Political practices, bed tax and de-icer bills

Transmittal break allowed me to recover from a terrible head cold and cleared the way for the last half of working for you during the legislative session. Experience teaches us that the 50-0 votes from the first half will soon be over as we discuss the meat of the budget and begin to wind down the session.

I’ve carried more bills this session than any other. Several of them are the result of chairing the interim State Administration and Veterans Affairs Committee, since chairmen. Here are some of the bills I sponsored:

Senate Bill 16 — Signed into law last week by Gov. Steve Bullock, it will change the appointment process for the Commissioner of Political Practices. Minority and majority leaders will submit names to the governor who must pick the commissioner from the list.

SB 244 — Establish a trade center in Calgary. The opponents to the bill didn’t protest the idea of the office but didn’t want to use bed tax money to fund it. During my rebuttal of their concerns, I asked if they’d also protested the $209,000 used for Gov. Bullock’s Main Street Project or raised an objection to the film office using $2.5 million from the funds. Had they suggested to the agency a cut back on the $1.6 million used for administrative costs?

Projected bed taxes show a $1 million yearly increase for the next four years. It makes sense that the trade-tourism center should be part of the marketing plan, just as the Main Street Project and films. Having a person in a Calgary office to make the connections and steer potential economic development to Montana will have a positive effect on tourism and businesses in every sector of our economy.

There are more than 4 million people in Alberta with an annual family income of almost $85,000. It makes sense to tap into that market with boots on the ground and a presence in their largest city.

SB 369 — Reducing the use of de-icer on our roadways to the historic average of 2007-2010. I have received more positive comments on this bill than any other. It died on the Senate floor after passing through the Highway Committee and the Finance & Claims Committee, which is usually the killing field for bills. We had a good discussion on the floor of the Senate, with “no” votes worried about the money it would cost to change to different products.

Awareness of the chlorides used is a pretty easy thing to understand when our vehicles are rusting and brake drums are fusing to each other. We are paying huge costs in depreciation for our assets while the Montana Department of Transportation increases usage of chlorides. What is this stuff doing to our environment?

Montanans, especially on the west side of the mountains, take great pride in pristine waters and go to great measures to protect it. It’s time to weigh in with the MDT and pressure them to use friendlier products on our highways which often abut those pristine waters.

This bill may be dead this session, but the discussion is not over on the negative impacts of salt to our environment. This bill is a very nonpartisan issue and needs our yearly attention if we expect change.

As House bills come through our Senate committees after transmittal, please continue contacting me with your thoughts. It’s always good to hear from the taxpayers at home. I appreciate you taking the time as we plunge into the second half of the 64th  legislature.

Sen. Dee Brown, R-Hungry Horse, represents Senate District 2.