Legislators to hold town hall meeting on property taxes

BIGFORK EAGLE

A town hall meeting on the state's property tax reappraisal system will be held today, Dec. 10, in Kalispell.

The meeting, which will be attended by local legislators, is a follow up to a similar function last month in Bigfork where residents were able to ask questions, air concerns and suggest solutions.

This second meeting will take place at the Flathead Valley Community College Arts and Technology building starting at 6:30 p.m. Rep. Scott Reichner, R-Bigfork, organized the first meeting in response to concerns he received about the recent reappraisal cycle, and, based on the meeting's attendance and the issues raised, said he wanted to continue the momentum at a meeting in Kalispell.

At the November meeting, Reichner said residents will need a three-pronged approach to address reforming property taxes – encouraging action by legislators, working on a possible ballot initiative and pursuing a class-action lawsuit.

This most recent reappraisal cycle, which ran from Jan. 1, 2002, through July 1, 2008, raised taxable property values in Flathead and Lake counties, especially for those with lake front property. Every six years, the Montana Department of Revenue is required to reappraise properties for tax purposes. Property taxes are used to fund education, local government and other services in the state.