Helena?

by Joseph G. Gallagher Jr., Stevensville

I have a question to ask our state officials in Helena. First, does the right hand know what the left hand is doing? Secondly, do our State Senators and State Representatives in the House know what is going on or are the people of Montana dealing with and paying the salaries for a lot of deadwood in our state government in Helena that are maybe asleep at the wheel?

Now, why do I ask that question?

First, we are told there is a surplus of a billion or so dollars in the state coffers.Then we are told this will result in a rebate in our income taxes (with a max of $1,250). Then we are told that we will also get a rebate on our property taxes (with that max of $675). Then around the beginning of this October we all get a letter from State of Montana, Department of Revenue, to expect at least an increase in our property taxes for 2023 of almost $1,000 for some people in Ravalli County, Bitterroot Valley. Then to top it all off, we receive our 2023 Property Tax Bills, WHICH ARE LATE, and lo and behold, our property taxes have gone up less than $100-$200 for most of us.

If all the above is not enough to start someone THINKING, what is going on in Helena, there is an excellent article in the November 8, 2023, Bitterroot Star by Michael Howell, titled, “Septic pumpers face hard times.” The long and the short of that article is that the Missoula waste treatment plant will only accept 60% of the waste of our valley starting in 2024 and the cost to build our own septic waste treatment plant to address the increase of septic waste as a result of the increase in residential building occurring in the Bitterroot Valley is going to be in the neighborhood of $15-$17 million which is just about 1.6% of that billion dollar surplus.

Now my question is, why is Helena giving back rebates when the Bitterroot Valley needs a waste treatment plant and septic waste is going to be a problem for this valley in the near, if not the immediate future, as a result of all the residential building going on in this valley which mostly has septic systems and water wells? What other infrastructure projects need to be done throughout the various counties in the state of Montana?

Now, a light may come on that the Ravalli County Commissioners might start to have to think about and that is, will there be enough potable water in the valley for the residents of the valley and their septic waste as a result of all this residential housing development increase? 

These are questions that need to be reflected on and answered by those officials in Ravalli County and the officials in the towns and municipalities in the valley soon before there is another article in the Bitterroot Star discussing potable water issues and wells going dry in this valley because of the increase of residential housing development which we can all see is happening in this valley….

Finally, it would be helpful if our State Senators and House members representing the Bitterroot Valley would explain what is going on in Helena and the legislature with property taxes in this state.