, which is blatantly wrong. I completely support our constitutional right of self-defense and our right to bear arms. But this bill would allow people to carry guns without a concealed weapons permit, to brandish a gun, to claim self-defense for any action, and to require prosecutors to delay filing charges for ten days for gun crimes if a defendant claims self-defense.

Law enforcement officials, including the Montana Police Protective Association, the Montana Association of Police Chiefs, Montana County Attorneys Association, and the Montana Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association, including our own Gallatin County Sheriff Jim Cashell, County Attorney Marty Lambert, and Bozeman Director of Public Safety Mark Tymrak, as well as citizens of both political parties, opposed House Bill 340, and so did I.

I cast my vote against HB 340 because we as citizens should not be affronted by people with guns.

We should not be fearful that basic frustrations of everyday life will turn into gun crimes, and that those responsible for gun violence could not be held to their actions by claims of self-defense. As a state representative, it's my job to balance the rights and responsibilities of gun owners like me with the safety and effectiveness of our law enforcement officers. I opposed HB 340 because it tipped the balance too far to the degree that police and the public would be needlessly endangered.

Back to more positive things, I requested some great legislation that has passed the Senate, including Senate Bill 166, to allow families and Purple Heart recipients to fish for free, and SB 452, the Working Forests, Ranches, and Watersheds Program, which would give Montana the opportunity to purchase lands for public use and to keep our lands in traditional uses and conservation. It will allow us to continue Montana’s legacy and pristine beauty into the future.

I have been asked by Trout Unlimited to carry Senate Bill 78 on the House floor for stream access at county bridges, and I've been working on water policy legislation to protect both water quality and water quantity. My work on the House Natural Resources Committee gives me a good start on a long career of fighting for the rights of hunters and fishermen.

I am proud and honored to serve as your representative in our state legislature, and I appreciate hearing from so many of you via email, phone calls, and letters. Please contact me anytime. I'll continue my good bipartisan work here in Helena, and I’ll always do the best I can for you and all of our fellow Montanans.

Best regards,

JP Pomnichowski

Montana State Representative

House District 63, Bozeman/Gallatin County

repjp@mt.gov pomnicho@montanadsl.net

Posted by admin at 04:33 PM | Comments (0)

Guest Editorial from Sheriff Jim Cashell

Last week Representative J.P. Pomnichowski was the subject of a vicious attack that misrepresented her views on Second Amendment protections and totally ignored the content of the bill she voted against.

Representative Pomnichowski opposed House Bill 340 because of serious

concerns that were raised by law enforcement agencies from all corners of our state. Including the Montana Sheriff's and Peace Officers Association, Montana County Attorney's Association, Montana Chief's of Police Association and the Montana Police Protective Association. Republicans and Democrats working in law enforcement know that the bill as written will create new opportunities for violent criminals to evade responsibility. It will also frustrate the efforts of prosecutors to handle this category of cases.

The attack on Representative Pomnichowski was unwarranted and misrepresented the impact of the bill in question. The mailing featured a shocking photo of a woman in a plastic bag that was clearly designed to prey on people's fears. This ad is an offensive piece of negative campaigning.

Montana's law enforcement agencies appreciate Representative Pomnichowski's strong support for public safety. We are deeply troubled by this unethical attack on a hard-working legislator. Montana's law enforcement community is as diverse as the state itself...made up of democrats, republicans, constitutionalists, and just about any other party or persuasion you can think of. Some are lifetime NRA members. Most are avid outdoorsmen and women.

They all know and understand this, however:

Your right to self-defense is guaranteed under the Montana Constitution. HB340 will put law enforcement and the public at risk. HB340 will make criminal convictions more difficult to obtain. HB 340 WILL DO MUCH MORE HARM THAN GOOD.

Jim Cashell, Sheriff

Posted by admin at 04:13 PM | Comments (0)