Page 29 - Flathead Beacon // 4.27.16

UNCOMMON GROUND MIKE JOPEK TAXES ARE TOO HIGH
GUEST COLUMN LEW AND LAREL WEAVER
CLARIFYING WATER BOTTLING WPLANT OPERATIONS
E ARE WRITING THIS LET- utilized for bottle rinsing is the same ter in response to the con- water that will be used to ll bottles. The cerns expressed by our water has been ltered and treated with
IN HIS FIRST HALF AS GOVERNOR Steve Bullock proposed to the Mon- tana Legislature a $100 million home- owner property tax cut. Bullock’s pro- posal was modeled after his predecessor, who signed a law allocating $400 back to every in-state Montana homeowner.
The Republican-controlled Legisla- ture said no to Bullock’s reallocations of taxpayer funds. Republicans and Bull- ock did agree to permanently lower the business equipment tax to 1.5 percent and increased the valuation exempt from tax- ation to $100,000.
Bullock and the Republican-controlled Legislature cut the business equipment tax rate by a third and increased the exemption threshold ve-fold. It’s a big deal to many property taxpayers. It could have also become a signi cant hit to city, county and school funding, which rely on property taxes to balance budgets.
Locally these funds pay for school- teachers, parks personnel, road work- ers, librarians, re ghters, and police. If the state cuts property taxes and doesn’t locally back ll the funds, it means fewer re ghters and librarians or more local property taxes. Most property taxpayers remain homeowners.
The Legislature and governor did back ll millions of dollars to local juris- dictions for state-enacted tax cuts. More state funds to public education and teach- ers means less local tax funds.
The business equipment tax cut is dif- ferent from a homeowner property tax rebate. It’s an ongoing versus one-time cut. In 2007, some 250,000 people living in their homes received a $400 one-time rebate from Montana.
When Gov. Marc Racicot left o ce, Montana enjoyed a $22 million budget surplus. As Judy Martz retired from ser- vice, Montana had a $163 million budget surplus. After eight years as governor, Brian Schweitzer left Montana with more that $400 million surplus.
Bullock says the state should hold a $300 million ending fund balance. To their credit, Bullock and past Legisla- tures have been able to more that achieve this goal.
Many people will agree that taxes are
too high. Republican gubernatorial can- didate Greg Gianforte has proposed to cut the top income tax rate by 15 percent from 6.9 percent to 6 percent while elim- inating the business equipment property taxes entirely.
Eliminating the business equipment tax is an $81 million ongoing and local property tax cut to people who currently own equipment valued over $100,000. Cutting the top bracket income tax rate by 15 percent is a $125 million ongoing revenue loss to the state.
Neither of these tax cut proposals do much for farmers like me or most home- owners. Many Montana taxpayers don’t earn enough to occupy the top income bracket and even less own over $100,000 worth of business equipment.
Much of Montana’s rainy day fund is one-time money that’s neither ongoing nor guaranteed budget surpluses.
Gianforte’s current tax cut proposals could a ect ongoing public services. As more policy details emerge, hopefully the only way to reduce $200 million of ongo- ing revenue from Montana won’t involve cutting statewide services.
Montana’s Constitution requires a bal- anced budget. Any legislative question quickly resorts to which state programs warrant cuts. Only real choices are edu- cation, incarceration, or health care.
Many public services are hardly wor- thy of only one-time money. Yet that’s all likely left at the end of the next legisla- tive session after all the permanent tax breaks are peeled away from the Legisla- ture’s own revenue estimates.
Montana has wisely maintained sig- ni cant budget surpluses to deal with one-time emergencies like wild res, catastrophes or economic hardships. Past governors have been prudent with our tax dollars; when there’s extra, some was given back, some invested in our future, and some saved for a rainy day.
If anyone deserves tax cuts next leg- islative session it would be homeown- ers. Yet our propensity for simplicity and political demagoguery remains an obsta- cle. Maybe the next Legislature nds agreement to cap property taxes for peo- ple living in their homes.
neighbors and other residents in the valley. Hopefully we can clarify some of the misunderstanding and misinfor- mation that is being disseminated and put your minds to rest. As most of you know, we are planning to bottle artesian water from a well on our property. This endeavor is not something we recently decided to undertake but rather, has been a long-time family plan. Prior to beginning operations, we are required to obtain numerous permits and approv- als from both the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) and the Department of Envi- ronmental Quality (DEQ). As you have read and heard in various media broad- casts, we are currently in the process of obtaining those permits, which has proven to be a laborious process with layers of review.
In general, the reporting of our water-bottling plans has been informa- tive and objective, but upon occasion there has been some erroneous state- ments made. Therefore, the purpose of this letter is to clarify the misinfor- mation that appears to be circulating and provide a better understanding of our planned operations. First, we are using well water from the deep arte- sian aquifer and not surface water from Egan Slough as has been reported. The groundwater is of excellent quality and for this reason makes it a desirable prod- uct because of its inherently good taste. Many of the chemicals such as calcium, magnesium, uoride, and bicarbonate in the water are required in our diet.
One article recently reported that bottling operations would discharge chemical-laden water to an unnamed tributary of the Flathead River. This statement was incorrectly interpreted and subsequently reported. Water
ultraviolet light to prevent bacterial growth. None of the chemicals identi- ed in that article (i.e. chloride, nitrate, nitrite, and sulfate) will be in the bot- tle-rinse water above the concentrations that naturally occur in the groundwater source. We are currently applying for a Montana Pollution Discharge Elimina- tion Permit from Montana DEQ. The discharge permit will have speci c lim- itations on the level of suspended sol- ids, pH, and other parameters of the dis- charge water. Montana Artesian Water Company will comply with the permit requirements to meet or perform better than the speci ed limitations.
Another concern has been the dis- charge of geothermal heating water to the unnamed tributary of the Flat- head River. Water utilized for heating of the bottling facility is derived from the same source used for bottling water. The water is sent through a noncon- tact heat exchanger that derives heat from the groundwater and used to heat the building. The water discharged to the unnamed tributary is about seven degrees Fahrenheit cooler than the nat- ural groundwater temperature, which is approximately 46 degrees Fahrenheit.
We also recognize the volume of water requested is a signi cant amount. However, given the arduous process of obtaining a water right, we decided that requesting a volume of water large enough to satisfy potential future demands was prudent. The volume of water requested will certainly not make us the largest water user in the valley. Most irrigation wells in the val- ley pump more groundwater annually than we propose to divert. The major- ity of that water is consumed by di erent crops that are sold both in state and out of state for pro t.
“MONTANA HAS WISELY MAINTAINED SIGNIFICANT BUDGET SURPLUSES TO DEAL WITH ONE-TIME EMERGENCIES.”
Mike (Uncommon Ground) Jopek and Dave (Closing Range) Skinner often fall on opposite sides of the fence when it comes to political and outdoor issues. Their columns alternate each week in the Flathead Beacon.
“MOST IRRIGATION WELLS IN THE VALLEY PUMP MORE GROUNDWATER ANNUALLY THAN WE PROPOSE TO DIVERT.”
Lew and Larel Weaver live in Creston.
APRIL 27, 2016 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM
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