This is What Montana GOP Really Thinks About The State’s Youth Suicide Crisis

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, February 3rd, 2023

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press@montanademocrats.org

Helena, MT – On the floor of the House yesterday, Rep. Fiona Nave (R - Columbus) went on a longwinded and callous rant against funding youth suicide prevention efforts, alleging that the most effective way to prevent youth suicide is putting money towards “two parent intact families” and complaining that the bill – HB 286 – was money spent “on taking care of somebody.”

We’re not making this up.

Here are Representative Nave’s remarks in full: 

“Every time we turn around we’re trying to put more government money on taking care of somebody or something. Yes, I do think that we have a mental health problem and yes, I do think that we have a problem with younger kids thinking about and committing suicide. But you know what prevents suicide? A two parent intact family. Why don’t we ever put any money against that? Why don’t we take money and put it into things that will make it so that families can stay together and raise their children? Why don’t we put money into protecting their religious activities, making sure there are good jobs, making sure housing costs come down? So the parents can live. And I don’t care whether it’s the mom or the dad that stays home but if somebody stays home and takes care of their own kids so the state doesn’t have to do it, your suicide rate will go down. Reduce restrictions on people starting businesses, reduce the restrictions on resource development, there’s a lot of things that we can spend money on besides another government program that’s probably not gonna do anything. I’m going to vote no.”

Rep. Mary Caferro (D - Helena)’s HB 286 will allow for HEART funding from marijuana sales to fund youth suicide prevention. It passed second reading 64-35. Montana youth were twice as likely to die by suicide than in the rest of the country, according to a collected last decade by Montana’s Department of Health and Human Services. 

All 35 NO votes were cast by House Republicans. 

“Montana Legislative Republicans’ utter disregard for Montana’s youth and the accelerating mental health crisis in the state is troubling. If we want to protect Montana kids, we need to be serious about investing in their mental health care,” says Sheila Hogan, executive director of the Montana Democratic Party. “Montana’s young people deserve far better than the GOP.”

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