A bill imposing the revocation of the driver’s, hunting, and other licenses of any business owner found to be employing any person unauthorized to work in the United States failed to pass the Montana state House by a single vote on Monday, with nine Republicans joining all 41 Democrats present (one Dem was a no-show) to sink the bill 50 to 49, the Kalispell Daily Inter-Lake reports.

What exactly happened to HB 536 is a bit opaque on its page on Legiscan but it does appear that it passed 72 to 27 on the first round and then some asshole amended it to strike “knowingly” from “knowingly employs” leading to the failure. What is clear is that the Hinkle boys, Republican brothers Caleb and Jedediah Lee of the 67th and 68th Districts, were the only familial duo to vote yes together. Husband and wife Representatives George and Melissa Nikolakakos of the 20th and 22nd Districts were a yes and no respectively as were Representative Steve (HD 24) and his dad John Fitzpatrick (HD 76). Dem Representative Sid “Chip” Fitzpatrick, in between the two on the roll call, looks nothing like either of them and seems to be mostly of Indigenous American ancestry.

So does Dem Representative Tyson Running Wolf but didn’t even look at his photo. Call it a hunch.

Anyway Montana law already fines those who employ illegal labor $300 each violation which is probably why, per the Daily Inter-Lake, it’s estimated that under 1 percent of the state’s workforce is illegal. Yet the sponsors still wanted to spend $5 million to set up a state law enforcement task force to pursue employers in the amended bill, something John Fitzgerald balked at, saying “I’m not convinced we have that much of a problem to begin with. And then we’re going to put a $5 million fiscal note on a bill that essentially does not have a defined problem.” Very DOGEy there Fitz.