Business Equipment Tax Cut Dies
The business equipment tax cut is dead. The cost was too high, according to the House Appropriation Committee.
Passage of House Bill 213 was lobbied heavily for by NFIB/Montana and some 20 other business groups. It passed the House Tax Committee, and then the full House on an initial vote of 58 to 42. But the House Appropriation Committee tabled the bill.
HB 213 would have raised the tax exemption on business equipment taxes from $100,000 to $500,000. As amended, the bill would have reimbursed local governments, schools, TIF districts, and the university system for the loss in taxable value. Tax relief in the next biennium would have been $18.1 million, followed in the 2019 biennium with a $23.6 million relief to small businesses. The measure would have exempted some 16,000 of 18,000 small businesses in Montana subject to the tax.
North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming do not impose a tax on the value of business equipment, making Montana’s business tax code uncompetitive.
Bill Deadline Nears
The big push this past week in the Montana Legislature was to meet the coming deadline for the transmittal of all money and revenue bills to the other house. That deadline is March 31. So the fur was flying in committees and on the floors of both houses all week. Taking the headlines, of course, were the controversial issues like pre-k education, the budget, and bills that had large general fund expenditures involved.
Seasonal Employees
Of particular interest to NFIB/Montana is Senate Bill 414 by Sen. Ed Buttrey (R) of Great Falls. This bill would create an option that exempts seasonal employers from paying unemployment insurance on seasonal employees outside of their season of operation, once they filed for the seasonal employer status. Federal unemployment law allows states to adopt a seasonal employer option. Some 19 states currently have some form of seasonal employer option. SB 414 would allow seasonal employers to pay less in unemployment taxes in the off season, and preparing seasonal employees to make a transition into other employment in the off season. This bill does not include seasonal employees that work for the seasonal employer outside of the employer’s established season, as well as agricultural labor.
Tax Credits Tabled
The House Appropriation Committee this past week was tough on any bills that had expenditures of money in them. It tabled House Bill 277, the apprentice tax credit for employers hiring certified apprentice employees. It also tabled House Bill 341 that gave a tax credit to any employer for contributing to an employee’s postsecondary education expense, or to pay off student loans. Two bills to lower individual income tax rates were also killed in committee, House Bill 169 and House Bill 266. Another lower income tax bill, House Bill 166, did make it to the governor’s desk, only to be vetoed.
It’s All About The Money
Without a firm agreement on total revenue for the biennium between the governor’s office and the Legislature, any bills with money in them were put on the chopping block by the House Appropriations Committee. One income tax lowering bill did make it through both houses, however. Senate Bill 200 passed the House 59 to 40 and the Senate 27 to 21 along party line votes. It is headed to the governor’s office. The likelihood of a veto is big, as the fiscal impact of SB 200 was nearly $60 million.
Secret Local-Option Sales Tax
Another bill NFIB/Montana was working the past week was House Bill 602. This would have allowed local governments to enact a lodging fee on hotels, motels, campgrounds, etc. to help offset impacts by the oil and gas boom in Montana. This bill did not call for any vote of the people to implement. NFIB/Montana saw this as a “camel’s nose under the tent” to enactment of a local-option sales tax. It was tabled in the House Tax Committee last Tuesday.
The good news is that a number of bills being worked by NFIB/Montana did move forward and are headed to the governor’s office.
Liability Cases
House Bill 204, which allows the use of written wavers and releases to be entered into court proceedings when signed in recreational liability cases. Currently, the releases being used today are not allowed to be considered in court cases. This bill affects outfitters, sporting events, tournaments. It passed the House 69 to 31 and passed the Senate 50 to 0.
Patent Trolls
The much talked about “trolling” bill, House Bill 39, passed both houses and is on its way to the Gov. Steve Bullock’s office for his signature. This bill prohibits false filling of patent and copyright infringements on small businesses. A number of small employers in Montana have been stung with this scam, according the attorney general’s office.
Veterans’ Hiring
Senate Bill 196, which allows employers to have a veterans’ preference hiring policy, passed both houses and is on its way to the governor. Currently, to have a preference for any type of person, such as men or women, religious affiliation, political affiliation, or marital status, is illegal under Montana law.
Infrastructure
There will be little hearing action coming this next week, as both houses are tied up with meeting the transmittal deadline on Tuesday night.
Two bills of interest will be heard April 1. These are Senate Bill 353 and Senate Bill 354 by Sen. Rick Ripley (R) of Wolf Creek. These bills call for a constitutional referendum to divert coal tax trust fund money and create a “Build Montana” program of infrastructure repairs and new construction all across Montana. This is a big jobs and economic development bill. This is the Republicans’ answer to the governor’s “Build Montana” program that was killed in House Appropriations Committee last week. It would use cash to build, instead of the governor’s approach of using the majority of funding through issuing bonds.
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
