It’s the first approval for 25-foot buffer zone bill for law enforcement, teeing it up for committee introduction in 2027 session
By Jen Clancey STAFF WRITER
Twenty-five feet: it’s approximately the length of five standard park benches, a large male Orca whale, or half the width of a professional basketball court. The distance is also at the center of a conversation about buffer zones between the public and law enforcement response areas.
Montana legislators are discussing a bill that would require members of the public to stay approximately 25 feet from law enforcement and first responders in emergency areas upon warning from an officer. If the individual fails to move and interferes with or impedes law enforcement response, they can be convicted of a misdemeanor.
On July 14, the Montana Legislature’s Interim Law and Justice Committee voted 6-3 on partisan lines to approve the bill for introduction in committee when the 2027 legislature convenes in January. Vice chair and Missoula Democratic Rep. Zooey Zephyr summarized her concerns about the bill when she voted against the draft.
“The thing we try to balance here is how we hope this can be used versus how it can be abused,” Zephyr said. Leading up to her remarks, she explained that the potential for a roving barrier around incident areas at an officers’ discretion, and the ability for an officer to command further space from where they stand, makes it unclear how far people can be required to stay away from officers and incidents. The penalty for a misdemeanor is a fine up to $500, jail time for up to six months, or both.
This type of legislation is commonly called a “halo law.” Montana’s version states that a person must give a first responder approximately 25 feet of space in all directions—hence the “halo” nickname—when given a verbal warning. This space, and any physical markers that outline a scene, like tape and barricades, are considered “emergency incident areas.” The law adds that a person entering or remaining in the area after a warning will be convicted of an offense when they’re also interfering with, impeding or threatening an officer, or hindering officer duties. The penalty for a misdemeanor is a fine up to $500, jail time for up to six months, or both.
Laurel Republican Sen. Vince Ricci supported the bill, saying that emergencies aren’t always arrests being made.
“What if it’s an accident and there’s someone that really needs an ambulance and they have people encroaching … I think we need to give these guys some grace,” Ricci said.
A current Montana law already outlines a penalty for a person who obstructs, hinders or impairs law enforcement duties—Democratic Missoula Sen. Shane Morigeau noted that the new proposed halo law seems a duplicate of the existing statute.
Versions of the controversial buffer zone law have faced legal challenges in other states. Courts struck down halo laws in Indiana, Arizona and Louisiana over First Amendment rights concerns and vague wording. But Florida, Kentucky and Tennessee enforce buffer zones. Henry Seaton, Montana ACLU lobbyist, stated in a public comment that the bill would create a “chilling effect on free speech.”
In later questioning about the bill’s language and how it would be enforced, Shelby DeMars, lobbyist for the MT Police Protective Association shared that amendments to the bill are possible.
“I can say with absolute certainty that the First Amendment and individual’s ability to film various instances, whether they be a member of the general public or a member of the media or anywhere in between, is definitely something that we want to preserve,” DeMars said.
Public commenters weigh in, unconvinced
In the public comment portion, attendees remained unconvinced about the bill’s protection of free speech and whether the bill can evade lawsuits. Independent journalist Jenna Martin discussed its potential effect on the press.
“This bill would significantly impact our ability as journalists to observe and document and report on law enforcement and first responder activity in public,” Martin said. A tenet of the First Amendment is freedom of the press—and similar buffer zone bills have been scrutinized by organizations like the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, who represented a media coalition’s successful lawsuit to stop a similar Indiana halo law.
Another commenter and Montana resident, Elana Selinger, described witnessing detainments made during Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in Montana early July—Montana Highway Patrol confirmed assisting an operation in Bozeman on July 1. She expressed worry about how the bill would limit recording and documenting law enforcement, and the costs of legal challenges to the bill.
“I, as a taxpayer, don’t want to pay for costly legal battles and have my lawmakers focused on infringing on our rights when it could be focused on important legislation,” Salinger said. “There are already laws that protect first responders, such as obstructing a peace officer, which makes this bill incredibly irrelevant.”
The bill still has a way to go, needing to be introduced as a partisan bill in committee in the 2027 legislative session. With the Republican majority approving the bill in a 6-3 vote, legislators will need to weigh the bill’s constitutionality, possible legal costs and potential amendments in 2027.
