A plain-English guide to Montana’s bullying and cyberbullying law, written for school counselors and other school staff. Start with the summary, then open any section below for the legal details.
Bottom line for counselors: Montana requires every school district to have a written bullying policy. The law covers cyberbullying, including off-campus behavior that affects school. Follow your district's reporting and investigation steps and keep careful notes.
Montana's bullying law includes 9 of 14 key elements, which Lantern rates moderate. Cyberbullying can also be a crime under Montana law. School phones: encourages districts to limit cellphones in classrooms (Governor's Letter, August 22, 2024). Montana also has 3 online-safety laws for minors, including Amendments to Montana Consumer Privacy Act, SB 297, Sections 9-12, MCA Sections 30-14-2811, 2818, 2819.
Sources last checked: StopBullying.gov summary reviewed April 30, 2026 · school phone rules checked November 11, 2026 · online-safety tracker updated June 11, 2025.
Lantern · State profile
Moderate state protections · 9 of 14 key elements
- Covers cyberbullying Yes
- Reaches off-campus behavior Yes
- District policy required Yes
- Reporting & investigation rules Yes
- Staff training No
- Support for students involved Yes
- School phone rules State encourages limits
- Online safety laws for minors 3 on the books
What this means for counselors
- Your district is required to have a written bullying policy. Find it, and learn who in your building receives reports.
- State law sets expectations for reporting and investigating bullying. Follow your district's steps and timelines, and keep careful notes.
- Cyberbullying that happens off campus can be addressed when it affects school. Record how the online behavior reached or disrupted school.
- The law calls for support for students who are involved. That is core counseling work, for the student targeted and for the student who bullied.
- State law does not require staff training, so counselors can lead that work by offering short trainings on cyberbullying for colleagues.
- Your state has laws on minors' online safety. They mostly regulate tech companies, but they are useful context when you talk with families.
What Montana’s bullying law includes
- Bans bullying outright: included
The law clearly states that bullying is not allowed. - Defines bullying: included
The law spells out what counts as bullying. - Says where the rules apply: included
The law describes where the rules apply, such as school grounds, buses, events, or online. - Names protected groups: not included
The law lists characteristics, such as race or disability, that bullying often targets. - Districts must have a policy: included
Every school district has to adopt a written bullying policy. - Reporting and investigation rules: included
The law sets out how bullying is reported and investigated. - Consequences for bullying: included
The law describes consequences for students who bully. - Policy shared with families: not included
Districts have to tell students, staff, and families about the policy. - Support for students involved: included
The law calls for protection or support, such as counseling, for students who are involved. - Policies reviewed and updated: not included
District policies have to be reviewed and kept up to date. - Prevention education: not included
The law requires or encourages bullying prevention lessons or programs. - Staff training: not included
The law requires or encourages training for teachers and other staff. - Parent involvement: included
The law involves parents in preventing or responding to bullying.
Questions and answers about the law
How are bullying and cyberbullying defined in Montana anti-bullying laws and regulations?
Montana anti-bullying laws and regulations include the following definition of bullying:
“Bullying” means any harassment, intimidation, hazing, or threatening, insulting, or demeaning gesture or physical contact, including any intentional written, verbal, or electronic communication or threat directed against a student that is persistent, severe, or repeated and that:
(a) causes a student physical harm, damages a student’s property, or places a student in reasonable fear of harm to the student or the student’s property;
(b) creates a hostile environment by interfering with or denying a student’s access to an educational opportunity or benefit; or
(c) substantially and materially disrupts the orderly operation of a school.
The term includes retaliation against a victim or witness who reports information about an act of bullying and includes acts of hazing associated with athletics or school-sponsored organizations or groups.
Mont. Code Ann. § 20-5-208 (2015)
Do Montana anti-bullying laws and regulations cover cyberbullying that occurs off-campus?
Yes. Montana anti-bullying regulations cover off-campus conduct committed through use of electronic communication that substantially and materially disrupts the orderly operation of the school or any school-sponsored program, activity, or function where the school is responsible for the student.
What are the policy requirements for schools to prevent and respond to bullying behavior?
Montana school districts must adopt a policy prohibiting bullying, hazing, intimidation, and harassment of students. School district policies must contain key policy and procedural elements, including, but not limited to:
- Statements prohibiting bullying, intimidation, and harassment;
- Procedures for reporting, investigations, and documentation, including identification of the person responsible for the investigation and response;
- Procedures for determining whether the reported act is subject to the jurisdiction of the school or another public agency and a procedure for referral to the necessary persons or entity;
- Procedures for prompt notification of the alleged victim, alleged perpetrator, or parents or guardians of such students when students are minors;
- Procedures to protect any alleged victim of prohibited behaviors from further incidents;
- Disciplinary procedures establishing consequences for violations of policy; and
- Procedures for use of appropriate intervention and remediation for victims and perpetrators.
Do Montana anti-bullying laws and regulations include protections for specific groups?
No. There are no specific groups listed under Montana anti-bullying laws or regulations.
Montana schools that receive federal funding are required by federal law to address discrimination based on certain personal characteristics. Find out when bullying may be a civil rights violation.
Do Montana anti-bullying laws and regulations encourage or require districts to implement bullying prevention programs or strategies?
No. Montana anti-bullying laws do not require districts to implement bullying prevention programs or strategies.
Do Montana anti-bullying laws and regulations encourage or require districts to train teachers and other school staff on how to prevent and respond to bullying incidents?
No. Montana anti-bullying laws do not require districts to train teachers and other school staff on how to prevent and respond to bullying incidents.
Do Montana anti-bullying laws and regulations encourage or require districts to provide safeguards or mental health supports for students involved with bullying?
Yes. Montana school district policies must include a procedure for the use of appropriate intervention and remediation for victims and perpetrators, as well as a procedure to protect any alleged victim from further incidents of such prohibited behaviors.
Do Montana anti-bullying laws and regulations involve parents in efforts to address bullying behavior?
Yes. Montana school district policies must include a procedure for prompt notification of the alleged victim and the alleged perpetrator or the parents and guardians of such students when the students are minors.
Answers from StopBullying.gov, last reviewed April 30, 2026.
School phone and device rules
Encourages districts to limit cellphones in classrooms. Most recent statewide action: Governor's Letter, August 22, 2024.
Source: Ballotpedia, checked November 11, 2026.
Online safety and social media laws for minors
These laws mostly place duties on apps, platforms, and websites, such as age checks, parental consent, or limits on addictive feeds. Several have been challenged in court.
- Amendments to Montana Consumer Privacy Act, SB 297, Sections 9-12, MCA Sections 30-14-2811, 2818, 2819
In effect: October 1, 2025 - Montana Consumer Data Privacy Act, Montana Code. Annotated Section 90-14-2801 et seq., as amended by SB 297
In effect: October 1, 2024 Amendments take effect October 1, 2025 - Publishing and distribution of material harmful to minors – SB 544 Note: As of the date of this publication, this law has not yet been codified but the Bill states that it “is intended to be codified as an integral part
In effect: January 1, 2024
Source: Orrick Online Safety Law Tracker, updated June 11, 2025.
Legal citations, explained (7)
Each entry shows what the law or rule is about first, then its official name with abbreviations spelled out.
- Short title Law passed by the legislature Montana Code Annotated Section 20-5-207 Read the text of Montana Code Annotated Section 20-5-207
- Definition Law passed by the legislature Montana Code Annotated Section 20-5-208 Read the text of Montana Code Annotated Section 20-5-208
- Bullying of student prohibited Law passed by the legislature Montana Code Annotated Section 20-5-209 Read the text of Montana Code Annotated Section 20-5-209
- Enforcement — exhaustion of administrative remedies Law passed by the legislature Montana Code Annotated Section 20-5-210 Read the text of Montana Code Annotated Section 20-5-210
- Board of trustees Rule from a state agency Administrative Rules of Montana. 10.55.701 Read the text of Administrative Rules of Montana. 10.55.701
- Student protection procedures Rule from a state agency Administrative Rules of Montana. 10.55.719 Read the text of Administrative Rules of Montana. 10.55.719
- School climate Rule from a state agency Administrative Rules of Montana. 10.55.801 Read the text of Administrative Rules of Montana. 10.55.801
Official Montana resources
Educational information, not legal advice. Laws change, so confirm with your district and state education department.
Find a school district in Montana
Search by ZIP code, select a district on the map, or look one up by name. Each district links to a search for its own bullying policy, since district rules can go further than state law.
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