Representative Melody Cunningham, sponsor of House Bill 364, told the House Health and Human Services Committee on Friday that the bill would restore Montana’s prior practice of submitting de‑identified, aggregate school immunization and exemption data to the Department of Public Health and Human Services for inclusion in a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention repository.

The bill sponsor said the change would correct “an unintended consequence” of a 2021 law and would allow Montana to rejoin other states that share aggregate immunization coverage information. “Sharing of this information from the schools to these two groups strictly adheres … to privacy acts as mandated in our Montana constitution and also in the Federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act,” Representative Melody Cunningham (R), House District 97, said while opening the hearing.

Why it matters: Nut graf
Supporters told the committee that county, tribal and state public health officials, school nurses and clinicians use school‑level coverage and exemption rates to detect pockets of vulnerability, focus outreach, and speed diagnosis and treatment if an outbreak occurs. Opponents said the data risked identifying students in small communities and could be misused.

What the bill would do
House Bill 364 would permit schools to forward de‑identified, aggregate counts of student immunization and exemption statuses to DPHHS. Sponsor Cunningham said the schools already collect the data under Montana Code Annotated 25‑4‑03 and that the bill would not create new reporting requirements for local staff. Cunningham listed the specific immunizations covered on the reporting form as varicella (chickenpox), diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough), tetanus, polio, rubella, mumps and measles.

Supporters’ case
Becky Wehner, bureau chief of the Communicable Disease and Prevention Control Bureau at DPHHS, testified in support and said DPHHS previously used the aggregated school data to create annual state and county reports that help local and tribal health jurisdictions and the public. “The proposed bill would simply bring back a process that was already in place and increase the readiness of state and local public health in assisting the control of the spread of a disease in a school or community,” Wehner said.

Dr. Lauren Wilson, immediate past president of the Montana chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, also supported the measure, saying physicians rely on local data to anticipate disease and prepare hospitals and clinics for outbreaks. School nurse Lisa Flanagan testified that Montana schools already collect the records required for enrollment and that school nurses use the information to guide local responses.

DPHHS handling and privacy safeguards
Committee members pressed DPHHS on small‑school identification risks. Wehner told the committee the department would design reports to prevent identification in small populations by rolling counts up to a larger unit (school district or county) or suppressing cells when necessary. “If none of those things seem like they would be appropriate in a situation, we might still be at risk of identifying someone. We would just ask that community to suppress that data,” Wehner said.

Opponents’ concerns
Several opponents said the bill would enable government surveillance and risk identifying students in small towns. Erin Laws, representing the Montana Medical Freedom Alliance and a nurse, said the bill “is unnecessary and leaves room for abuse.” Attorney Pam Lukashu asked the committee to table the bill, warning that “data can be de‑identified just as it can be re‑identified.” Jolene Crum, an opponent with a biotechnology background, testified, “We do not need this bill. We do not need to be sending the CDC any data.” Rebecca Schwartz of Whitefish said there is “no way to de‑identify students in small towns.”

Procedure and next steps
The committee opened the hearing on House Bill 364 and took testimony; no committee vote or formal action on the bill was recorded during the session. Sponsor Cunningham said DPHHS and stakeholders are willing to work on form or amendment language to address privacy concerns raised during the hearing.

Clarifying details from the hearing
- Statutory collection: Sponsor Cunningham and witnesses noted schools are already required by Montana Code Annotated 25‑4‑03 to collect vaccination and exemption documentation at enrollment.
- Vaccines listed on the reporting form: varicella (chickenpox), diphtheria, pertussis/whooping cough, tetanus, polio, rubella, mumps and measles.
- Fiscal impact: Cunningham said DPHHS and schools previously performed this reporting and that no new fiscal note was required.

What supporters and opponents emphasized
Supporters framed the bill as restoring a pre‑2021 reporting practice that improves readiness and situational awareness for public health and clinicians. Opponents focused on privacy risks in small communities and skepticism about federal public health agencies’ use of data.

The hearing record
The committee heard the bill sponsor, multiple public‑health clinicians and school nurses in favor, and several citizens and advocacy witnesses opposed. DPHHS representatives described options for suppressing or aggregating small counts to reduce the risk of re‑identification. The committee did not vote on the bill during the hearing.

A closing note
Representative Cunningham closed by inviting input on amendments and forms to ensure privacy protections before any committee action. The committee adjourned after the hearing without recording a committee vote on HB 364.