69-14-215. Issuance of bills of lading by railroad station agents -- penalty. (1) All railway companies operating in the state which do not permit bills of lading to be issued by employees other than agents shall be required to have bills of lading issued by the station agent at the nearest station where a station agent is regularly maintained in the direction toward which the shipment is destined. The conductor of the train which receives the shipment at its point of origin shall deliver to the agent at the nearest station at which an agent is maintained through which the shipment moves, immediately upon the arrival of the train carrying the shipment at the agency station, all data necessary for the issuance of a bill of lading for the shipment. The agent shall immediately issue the bill of lading and shall deliver the same to the shipper or his agent or shall, within 24 hours after the receipt of the data from the conductor, for shipment of 20,000 pounds or over, deposit the bill of lading in a United States post office, addressed and registered or certified to the consignor of the shipment or his agent or attorney to his proper post-office address. A bill of lading for shipments of less than 20,000 pounds may be mailed without the use of registered or certified mail.
     (2) Any railway company operating in Montana violating any provisions of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and liable to a fine of not less than $50 or more than $1,000.

     History: En. Secs. 1, 2, Ch. 24, L. 1917; re-en. Secs. 6611, 6612, R.C.M. 1921; re-en. Secs. 6611, 6612, R.C.M. 1935; R.C.M. 1947, 72-654, 72-655; amd. Sec. 35, Ch. 43, L. 1979.