Competing conservation bills head to governor’s desk
Laura Lundquist
(Missoula Current) In the 11th hour of the Montana Legislature, two bills ensuring that marijuana sales tax revenue will continue to fund conservation efforts have been sent to the governor’s desk. The question now is which will he sign.
On Wednesday, the 69th Montana Legislature finished its work for the biennium, but not before the House passed an amended House Bill 932, which would funnel tax money from marijuana sales toward several conservation efforts. However, on the day before, the Senate passed an amended Senate Bill 537, which would similarly funnel marijuana tax money toward conservation efforts.
The two bills are fairly similar, although SB 537 spreads the tax money across a broader subset of state programs and, most importantly, doesn’t leave any money for the state General Fund. Both bills were introduced in their respective chambers in late March while SB 307, which would have robbed conservation programs of any marijuana tax money, stalled the Senate Finance and Claims committee. SB 307 failed to pass.
Authored by Rep. Becky Edwards, D-Bozeman, and sponsored by Rep. Ken Walsh, R-Twin Bridges, HB 932 continues to provide money for the conservation programs specified by the 2020 ballot initiatives that created the marijuana sales tax, including Habitat Montana, recreation and nongame wildlife programs. A smiling Edwards posted a video on social media Wednesday saying how pleased she was that it was successful.
“House Bill 932, conservation financing, a really wonderful bill that I had the honor of authoring, that Rep. Walsh carried, passed through both chambers and is onto the governor’s desk. So fingers crossed that he signs it and Montana’s public lands and waters win big this legislative session,” Edwards told her followers.
The 2021 Legislature set the initial marijuana tax allocations for conservation. The first $6 million goes to behavioral health services and substance use treatment through the state’s HEART Fund. Then, 20% of the remainder – about $10 million a year at the time – was to go to the Habitat Montana program, which funds acquisition of wildlife habitat or conservation easements. Another 12% is divided between state parks, trails and recreational programs and the non-game wildlife program.
Both HB 932 and SB 537 change that slightly by creating a new “Habitat Legacy” account, which moves the 20% dedicated only to Habitat Montana into the Habitat Legacy account, where it can still be used for Habitat Montana purchases, but it also supports wildlife highway crossing projects and an expanded Wildlife Habitat Improvement Program, which can fund restoration projects, invasive species removal and wildlife-friendly fencing. HB 932 had the support of several conservation and sportsmen’s groups in addition to Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks.
In 2023, Rep. Katie Zolnikov, R-Billings, sponsored House Bill 887, which would have created a one-time allocation of $1 million to act as a match for a Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program grant to build wildlife crossings. But the Montana Department of Transportation opposed the bill because it wasn’t part of the governor’s budget.
This session, Sen. Daniel Zolnikov, R-Billings, wanted to keep conservation funding in SB 537 but felt that a lot more marijuana tax money needed to go toward Department of Justice programs and grants, the crime control board, law enforcement salaries, drug prevention and behavioral health. A Legislative fiscal note estimated the loss to the General Fund at between $33 million and $37 million yearly over the next four years.
Conservation groups backed SB 537, although with less enthusiasm than HB 932 because they knew the hit to the General Fund would make it less popular to some.
“Both bills have some pretty exciting policy innovations that'll make a difference on the ground for wildlife, for fisheries, ranchers, and people who like to hunt and fish,” Frank Szollosi, Montana Wildlife Federation executive director, told MTN News last week.
Now that both bills are on the governor’s desk, speculation as to the outcome has begun. Many anticipate that Gov. Greg Gianforte will veto SB 537 because of what it does to the General Fund. They also think he’s likely to sign HB 932 because FWP has already testified in support of it and his budget director has worked on it much of the session.
In the unlikely event he would sign SB 537 or if the Legislature would override his veto, SB 537 would take priority over HB 932 based on the language in the bill.
Should he try to veto HB 932, there’s a chance that the Legislature would override the veto. However, many were sure that would happen at the end of the 2023 Legislature when Gianforte vetoed HB 442, a popular marijuana tax bill that allocated money to conservation programs and county road maintenance. But after the Legislative session, some legal hi-jinx caused enough delay that the two-thirds vote needed to override the veto didn’t materialize.
HB 442 died in 2023 and the allocations reverted to those set in 2021. That’s what would happen again if Gianforte vetoes HB 932 and legislators let it slide. But either way, the main conservation programs hold onto their funding.
Contact reporter Laura Lundquist at lundquist@missoulacurrent.com.