Senate Local Government advances permit-reporting bill, OKs county 25-mph option and youth-sports fee cap; detention-hygiene bill heard

The Montana Senate Local Government Committee on Feb. 28 advanced a package of bills touching on property-tax reporting, local speed limits, short-term rental rules and youth-sports fees, and held a hearing on minimum hygiene supplies for people jailed in county facilities.

The committee voted to give a due-pass recommendation to Senate Bill 404, which would require counties and the Department of Labor & Industry to send copies of building and electrical permits to the Department of Revenue (DOR) within 30 days so DOR can identify newly constructed residential market value for taxation. Sponsors and auditors told the committee the change aims to reduce missed new-construction value that an audit estimated to be about 14% of residential new construction captured by current processes.

Why it matters: Legislative auditors told the committee that incomplete permit reporting can leave substantial residential value off local tax rolls and that a simple reporting step could help DOR locate and appraise new construction for taxation. Supporters said the measure is designed to improve tax equity by ensuring new improvements are identified and taxed appropriately.

Key items the committee acted on

- SB 404 (permit reporting to Department of Revenue): Sponsor: Senator Fern. The sponsor said an audit found an average of roughly $300 million per year in new residential construction market value not being identified; the bill would require local governments or DLI to forward building or electrical permits to the DOR field office for the county where the building is located within one month. Department of Revenue staff said DOR sometimes finds permit data by searching DLI web pages but that an automated transmission would reduce staff time. The committee adopted an amendment removing language referencing now-reduced local field-office counts; Senator Fern moved that amendment and it passed by voice vote. Vice Chair Beard moved a due-pass recommendation on the bill as amended; the bill passed out of committee (one member recorded a nay). Outcome: due pass (passed out of committee as amended). (Provenance: first hearing remarks on the bill, later amendment and voice vote.)

- SB 428 (county speed limits of 25 mph in urban districts): Sponsor: Willis Curdy (Senate District 49). The bill would let counties set speed limits as low as 25 mph on county roads located in an "urban district" (defined in the bill as an area where structures are spaced 100 feet or less for at…