Montana near to passing law that would let drivers eat their roadkill

Eating roadkill is presently illegal in Montana, but that could change as lawmakers are one signature away from passing a bill allowing citizens to eat game accidentally hit and killed with a personal vehicle.

The bill, or as it is formally known: “An Act Creating Permits to Salvage Certain Game Accidentally Killed by Vehicles; Revising Powers of the Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission; Revising Rules for Unlawful Possession, Shipping and Transportation of Game; And Amending Sections 87-1-301 and AND 87-6-202, MCA,” would allow peace officers to grant permits to salvage meat from antelope, deer, elk or moose “that have been accidentally killed as a result of a vehicle collision.”

The original bill actually included a wider range of animals — birds and “fur-bearing animals” were on the list — but it has been trimmed down to only the four large game listed. Smushed squirrels are still off limits, as are birds. And only accidental collision can end up on the dinner plate.

The bill already passed through the Montana Senate by a vote of 28-21 Thursday, and it is now up to Governor Steve Bullock to give the final signature, reports Reuters.

Presently, roadkill in Montana is removed and destroyed, or just left to nature. “It seems like a waste,” Bill Lavin, the Republican sponsor of the bill, told Reuters. “This bill … would allow me to legally call the food bank or allow somebody else who requests it to take it and use it.”

However, the Montana Food Bank Network doesn’t want roadkill because it might not be safe.

Should Governor Bullock approve this bill, it will put Montana in line with other roadkill-eating states including: Alaska, Illinois, Indiana, and Colorado, reports The Atlantic Wire.