[{"_1":2,"_123":-5,"_124":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87,99,111],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6172753,"mediaKeyId","5387154-e3d088b244dfdf2c0aa8bb7a9756201c","parentId",5387154,"title","Zephyr urges targeted public pressure, hallway conversations and protests to shape Montana policy","audioSeconds",516,"startMs",1553000,"endMs",2069000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5387154-e3d088b244dfdf2c0aa8bb7a9756201c&start=1553&end=2069","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5387154-e3d088b244dfdf2c0aa8bb7a9756201c/thumbnail_1553000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6172753/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/Zephyr-urges-targeted-public-pressure-hallway-conversations-and-protests-to-shape-Montana-policy","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6172753-e628b11af24bed26140d74d412af8c89/orig.mp4?Expires=1770397184&Signature=DZ7JTEqGERfoNvscXjsFfqq8DACwJzZiiLfIJqJAyejorbJpsJWFtR8zHcH96sGK3p9SnOs2usd77u-1SLUOM-P84UiuBSeJL~UfweVdgj747JW3kHnuB3HJ08P8WRgGRfb8hGVRLgyXjM2f5ftg2v3CP0L7u7IuKQn8jOFpvwyev2yPmNSp42b9YVp~JgdxUtMUxBuvfJwdgESicUXWMoLzC1Oznu-aXAUtvzaOUvLyMr69zDePL4P4m2ZC8xKV17V2EoL4EnQ5ygCAO7VeLWmb2EXcTRbgcKR-b6NJrPxfBaWfQTm0WeUYFVlNPZ56QWbV5UxR887RYCZcYts~vg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Missoula, MT","date","2025-07-15T11:03:33.107Z","article","Representative Zoe Zephyr advised activists that the most useful public participation is targeted, consistent and timed to when legislators are most receptive. \"Pick something specific and target it and put a full court press on a specific policy,\" she said, praising groups that ran focused campaigns to stop a $500,000 partnership proposal.

Zephyr said public comment and hall‑way conversations during session are particularly effective. \"I think that's the most effective. Being in the halls are the most effective,\" she said, adding that when legislators ask questions during committee testimony, activists should follow up in the hall to lower guards and plant seeds for future votes.

She outlined a communication speed round for constituents: form letters are hit‑or‑miss; calls to the legislative central desk and personalized phone calls are effective; direct phone calls to a legislator's public line are useful if the legislator has one; social direct messages can work in the off‑season; and showing up in Helena to testify or speak in the halls is the most effective single method.

Zephyr also described how protests change the \"temperature\" around an issue and provide both talking points and a way to identify effective spokespeople to recruit as witnesses or long‑term organizers. She encouraged off‑session relationship building, saying legislators are more open to different language and framing when \"the walls are down.\"

Why it matters: Zephyr framed coordinated public action as the complement to in‑office legislative strategy — protests and phone campaigns create pressure and provide organizers the people lawmakers rely on for testimony and expertise.

The session included audience Q&A with multiple questioners, including organizers and activists from Western Montana DSA.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Socialism Speaker Series 2025 - Building Socialism at the State Level","oneSentenceSummary","Representative Zoe Zephyr told an activist audience that the most effective civic participation combines targeted campaigns, off‑session outreach, in‑person hall conversations during session, and strategic protest organizing to change legislators' behavior.","taxTitle","Missoula, Missoula County, Montana","taxId",4050,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6172758,"Zephyr says judiciary fights and decorum suit point to broader push to politicize courts",166,2492000,2658000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5387154-e3d088b244dfdf2c0aa8bb7a9756201c&start=2492&end=2658","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5387154-e3d088b244dfdf2c0aa8bb7a9756201c/thumbnail_2492000.jpg","/articles/6172758/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/Zephyr-says-judiciary-fights-and-decorum-suit-point-to-broader-push-to-politicize-courts","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6172758-c6119b6692f10a57db9b9709de9c10fb/orig.mp4?Expires=1770397184&Signature=ln2axrcrhBePaRk5vieJlgFBQODPW8ymXhdz0CotJdr9fn0sHDUx~fToy2uqv0N4M78RGpi7CTE-J01j8aOEe4PBoa-bMf5jPFrcLB9-Ma1A9XlgOoyh7Rcaiy2wymgbrHFl6bggyUpdi4RtGowVt73dEAV6IVX6VQZ48pz1j4nOw7ZZJxPXD5hnKOJzXEyegLdFj-L--YaXB7ePVvClvDCv89tb7L51JW29dRQSzPfRCD4KA9d4fK1o00NbKAeydQPh9tqaAdnpydgEELYZOSTt29MQu1FqnR9uEhXrvRwfrgJl-NZy~1a7YTn-yWlOrwMSi6UUPLSlZTrUpxk7UQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","An audience member asked Representative Zoe Zephyr about a previous decorum ruling that prevented her from speaking on the House floor and a subsequent suit she brought; a judge declared the case moot, the audience member said. Zephyr said the ruling did not end the issue and called for continued legal challenges and efforts to protect nonpartisan judges.

\"We have to bring those suits, fight...and we need to make sure that we are fighting for non partisan judges within the state,\" Zephyr said. She described a Republican priority pushed by Governor Greg Gianforte and others to politicize judicial elections — a bid the Democratic side worked to stop in the recent session, she said.

Zephyr outlined additional legal obstacles she sees in proposed legislation, including a measure that would require challenges to laws to be heard in the district of the legislator who proposed them — a change she said would make it harder to sue where the harm occurs. \"I'm pretty confident that will be struck down, but we have to bring those suits,\" she said.

Why it matters: Zephyr framed the judiciary fights as central to preserving the ability of legislators and citizens to raise constitutional claims in appropriate forums and as a wider element of partisan strategy.

The exchange occurred during audience Q&A at a Western Montana DSA event.","Representative Zoe Zephyr discussed a prior incident where she was blocked from the floor for decorum, the ensuing legal challenge that a judge declared moot, and broader Republican efforts she described to politicize the judiciary in Montana.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6172763,"Zephyr warns federal Medicaid rollbacks could force Montana to tap $2 billion trust and cut coverage",269,2727000,2996000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5387154-e3d088b244dfdf2c0aa8bb7a9756201c&start=2727&end=2996","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5387154-e3d088b244dfdf2c0aa8bb7a9756201c/thumbnail_2727000.jpg","/articles/6172763/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/Zephyr-warns-federal-Medicaid-rollbacks-could-force-Montana-to-tap-2-billion-trust-and-cut-coverage","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6172763-9af5fb21136f2a538333ab79b69f0681/orig.mp4?Expires=1770397184&Signature=ha0DhdGpl6SaOljVLF2VMBmy-tCm5kpBUkhhAaCdquDOgm6jF2FoYH1-hx2o1Dt~c1CMXIQ1OJfVRHFuFyO0ZRDvHjyYLgb8hj10c5xe~R4K~~BjYpAVrXj4s04h3mcOgPWi-egBlrBe7Caz-SoItaWboLQcMMXUuwos3UFua9q8aLZy4aGz-hr1urkAuEpkVBM9sMCWHo6bOl4nh69GNa5FCo4SxY4Q3~wZ69qWRqfXIcIswJQK9YmntRa4gllel3LyPbRN5ZSgEEaWCapjEgDlZp1DT~r4G4gXSWLWf-Ddlsfei6BP3Wpg~YUhjxB5toIxEoOu53tjHpMxqczR9w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Representative Zoe Zephyr said proposed federal reductions to Medicaid funding and program changes would likely push costs onto states and could force Montana to draw down a $2 billion growth and opportunity trust the Legislature set aside this session.

\"If the rug's pulled out, that $2,000,000,000 is a place that we would have to turn to,\" Zephyr said, describing the trust as a fund lawmakers had placed aside with broad goals including housing and pensions. She said the trust could be repurposed to cover immediate shortfalls in health programs if federal funding is reduced.

Zephyr said the impact on Montanans could be large: she estimated roughly 50,000 people could lose access to health care through bureaucratic disruption if Medicaid requirements were transferred to states without sufficient planning and funding. \"You're gonna see at least 50,000 people would be my estimate, who are going to just through the sheer bureaucracy of the process lose access to their health care,\" she said.

Zephyr urged constituents to contact U.S. House members to oppose federal changes and to press state lawmakers to fight cuts. She recommended constituents \"make phone calls, make it hell\" for members who might support the federal changes and argued the measure previously passed by a single vote in a congressional context and could be killed again with pressure.

Why it matters: Zephyr said Medicaid and SNAP cuts would not follow party lines in their impact because rural hospitals, businesses and patients across political identities rely on the programs. She framed the issue as one of state fiscal contingency and health access.

The remarks came during audience Q&A at a Western Montana DSA event where Zephyr discussed state and federal interactions on health funding and the need for legal and political responses.","Representative Zoe Zephyr said proposed federal cuts to Medicaid would shift costs to states, likely forcing Montana to use a $2 billion growth and opportunity trust and could cause tens of thousands to lose coverage.",{"_33":100,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":101,"_41":102,"_43":103,"_45":104,"_47":105,"_49":106,"_51":107,"_53":108,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":109,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":110,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6172768,"Zephyr outlines housing strategy: community land trusts, parking limits and landlord‑tenant overhaul",288,533000,821000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5387154-e3d088b244dfdf2c0aa8bb7a9756201c&start=533&end=821","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5387154-e3d088b244dfdf2c0aa8bb7a9756201c/thumbnail_533000.jpg","/articles/6172768/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/Zephyr-outlines-housing-strategy-community-land-trusts-parking-limits-and-landlordtenant-overhaul","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6172768-2ef58754fc8346b3c85c24e59625967d/orig.mp4?Expires=1770397184&Signature=WhrdDPKxPP5mTveF9lbw9bSDS8QYMYcFQKa4rzBNSHC-Lof7EiyUS1rur4PxOsN4NxqH3-X2Rp8t~h-mxZwXid-Dmh~lPIUL65jVOFdciJpCARAwowi6pxL9rsX2EMNWkLN6ZbTAUSnKpPzGC3u~HEAzDjD5LP0e2e6FyCZxs3JWBNQ4Y29jGyPdX68zdEqHFsA-iDY3p9GHScWUWPdO7DLaO9ZMm-D4q1xrH-lRK4ebieGmwg3HG0FoNkGvQhMhSpgALenAUo~DodPumMABaj4~07aZfMHCN21GyoovsINNVbJ79Ofizdj1ZND-ZSu1rLCRadPAOXX6-tkHJrUkFw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Representative Zoe Zephyr told the Western Montana DSA that housing will be a primary focus for future legislative sessions and described several policy tools she supports to increase supply and mobility.

Zephyr described community land trusts as “market‑insulated housing” in which \"the land is leased on a hundred year lease. You own the home and you can buy and sell it basically at construction value as opposed to general market value.\" She said a community land trust home in Missoula runs about half the typical market price, and she used that example to argue CLTs can promote mobility for retirees and renters.

At the policy level, Zephyr cited this session's regulatory changes as partial progress: she said lawmakers limited local councils from blocking housing up to six stories, and reduced required parking minimums so some units under 1,200 square feet now require one half parking space per unit. \"We decreased, we put caps on what a city council can do...\" Zephyr said.

Zephyr said the body of law known as the Landlord Tenant Act currently favors landlords and that a broader rewrite of the code would be required to enact rent protections, longer notice periods for rent increases, limits on short‑term rentals and stronger municipal zoning powers. \"We need probably four more seats in the house... before we can get some landlord tenant policy, affirmative, good policy through,\" she said, describing committee control as the key obstacle.

Why it matters: Zephyr argued that without policies that increase mobility — allowing older homeowners to downsize without losing generational value, and enabling renters to build equity or move into ownership — housing supply strains will persist.

Zephyr presented examples of targeted approaches she favors: propagating community land trusts beyond small pilots, creating infill development outside the city core, and setting aside funds in larger projects to support CLT units. She framed these changes as incremental and contingent on committee composition and legislative majorities.

Representative Zoe Zephyr spoke; Bridal Work introduced the session.","Representative Zoe Zephyr described housing policies she pushed and hopes to advance — community land trusts, caps on parking requirements, limits on local height restrictions up to six stories, and a long‑term goal to rewrite the Landlord Tenant Act to increase mobility and limit rent pressure.",{"_33":112,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":113,"_41":114,"_43":115,"_45":116,"_47":117,"_49":118,"_51":119,"_53":120,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":121,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":122,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6172773,"Montana lawmaker: 2025 session yielded defensive wins, split GOP and property-tax relief for Missoula homeowners",244,264000,508000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5387154-e3d088b244dfdf2c0aa8bb7a9756201c&start=264&end=508","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5387154-e3d088b244dfdf2c0aa8bb7a9756201c/thumbnail_264000.jpg","/articles/6172773/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/Montana-lawmaker-2025-session-yielded-defensive-wins-split-GOP-and-property-tax-relief-for-Missoula-homeowners","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6172773-bc1471d0e104413bf00db796da834a4f/orig.mp4?Expires=1770397184&Signature=Q2CuGn3I~LoCUUsCWB2erjxwiY7q1XkvKJKGCm-IcEJWbuqTqsbPoUe2l3SVsWV-my04NSsqWqEnmPp9SeqDv7OpH2oyJ5TQ01596cBk8bjmWmv7~le1Hz6-cGurt895~9wD~vr9SqHZIAa2xbfiSAVxOl9ajDqtHB-5epWPDmet6WiYLntUzBDSLDN4sluxMHj7F~tRzPn5~QI1GgrZLT9jNuSJKiQSwiue0aeC5kA8CKzHke76PmdZ2hRPFupY3MFHTyK70PdRdx5OcH6mNvSqbwJG3et3u7GhHG-61SR6~zcUUhqIPKLm45D-j06OOVLUf1FODYQsnzw9boRBTQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Representative Zoe Zephyr of Missoula said the 2025 Montana legislative session produced “sustainable” victories for Democrats by exposing fractures within the Republican majority and using those divisions to kill bills she and other Democrats opposed. \"One of the best things to happen in this last session is we found the fracture lines within the Republican Party,\" Zephyr said.

The fractures, Zephyr said, helped Democrats block several measures she described as being pushed by what she called \"MAGA Trumpers,\" including proposed bills to expand local police roles into immigration enforcement and a business partnership that she said would have provided $500,000 a year in state funds for a partnership with Israel. \"We were able to find the fracture lines within the Republican party and kill that,\" Zephyr said of that measure.

Why it matters: Zephyr said the same approach helped reduce the tax burden on homeowners in Missoula. She said tax policy adjustments enacted during the session should lower average property taxes on primary residences in Missoula by about 20 percent, though she called the figure a ballpark estimate. \"Taxes are kinda like a balloon. If you squeeze one side of it, it balloons out on another side,\" Zephyr said, adding that the relief came, in part, from changing the tax treatment of large corporate box stores.

Zephyr also described the 2025 session as a defensive success on transgender rights measures. \"We killed about half of the anti trans policies,\" she said, and noted that some Republican legislators joined Democrats in opposing parts of that package. That cross‑party opposition, she said, made those bills defeatable in a state with a Republican majority.

The legislator said Democratic strategy intentionally engaged hot‑button issues to force fissures within the GOP caucus and to build working relationships with moderate Republicans that could be leveraged on other policy areas such as taxes. Looking forward to the 2027 session, Zephyr said she intends to push for additional transparency about which provisions of the Montana Code are blocked by court rulings and to pursue further tax and housing policy changes.

Zephyr framed these developments as tactical: press hot issues publicly to reveal which Republican members will resist the most extreme proposals, then use those relationships to win concessions on other priorities.

Representative Zoe Zephyr spoke to the Western Montana DSA speaker series; Bridal Work, the chapter cochair, introduced the event and the speaker.","Representative Zoe Zephyr said Democrats in the 2025 Montana Legislature exposed fractures within the Republican majority, helping to defeat several bills including a proposed business partnership and many anti‑trans measures, and win property‑tax relief for Missoula homeowners.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Zephyr urges targeted public pressure, hallway conversations and protests to shape Montana policy

Zephyr says judiciary fights and decorum suit point to broader push to politicize courts

Zephyr warns federal Medicaid rollbacks could force Montana to tap $2 billion trust and cut coverage

Zephyr outlines housing strategy: community land trusts, parking limits and landlord‑tenant overhaul

Montana lawmaker: 2025 session yielded defensive wins, split GOP and property-tax relief for Missoula homeowners