Fern bill would offer $200 million in tax relief

State Sen. Dave Fern said Friday he expects the state Legislature to get some sort of property tax relief bill passed by the end of the session. He also said a bill he sponsored that gives middle class taxpayers a significant income tax break has passed the Senate and is on to the House.

On the income tax front, Fern’s SB 546 provides a tax credit to qualified taxpayers, depending on their income. Fern, a Democrat, represents Senate District 2, which includes the cities of Whitefish and Columbia Falls.

The credit amount is 4.7% of the first $2,000 of taxable income for joint returns and surviving spouses, $1,500 for heads of households. It reduces the amount for single filers and married people not making a joint return to $1,000.

Under the bill, a typical middle class couple making a combined income in the $100,000 range would get a tax credit of about $930, Fern surmised.

All told, it’s about a $200 million income tax cut.

The bill is designed so that the more taxable income a person makes, the less the tax credit is, until it zeros out. So wealthy filers would not get the credit.

On the property tax front, Fern said the Senate Friday was considering  SB 155, a bill sponsored by Democrat Rep. Mark Thane of Missoula and others that, like the income tax bill, would put residential property tax rates on a sliding scale based on the assessed value.

For example, a home up to $500,000 would be taxed at 1% of value, homes $500,000 to $750,000 1.25% and so forth. The idea being that the higher the home value, the higher the rate.

Another bill, HB 231 sponsored by Llew Jones, a  Republican from Conrad would have, in short, given  property tax breaks to primary homeowners, while increasing rates on second homes. It was endorsed by Gov. Greg Gianforte, but failed to gain traction in the Senate, where it was recently voted down in committee.

Still, Fern predicted some sort of property tax bill relief, outside of a $400 tax credit that already passed, would be forthcoming.

“I feel pretty confident something will happen,” he said. “I don’t want to go home if it doesn’t.”

Fern also spoke to the student and teacher advancement for results and success act (STARS) Act, which looks to boost teacher pay. He said he was pretty sure the bill, which also has Gianforte’s support and is sponsored by Jones, will pass.

Also known as HB 252, it would increase teacher pay to qualifying districts, which includes Columbia Falls School District 6.

The school district last week voted to delay a levy election for the elementary schools with the hopes that the bill would pass, which would ease or potentially eliminate the need for a $450,000 levy request from voters.