Hill County considers bucking governor on taxes

The Hill County Commission will vote Thursday on whether or not to amend their public school levy from 95 mills to 77.9 mills, potentially putting the county, along with many others statewide, at odds with the governor's office.

Gov. Greg Gianforte's Department of Revenue has directed counties to collect 95 mills of property tax to support state school equalization funding, the amount that has been levied for years, but many counties have said that, with the high property appraisals that come through this year, the dramatic rise in property taxes violates federal law that prevents local taxes from rising too quickly.

County commissioners across the state, including in Hill County, have said that this rise in taxes is unsustainable and they intend to amend their levy to a lower number.

The Gianforte administration has since filed a lawsuit disputing the counties' interpretation of state law and asking that their direction to collect the 95 mills be enforced.

While the rates for most local government property taxes levied in Montana are usually adjusted to budget needs as property values change, the 95 mills directed by the state produces a tax that's directly proportional to property values which have gone up considerably this year.

Thursday, the Hill County Commission will vote on whether to amend the mills collected in Hill County to 77.9, as opposed to the 95 they were directed to collect by the state, and two commissioners have indicated their support for the measure.

When asked about the situation, Havre Public School Superintendent Brain Gum said he will attend the meeting Thursday to provide his opinion on the matter, but for now he will not comment.

Hill County Commission Chair Mark Peterson said last week that at this point he believes he is going to vote for the amendment, and he doesn't like that this 95 mills is being framed by many people as the county raising people's taxes, because that is not what they want.

He said there are a lot of places in Montana where the 95 mills they are being directed to request is just too much for their people.

Peterson said one thing he wants to make clear is that this amendment will not have any effect on local school funding.

He said schools are funded through the state's general fund, not directly through this tax and he's been told by the Montana Association of Counties, which has largely expressed support for this amendment, that there is more than enough to fund the schools.

Montana Free Press reports that counties across the state have made similar arguments, saying they think there is more than enough in the state's general fund to make sure schools are properly funded and they don't believe that similar amendments will directly affect their schools.

Tuesday, in response to education groups pushing back on the counties, MACo sent a letter advising county commissioners that the Montana School Boards Association and the Montana Federation of Public Employees are misinforming their members and encouraging them to pass that misinformation on to county commissioners.

"These people should know better," the letter, provided by Peterson Tuesday, said. "They are providing information to their members that is at best inaccurate, and at worst false ... anyone contending that actions taken by the counties will in any way harm school district budgets is not being honest."

The letter said that school budget limits are set in statute for this year and for all future years at the levels in the current law and these numbers cannot be changed unless the Legislature meets and changes them, so all current school budgets and next year's budgets are not affected by the amount of revenue the state receives from the equalization levies.

Monday Hill County Commissioner Jake Strissel also expressed support of the amendment and said that he is in agreement with Peterson and the Montana Association of Counties in their evaluation of the situation.

He said he doesn't like the position the state has put the county in, and, while he's not thrilled to be drawing the ire of the governor's office, he's willing to push back on something this important.

"I did it with Senate Bill 442, and I'm willing to do it again," he said. " ... It's not about what happens in Helena, it's about what happens in Hill County."

Hill County Commissioner Sheri Williams has not responded to requests for comment on the matter.

Montana Free Press reported that Gianforte, as well as many public school advocates, have maintained that the correct reading of state law requires the collection of the full 95 mills.

They've also said that the state's school equalization funding is meant to ensure that schools in less wealthy communities are supported as much as those in wealthy communities.

"Drawing down the 95 public school mill rate not only would provide a windfall for a few large industrial corporations and a few school districts already flush with resources, like Big Sky, but also over time would increase the tax burden on Montanans in most local jurisdictions," Gianforte said in a letter to counties last week.