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Write Back Act hearing: House bill to 'send excess 95 mills back to taxpayers' draws broad school‑funding support
Summary
House Bill 483, the Write Back Act, drew support from school boards, education coalitions and associations at a House Appropriations hearing for measures that would fix the 95‑mill calculation, provide an estimated $50–60 million in property tax relief, and raise transportation reimbursement rates.
Representative Courtney Sprunger, sponsor of House Bill 483, told the House Appropriations Committee the bill — dubbed the Write Back Act — would deliver direct property tax relief by returning excess revenue generated by the uniform 95 school equalization mills to taxpayers and by strengthening the mills' role in school equalization.
Sprunger said the bill would begin delivering relief this fall and estimated $50 million to $60 million in statewide property tax relief split between fall 2025 and spring 2026. She described four principal objectives: use growth in the 95 mills to reduce local property taxes, pay down permissive mills (including transportation and county retirement), protect the 95‑mill structure from being altered by reappraisals, and update school transportation reimbursement rates.
Witnesses representing education groups and local school officials uniformly supported the bill. Lance Melton of the Montana School Boards Association described the bill as a successor to last session's House Bill 587 and highlighted the historical purpose of the 95 mills in reducing disparities across districts. Doug Reisig of the Montana Quality Education Coalition said the bill would keep the 95 mills and 1.5 vocational technical education mills fixed for purposes of the statutory formula and help distribute state funding more equitably.
Larry Crowder of the Montana Rural Education Association emphasized a proposal in the bill to double scheduled transportation reimbursement rates and to change the split on scheduled bus costs from 50/50 county/state to 25/75 state, which the fiscal note projects would reduce local property tax burdens by about $24.5 million per year by shifting more of scheduled costs to the state.
Shelly Turner of the Montana Association of School Business Officials outlined technical changes to county retirement mill value calculations the bill would make and described the bill's intent to boost state support for county retirement obligations. Paul Taylor of the Office of Public Instruction and Dylan Cole of the Department of Revenue appeared as informational witnesses to answer technical questions about the 95 mills, GTB (guaranteed tax base) mechanics and formula interaction.
Committee members asked detailed technical questions about the fiscal note, the distribution of the funds, and interactions with other bills. Representative Crowell sought clarification on the transportation table in the fiscal note; Dylan Cole and Paul Taylor explained that the bill doubles schedule rates in the fiscal note and shifts the scheduled split to 75% state/25% county, while savings to local property taxpayers result from reductions to locally funded “over‑schedule” amounts that are borne by school districts.
Representative Gillette asked whether the bill would automatically draw down permissive levies; Mr. Cole said the statutory formulas for permissive mills cause those local levies to adjust when state funding reduces the dollar amount required, and he pointed to similar effects from prior legislation.
The committee closed the hearing on House Bill 483; because it is a revenue bill, the committee did not act immediately.
