HB2 biggest thing in Week 13

At present, most things are all hinging on the House Bill 2, which is the budget bill that pays for the operation of the state. The Appropriation Committee is sorting out the costs and income from all the bills that have been presented. There is revenue potential for tax dollars from the tobacco tax, reappraisal changes, and bills giving abatements. The idea now is to balance the budget with the newly available information.

Education Committee was presented with a bill that I see as good one. It is an add-on to the loan program for young farmers. House Bill 631 would pay for some of a young farmer’s school loans if he or she commits to staying on the farm for five years. The loan payments would be made directly to the higher education institution or loaning agency over a five-year period.

A bill, which will be big for counties, eliminates said counties from having to send out notifications every two years to permanent absentee voters. All the clerks want to see that bill passed, as it is a money-saving issue for counties, just as the mail-ballot bill would be.

We did have an opt-in bike path bill that was blasted out of committee this week. In my opinion, the bill makes a lot of sense. Essentially, the state would raise money and keep it in a fund, which entities would be able to access for the upfront costs of building bike trails and paths.

I wanted to make special mention of funding that went through last week. The Montana Historical Society was granted an opportunity for funding, separate from the general bond that went through the Senate. This week, that bill, along with others that moved to the house from the Senate, have come back with both small and large amendments.

It looks like there is only about 10 days left in the 65th Legislative session. It has been a wild ride.

Contact Sen. Russ Tempel, R-Chester, at [email protected].