MT Code § 81-2-201 (2021)
2021 Montana Code Annotated|Title 81. Livestock|Chapter 2. Disease Control|Part 2. Indemnity|81-2-201. Classification of animals as to compensation for slaughter

  81-2-201. Classification of animals as to compensation for slaughter. Animals slaughtered under the direction of the department by order of the board are divided into two classes for the purposes of compensation:   (1) Animals determined by the department to be affected with an incurable disease that are destroyed by order of the board are designated as animals of class 1, and unless otherwise provided, each of the animals must be paid for on the basis of 75% of its appraised value. The county in which the animal was owned at the time it was determined to be affected with an incurable disease is liable in part, as later provided, for an indemnity to be paid for the animal. The ownership and county are determined by an affidavit of the owner of the animal or the owner's agent. Each animal directed to be destroyed must be appraised by a representative or an authorized agent of the department with the owner agreeing in writing as to the value of the animal. When appraised, due consideration must be given to its breeding value as well as its dairy or meat value and the condition of the animal as to the disease and the present and probable effect of the disease on the animal. In the absence of an agreement, there must be appointed three competent, disinterested parties, one appointed by the department, one by the owner, and a third by the first two, to appraise each animal, taking into consideration its breeding value as well as its dairy or meat value and the condition of the animal as to the disease and the present probable effect of the disease on the animal. The judgment of the majority is the judgment of the appraisers and is binding on both parties as the final determination of indemnity to be paid for each animal. The total compensation of each group of appraisers is limited to $5 for the group appraisal, one-half of which must be paid by the department. The total amount of indemnity paid by the state and a county for an animal may not exceed the actual sound value of an animal of its class, and the total combined amount of indemnity paid for the animal by the state and a county may not exceed the sum of $100 for a registered purebred animal or the sum of $50 for a grade animal. Animals presented for appraisal as purebreds must be accompanied by their registration papers at the time of appraisal, or they must be appraised as grades. If purebreds are less than 3 years old and not registered, the department may grant a reasonable time for their registration and presentation of their registration papers to the appraiser. Registration papers must accompany the claim for indemnity.   (2) Animals of class 1 must be paid for on the basis of their full appraised value as determined in this section if no evidence of incurable disease is disclosed by autopsy, bacteriologic, serologic, microscopic, or other findings. The total combined amount of indemnity paid by the state and a county for an animal may not exceed the actual sound value of an animal of its class. The total combined amount of indemnity paid by the state and a county for the animal may not exceed $100 for a registered purebred animal or $50 for a grade animal.   (3) Animals that are determined by the department to be affected with or exposed to foot-and-mouth disease, rinderpest, contagious pleura pneumonia, surra, or other infectious, contagious, communicable, or dangerous disease, which is not of its nature necessarily fatal, and that are destroyed by order of the department as a sanitary safeguard are designated as animals of class 2, and each animal must be paid for on the basis of its full appraised value. The appraised value must be determined in the manner set out in subsection (1). The appraisal of the animals must be based on the meat, dairy, or breeding value of the animal, but when appraisal is based on breeding value of the animal, an appraisal may not exceed three times its meat or dairy value. The total amount of indemnity paid by the state for an animal may not exceed the actual sound value of an animal in its class. An indemnity for a class 2 animal may not be paid by a county. In the case of destruction of an animal afflicted with brucellosis, also known as Bang's disease, an indemnity may not be paid for the animal unless the board, in its discretion, determines the best interests of this state will be served by payment of an indemnity. In this event, the board shall set out standards of indemnity by rules and may not pay in excess of $100 for a registered purebred animal or $50 for a grade animal. In all cases in which the federal government or an agency other than the state compensates the owner in whole or in part for livestock destroyed as a sanitary safeguard, the amount of compensation from the state must be determined under 81-2-210.   (4) Animals that are injured or killed while they are being inspected or tested under an order of the department or its agent and that do not come within either class 1 or class 2 may be paid for at their full appraised value if the claim for the animal is recommended for payment at a meeting of the board. When it is shown that the injury or death of the animal was not proximately due to the negligence of the owner or the owner's agent, the whole claim, when approved, must be paid out of department funds. The limit of indemnity for an animal paid for by the state may not exceed that fixed by this section for class 2 animals.   History: En. Sec. 12, Ch. 262, L. 1921; re-en. Sec. 3271, R.C.M. 1921; re-en. Sec. 3271, R.C.M. 1935; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 75, L. 1943; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 107, L. 1949; amd. Sec. 64, Ch. 310, L. 1974; amd. Sec. 13, Ch. 12, L. 1977; R.C.M. 1947, 46-218; amd. Sec. 2629, Ch. 56, L. 2009.