Restraint and Seclusion Laws in Montana

What are the restraint and seclusion rules in Montana?

Montana's restraint and seclusion rules for students with disabilities are primarily governed by ARM 10.16.3346 (Aversive Treatment Procedures), which prohibits most forms of physical restraint and seclusion and imposes strict conditions on their permissible use in IEPs. Montana law prohibits: procedures designed solely to cause physical pain; isolation in a locked room or mechanical restraint, except in residential treatment facilities and psychiatric hospitals as defined in MCA § 20-7-436 when prescribed by a physician as part of a treatment plan; withholding meals for more than one hour; aversive mists, noxious odors, or unpleasant tastes; and mechanical restraints that restrict movement. Physical restraint and isolation time-out may be used only when the student's behavior poses a risk of physical harm to the student or others, significant property damage, or seriously dangerous or disruptive behaviors that cannot be modified solely through positive behavioral interventions, and only when the use meets the threshold of frequency, intensity, or duration warranting classification as aversive. Exclusion time-out—removal from a regularly scheduled activity without placing the student in an isolation room—is not considered an aversive treatment procedure. Isolation time-out requires: the student is alone in the isolation room, prevented from exiting, door is closed, and the student is under constant direct visual observation by designated staff throughout the entire period. Any use of aversive procedures must be preceded by a documented FBA and at least two positive intervention attempts, incorporated in the student's IEP with parental consent, and parents must be notified within 24 hours each time an aversive procedure is used.