City manager briefs Whitefish council on state bills affecting levies, resort tax and other city concerns

City Manager Dana updated the Whitefish City Council on state legislation the city is tracking and on which the city has taken or plans to take positions.

Dana said the city submitted comments opposing Senate Bill 146 and intends to provide supportive testimony for House Bill 378. The manager said several bills could affect local levy and bonding rules and that the city will continue monitoring and submitting comments when appropriate.

Dana described Senate Bill 204 as a priority concern for the city. She said the bill would require existing permanent voted levies the city uses to fund services such as 24‑hour fire coverage to return to voters for reapproval and would limit future approvals to 10‑year durations, forcing periodic reapproval rather than permanent status. “My opinion is that that was voted on by the voters of this community as a permanent funding source to move to a 24 hour service,” Dana said, and the city has drafted a letter opposing the bill and will have lobbyists provide support at hearings.

Dana also noted a bill carried by Senator Fern that would expand which communities may use resort tax and would allow Whitefish, if the bill became law and Whitefish elected the tax, to use an additional 1% specifically for housing or infrastructure. The city submitted comments in support of that bill, she said.

Dana told the council there are hundreds of bill drafts this session and staff will continue to track bills closely; she encouraged council members to raise questions about specific bills included in the meeting packet. No formal council action was recorded on these items at the time of the briefing.