Disappointed with Supreme Court ruling
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Editor,
I appreciated my time spent on this 95-mill property tax issue with you, the Department of Revenue and the lobbyist for the school organizations. I am disappointed with the Supreme Court ruling but will abide with it. The educational value of researching and understanding how the school, local government and state school funding is calculated on a tax bill was worth the effort.
But Governor, in your press release on this ruling you stated that you are committed to long-term reform “including holding the line on local spending that drives property tax increases.”
You and the ruling just ordered the commissioners of Beaverhead County to levy an additional $602,677 on the taxpayers of Beaverhead County. 49 of the 56 counties across Montana fought hard to control property tax increases this year only to be challenged by you and your Department of Revenue to levy an additional $78,774,449 on a statewide level. So much for driving property tax increases.
Beaverhead County taxpayers need to know that:
Beaverhead Co. assessed 19.65 mills less than last year.
City of Dillon assessed 24.14 mills less than last year.
School Dist. #10 assessed 29.67 mills less than last year.
BCHS assessed 17.10 mills less than last year.
This was all done by local government trying to control the increase of property taxes by following state law. MCA 15-10-420
In addition, the boards of agencies in Beaverhead County that have voted mill authority decided not to levy the full amount this year because of the extreme increases that we are seeing now. These decisions kept $348,355 off of the current year tax bills. Check your tax bills and you will see all levied mills are less than last year. Now, the only line on your tax that will remain the same is the first line called State School Levy.
This is where $600,000 of your property tax dollars will go. This will increase revenue to the state by 34% over last year, almost $99,000,000 statewide.
One final question that needs to be researched: “Did the local school districts just receive a $99 million windfall statewide?” When your local school board replies no, does that mean the $99 million really goes into the state general fund?
Thanks for allowing me to serve.
Mike McGinley
Beaverhead County Commissioner
