Montana

Montana workforce housing tax credit gets bipartisan support in House • Daily Montanan

Published

1 year ago

January 16, 2025

Montana workforce housing tax credit gets bipartisan support in House • Daily Montanan

A workforce housing tax credit bill moved ahead Thursday in the Montana House with significant bipartisan support.

Modeled after the federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, the state credit in House Bill 21 aims to be one fix to the state’s persistent lack of housing and the high cost of existing homes.

It would offer credits managed by the state for affordable housing developments.

Rep. George Nikolakakos, R-Great Falls, said because Montana didn’t have the program in place before, it has left 1,300 units on the table since 2019. He said the return on investment with the program is good.

“It’s a program that gets shovels in the ground,” Nikolakakos said.

The program would offer $1.5 million worth of credits each year for six years on a cumulative basis, and then sunset, according to a fiscal analysis by legislative staff.

Sponsor Rep. Larry Brewster, R-Billings, said the bill is “a little expensive,” but it is needed given the state of housing affairs in Montana. He said the money doesn’t go out until the project is done, and the affordable rent is guaranteed for at least 30 years.

In a committee hearing, he said the credit has a beginning and an end date, and “lots of opportunity for oversight.” It fills the gap that developers can’t afford to pay with the federal credit, possibly grants, and a bank loan.

“These days the mortgage can’t quite reach around what the federal tax credit provides, so this would be a bridge to fill that in,” Brewster said.

Rep. Mark Thane, D-Missoula, said housing tax credits already are successful, and HB 21 helps address the severe problems in Montana. He said projects don’t pencil out at the rates needed for people living on the margins.

The Montana Housing Coalition said a home is deemed “affordable” if a household pays no more than 30% of its income for a home including utilities. It said 32 other states have such a program.

“This is an opportunity to create additional housing units, an opportunity to make a dent in our housing crisis,” Thane said.

All Democrats supported the bill, along with 33 Republicans.

Twenty-five Republicans opposed it, some objecting to the price tag. At its peak year, it will cost the general fund $9 million, according to an estimate in the fiscal analysis.

Rep. Jed Hinkle, R-Belgrade, said he appreciates the intent, but he doesn’t believe the government should interfere with the free market because “it messes things up.”

“Then, we have people say, ‘The free market doesn’t work.’ Well, this is why. It’s because of constant government intervention,” Hinkle said.

In a House Tax committee hearing last week, developers, affordable housing advocates, and members of the business community spoke in favor of the bill.

Proponents said the credit multiplies in the state economy. They described the bill as one that will help fill the financing gap that has emerged as costs to build have increased in the form of higher interest rates and prices of materials.

The only opponent at the hearing was the Montana Society of CPAs, which opposes credits in general because they complicate the tax code. On behalf of the accountants, John Iverson suggested the money be handed out directly instead of through a credit.

Sam Sill, with the Montana Bankers Association, said people considered “the working poor” will be helped with the credit.

“The cost of building is significant enough now, high enough now, that without some degree of support, you probably can’t build housing that those folks are going to able to afford,” said Sill, who said he used to represent real estate developers.

Beki Brandborg, chair of the Montana Housing Coalition and a private affordable housing developer, said she and a partner were able to take an old apartment building of subsidized units in Culbertson “back to the future” with a similar credit.

She said the people who live in the units are hairdressers, cooks, dishwashers, grocery store clerks, mechanics and school janitors.

A couple of mayors spoke in favor of the credit, too. Missoula Mayor Andrea Davis, who worked in housing development, said affordable housing is one of the reasons voters elected her.

Regulation alone won’t solve the problem, she said. Capital is necessary, and she views housing in the same way she sees sewer, water, roads, and sidewalks in a community.

“Homes that Missoulians can afford, and that Montanans can afford, that our workforce can afford, is our housing infrastructure. It is an investment in our residents,” Davis said.

Michael O’Neil, head of the Helena Housing Authority, pointed to a 2022 study from the University of Montana Bureau of Business and Economic Research as evidence of future success.

“For every dollar in lost revenue to the tax credit, a state credit program is estimated to leverage $2.69 in direct public and private residential spending in the broader state economy,” O’Neil said. “This is a very conservative estimate.”

Montana’s Board of Housing manages those credits, and in recent years, it has awarded nearly all of its federal allocation, roughly $29 million each year, and has received applications for “at least double that,” the study said.

Citing the study, O’Neil said 40% more units of low-income housing tax credits could be built every year in Montana if the state started a program, or 122 more a year.

Had such a credit been in place in 2019, Aubrey Godbey with the Montana Budget and Policy Center estimated even more units could have been built, 1,350 at the end of 2024.

Godbey said Montana has 42 units of affordable homes available for every 100 households who need them, citing data on rentals from the National Low Income Housing Coalition.

Developer Don Sterhan and member of the Montana Housing Coalition said many members want to see the credit pass. The bill needs one more vote to pass the House.

“It’s not the total solution, but it helps, and it very well might be the component that makes the difference whether a project is built or not,” Sterhan said.

Also in support were the Montana Chamber of Commerce, the Montana League of Women Voters, the NeighborWorks Montana, Homeward, Montana Contractors Association, Montana Association of Realtors and Shelter Whitefish, and Montana League of Cities and Towns.

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Montana Supreme Court allows ballot measure on initiative process to move forward

Published

33 minutes ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

Montana Supreme Court allows ballot measure on initiative process to move forward

HELENA — The Montana Supreme Court has ruled in favor of a proposed ballot measure intended to simplify the process for introducing ballot measures in the future.

Justices ruled 5-2 that the measure, currently called Ballot Issue #8, did not violate state requirements that a single constitutional amendment can’t make multiple separate changes to the Montana Constitution.

“We’re very grateful to the Montana Supreme Court for agreeing with us that the attorney general’s finding of legal insufficiency for Ballot Issue #8 was incorrect,” said SK Rossi, a spokesperson for Montanans Decide, the group sponsoring the measure.

Montanans Decide argues the Montana Legislature has passed laws making it harder for the public to propose and pass ballot issues. The Montana Constitution already guarantees the people the right to pass laws and amendments through ballot measures, but Ballot Issue #8 would expand that to include a right to “impartial, predictable, transparent, and expeditious processes” for proposing those measures. It would seek to prevent “interference from the government or the use of government resources to support or oppose the ballot issue.”

Attorney General Austin Knudsen’s office argued the measure “implicitly amended” multiple provisions in the state constitution, including by limiting the “power and authority of public officials to speak officially on ballot issues that affect those officials’ public duties” and by putting restrictions on judges and on the Legislature. Montanans Decide, the group sponsoring Ballot Issue #8, disagreed – and the majority of justices sided with them.

“Its provisions operate together to define and protect a single constitutional right—the people’s exercise of initiative and referendum,” wrote Justice Katherine Bidegaray in the majority opinion. “They are closely related components of one constitutional design.”

Bidegaray’s majority opinion was joined by Justices Jim Shea, Laurie McKinnon, Beth Baker and Ingrid Gustafson.

Chief Justice Cory Swanson and Justice Jim Rice each wrote dissenting opinions, saying they would have upheld Knudsen’s decision to disallow Ballot Issue #8. Rice said the language restricting government interference with a ballot issue was not closely related and should have been a separate vote. Swanson agreed with Rice and said the measure’s attempt to fix a timeline for legal cases surrounding ballot measures was also a separate substantial change.

In a statement, Chase Scheuer, a spokesperson for Knudsen’s office, reacted to the decision.

“This decision only further muddies the courts’ jurisprudence on ballot issue questions,” he said. “This initiative would violate the separate vote requirement by amending multiple parts of the Montana Constitution, but the court contradicted its prior rulings. Attorney General Knudsen will continue to neutrally apply the separate vote requirement in his review of ballot initiatives.”

The court’s decision means that Knudsen’s office will now need to approve ballot language for Ballot Issue #8. Once that language is finalized, Montanans Decide could begin gathering signatures to qualify the measure for the November ballot.

However, last year, sponsors of another initiative went to the Supreme Court to argue that the ballot statements Knudsen prepared were misleading. If Montanans Decide object to their ballot statements, that could further delay signature gathering while the case plays out in court.

“Regardless, we’re going to push as hard as we can to get those petitions into the hands of voters and let them sign and support if they so choose,” said Rossi.

Rossi said the legal battle this measure has gone through – and the possibility of more to come – shows why Ballot Issue #8 is needed.

“The state Legislature, and also statewide elected officials, have taken every opportunity to create burdens and hurdles and rigamarole for campaigns to get through in order to just get to the signature gathering phase, and then to get through the signature gathering phase onto the ballot, and then get through the election phase,” said Rossi. “The reason we filed this initiative is just to make sure that the process is simple, that the timeline is clear, and that Montanans can have their will heard when they want to propose and pass laws that they deem worthy.”

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Montana

Christi Jacobsen enters race for Western House seat

Published

13 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Christi Jacobsen enters race for Western House seat

HELENA, Mont. — Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen is running for Montana’s Western Congressional District seat, entering the race a day after U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke announced he would not seek reelection.

Jacobsen’s announcement sets up a new contest for the open seat after Zinke, a Republican, said he would seek reelection.

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“As your Secretary of State, I’ve stood up to Washington overreach, defended election integrity, and delivered real results for Montanans. In 2020, voters gave me a mandate to clean up our elections, grow Montana business, and push back against radical liberal special interests. I delivered. Now it’s time to take that same results-driven, America First leadership to Congress.”

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Montana Lottery Powerball, Lotto America results for March 2, 2026

Published

1 day ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

The Montana Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at March 2, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from March 2 drawing

02-17-18-38-62, Powerball: 20, Power Play: 2

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Lotto America numbers from March 2 drawing

03-08-17-24-34, Star Ball: 06, ASB: 02

Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Big Sky Bonus numbers from March 2 drawing

06-12-19-29, Bonus: 11

Check Big Sky Bonus payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Powerball Double Play numbers from March 2 drawing

21-28-58-65-67, Powerball: 25

Check Powerball Double Play payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from March 2 drawing

28-41-42-50-55, Bonus: 02

Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

When are the Montana Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 9 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
Lucky For Life: 8:38 p.m. MT daily.
Lotto America: 9 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Big Sky Bonus: 7:30 p.m. MT daily.
Powerball Double Play: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Montana Cash: 8 p.m. MT on Wednesday and Saturday.
Millionaire for Life: 9:15 p.m. MT daily.

Missed a draw? Peek at the past week’s winning numbers.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Great Falls Tribune editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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