Infrastructure
The activity this past week at the Montana Legislature was all about Montana’s failing infrastructure and bills to address the problem.
The American Society of Civil Engineers gave Montana a grade of C- in its 2014 Report Card for Montana’s Infrastructure, saying that “Montana’s aging infrastructure is approaching a critical state of disrepair.” There are a number of bills in the Legislature to stop the bleeding and repair or replace bridges, roadways, schools, water and sewer systems, and state buildings.
- House Bill 5 by Rep. Jeff Welborn (R) of Dillon is Gov. Steve Bullock’s solution. This “Build Montana” project was heard in the full House Appropriations Committee March 16. It proposes to invest nearly $400 million on various infrastructure programs in almost every community. It is mostly funded by bonding, which is not particularly popular with the majority Republicans in the Legislature. The Department of Commerce says it would support nearly 4,300 jobs, create $560 million in economic output, and increase wages by $200 million.
- House Bill 402 by Rep. Austin Knudsen (R) of Culbertson would provide $55 million in grants to local governments experiencing significant impacts from the oil and gas development. It takes $55 million from the general fund into an impact account to pay for the initial investment. Subsequent years would be funded by changing the distribution of the state portion of the oil and gas production tax and federal mineral royalties, and directing that money to the impact account. This bill passed the House 59 to 39 several weeks ago, and was heard this past week in the Senate Finance Committee. No action has been taken.
- House Bill 602 by Rep. Scott Staffanson (R) of Sidney was heard Tuesday in the House Tax Committee. As reported last week, this bill would allow local governments to put an oil and gas fee on all lodging within their boundaries. It would not only be available to oil and gas counties of eastern Montana, but would also include any local government within the state that has a railroad through it or a pipeline. The bill would cover 41 of the 56 counties in the state. Opponents dislike this bill as it looks like a local-option sales tax authority. A large portion of local governments are supporting HB 602 because of the local-option feature.
- Coming next week, NFIB/Montana will be involved with two proposals from Sen. Rick Ripley (R) of Wolf Creek. Senate Bill 353 would place a constitutional referendum on the 2016 general election ballot to divert 90 percent of the existing coal tax trust fund into infrastructure projects that are prioritized by the Legislature. That would leave 10 percent of the coal taxes to continue to flow into the trust fund. Senate Bill 354 would provide direction on what types of projects would be eligible for this program. Hearings will be held March in the House Natural Resource Committee. It has already passed the Senate 30 to 20.
Patent Trolls
The so called sleeper bill, Senate Bill 39, roared out of the Senate 47 to 0 this past week. This was the “trolling for patents and copyright” bill. It passed the House earlier 95-1. This puts the skids on scam artists that troll for patent and copyright violations among small businesses, and then threatens to go to court if the small business doesn’t pay a modest fee. A number of Montana small businesses have been hit with this scam, and some of them have paid the fee rather than hire a patent lawyer for big dollars. This bill is on the way to the governor’s office for a signature.
Rules and Regulations
House Bill 396 is a priority of NFIB/Montana this session. This bill would take the sunset clause off a law that was passed in 2013 that requires any state agency to review any new administrative rules or regulations it may write to implement a law to see if there is an impact on small businesses under 50 employees. The bill cleared the Senate this past week on a 44-to-6 vote and is headed for the governor’s office.
Business Equipment Tax
There is a hearing on Tuesday on Senate Bill 213 in the House Appropriations Committee. It would raise the no-tax threshold on the business equipment tax from the current $100,000 to $500,000. It passed the House two weeks ago 58 to 42 on second reading, but because it is a revenue bill, it must go before the Appropriations Committee for approval.
Hiring Tax Credit
Another revenue bill that has passed second reading in the House by 77 to 23 is House Bill 277. It would give a tax credit to any small employer that hires an apprentice. The tax credit of up to $1,000 per year for each apprentice is good for five tax years. HB 277 by Rep. Christy Clark (R) of Choteau will also be heard March 17 in the House Appropriation Committee.
Student Loans
On March 17, the House Appropriations Committee will hear House Bill 341 by Rep. Bill Harris (R) of Winnett. This measure would allow up to $850 in tax credits for employers that help employees pay down student loans, or to pay directly for post-secondary education. This bill passed the House on second reading 85 to 15, but being another revenue bill, it must be approved by the Appropriations Committee.
Montana State Fund
On March 18, hearings will be held on Senate Bill 123 by Sen. Bruce Tutvedt (R) of Kalispell that would revise the regulatory authority over the Montana State Fund. The authority would move from the Legislature to the Montana Insurance Commissioner. The aim is to take politics out of the state fund management, and to handle the state fund more like a private insurance company.
The clock is running. There are 32 more days to this 64th Montana Legislature. If there is no common ground on the two-year state budget between the governor and the Legislature, a special session could be called to settle the issue. Montana cannot have an unbalanced budget.
Look for more next week.
Getting Involved
Getting involved in the 2015 Legislature is easy. The best way to have your voice heard quickly is to phone 406-444-4800. Operators are on hand in the Capitol Building to take messages up to five legislators on each call, and delivery is within a half an hour. Those wanting more information on locating legislators, getting an e-mail address, looking to view committee meetings and floor sessions on television or over computers, and just to review all hearings and reading of the actual bills can go to www.leg.mt.gov and access everything electronically.
Past Reports
