Montana

Another way to address high property taxes in Montana – Daily Montanan

Published

2 years ago

January 7, 2024

Another way to address high property taxes in Montana – Daily Montanan

I just read an editorial called “Let’s end the property tax blame game” by Kendall Cotton in which he begins by blaming local governments for property tax increases, echoing Gov. Greg Gianforte’s attack on greedy county governments.

For their part, Democrats are saying that the Gianforte administration ignored the advice of the Montana Department of Revenue to implement a revenue neutral tax rate. That’s the rate at which the state would have got the same amount of money after reappraisal as it had before. It was not advice; it was a number the DOR is required to provide by law. And to be fair, it doesn’t seem that any Democrat introduced a bill to change the tax rate, either. (In Montana the appraised value of a home is multiplied by a tax rate to get the taxable value, which is what the mill levies are applied to.)

If I wanted to blame anything I would pin it on COVID and the TV series “Yellowstone” each of which caused people with money and independence to flock to Montana and raise the price of homes in those areas that are not surrounded by flat land and have fancy restaurants.

Cotton’s editorial goes: “There is no such thing as a free lunch in government. The root cause of taxation is government spending.” So, the simple answer is to get rid of government—and police forces and courts and schools and health care and highways and everything that government does, because it is asked to do it. Lincoln put it well:

“The legitimate object of government, is to do for a community of people, whatever they need to have done, but can not do, at all, or can not, so well do, for themselves—in their separate, and individual capacities.”

No, Mr. Cotton, the root cause of taxation is the need to pay for services that the public demands their governments provide as expressed by their approval or disapproval of political policies at the ballot box. Not everyone is happy, but in a democracy, the majority rules.

So, OK, what to do?

The property tax is the oldest form of taxation because it was the easiest to figure out. If a guy in Babylon was sitting on 1,000 bushels (or cubic cubits or however they measured volume then) of wheat, the government knew what wheat was selling for and taxed it accordingly. A property tax is a tax on wealth, it is based on the value of what you own. It is the only tax that is heavily based on external market forces and not individual actions as are wages earned or purchases made. If you look at maps of property tax increases in Montana (the Montana Free Press has an excellent analysis complete with such maps: https://montanafreepress.org/2023/12/07/how-much-montana-property-taxes-are-rising/) you can see that it varies quite a bit from county to county. That’s why it is difficult to find a statewide solution.

Yes, there is a temporary tax rebate which some had a difficult time applying for. I didn’t. Renters couldn’t. But this is a political gimmick used by Democrats and Republicans alike that does little to fix the problem.

The answer to all this, given the complexities, is relatively simple, already exists, and is capable of being broadened. It is the Elderly Homeowner Renter Property Tax Rebate. It is based on the principle that homeowners or renters should not pay more than a certain percentage of their income on property tax. It is now restricted to households with a person over 65 years old, a coddled cadre of individuals who as a group are generally financially more better off than others because they have by that age paid off most of their debt. Their favorable opinion is sought by retailers and politicians alike because there are so many of them (OK, us).

It has the benefits of putting the relief where it is most needed, does not rob the local taxing jurisdictions of needed income, is administered and paid for by the state using state employees and state money. And, if expanded to all ages, is fair. At least two bills were introduced to do this by Democrats but never made it out of committee.

Maybe by the next legislative session it will look better, but I doubt it.

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Montana

Photos: Montana State clips Illinois State to win national championship

Published

12 hours ago

January 6, 2026

Press Room

Photos: Montana State clips Illinois State to win national championship

Montana State plays Illinois State in the FCS national championship game at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., on Monday, Jan. 5, 2026.Justin Hosa / MTN Sports

Montana State topped Illinois State 35-34 in overtime to claim their first National Championship since 1984.TOM WYLIE/MTN Sports

Montana State plays Illinois State in the FCS national championship game at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., on Monday, Jan. 5, 2026.Kyle Hansen / MTN Sports

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Montana

Watch: Bobcat Built – Montana State’s Championship Quest

Published

1 day ago

January 5, 2026

Press Room

Watch: Bobcat Built – Montana State’s Championship Quest

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Montana State squares off with Illinois State Monday night in the FCS national championship game at FirstBank Stadium on the campus of Vanderbilt University. Kickoff is set for 5:30 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.

The Bobcats are making their third trip to the title game in the past five seasons under coach Brent Vigen. The program is seeking its first championship since 1984.

MTN Sports has been on the ground in Nashville for the past five days covering the lead-up to the game, including the pregame show “Bobcat Built: Montana State’s Championship Quest” hosted by Scott Breen and Kyle Hansen.

In it the MTN staff provides game previews, features, facts and figures and sights and sounds from the past several days in Music City in the run-up to the game. To watch, see the video reel below.

Watch: Bobcat Built – Montana State’s Championship Quest

Bobcat Built: Montana State’s Championship Quest

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Montana

Photos: Past and present Montana State Bobcats meet in Nashville

Published

2 days ago

January 5, 2026

Press Room

Photos: Past and present Montana State Bobcats meet in Nashville

Past Montana State football players meet with current Bobcats during a team walk-through at the indoor practice facility at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., on Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026.Kyle Hansen / MTN Sports