HELENA – Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Hill says he wants to use more money from oil, gas and coal development to pay for public education and rely less on property taxes.
Hill released a set of proposals on Wednesday that calls for cutting property taxes by $200 million from 2013-2015.
He says he would ask voters to approve a referendum to divert Montana coal tax trust fund revenue for 10 years. His plan calls for using a third of that money for school construction and two-thirds for unspecified infrastructure needs.
Hill also says effective teachers should be rewarded and ineffective ones replaced. Plus, he says school districts should have more flexibility on how they use their money. He did not offer specific proposals on those ideas.
Hill faces Democratic Steve Bullock in the Nov. 6 election.