taxes

County officials said local residents would have seen a tax decrease this year if not for the increased value of homes. The Legislature's failure to lower the residential tax rate from 1.35% to .94%, as recommended by DOR, also played a role.

Missoula County on Tuesday placed its official support behind an effort lead by Beaverhead County that's challenging the state's “consistent” levying of certain mills despite a provision in Montana law that requires a reduction in mills when taxable values increase.

Jackson Crawford writes, "Gov. Gianforte is hiding massive property tax increases behind one-time rebates and, possibly illegally, blocking our state’s largest conservation funding bill."

The Montana Department Revenue has received the highest number of appeals for property tax appraisals since 2015, before the state went on a two-year reappraisal cycle.

As the city prepares to open a second homeless shelter in a Midtown neighborhood to the tune of nearly $2 million, along with additional expenses, the city is trying to craft new policy to enforce camping in city parks to protect children and residents, and do so in a way that's compliant with a Ninth Circuit Court decision.

A program looking to create workforce housing in Missoula under new state guidelines is hoping to launch a pilot phase this year, where city officials will test the recommendations against real-world projects and make adjustments down the road.

Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg on Friday unveiled a proposal for a countywide ballot initiative that, if passed, would raise almost $10 billion over 40 years to tackle transportation, housing and climate change.

The state assesses 101 mills on all property across Montana — 95 to equalize funding among school districts and six to support the Montana University System. Property taxes could rise sharply.

Ann Brodsky writes, "Since Democrats shined a spotlight on the historic residential property tax increases that are coming your way, Republicans have been trying every which way to shift the blame from themselves."

Citing the need to attract and support businesses and lay the groundwork for workforce housing, Missoula County this week declared an infrastructure deficiency at the Wye, allowing it to create a new Targeted Economic Development District.