Several of the delegation’s senators, Carol Williams, Greg Lind and Carolyn Squires, said a host of good bills have made their way through the Montana Senate, including some that are the byproduct of heartening bipartisan support.
“We’ve had a really good first half of the session,” Williams said Thursday during a meeting with the Missoulian’s editorial board. “I’m hopeful about what we’ll be able to do in the second half. I think it’s clear that Montanans want us to work together.”
“It’s not that there hasn’t been some good bipartisan work, but there are some problems, as well,” said freshman Rep. Michelle Reinhart.
Although the legislators pointed to a host of particular bills as examples of success, they seemed particularly aggrieved by Republican maneuvering on the larger issue of the state budget.
Stepping away from 30 years of budget history, Republican leaders have split the state’s operating budget for the next two years into six parts. The GOP proposal cuts the governor’s suggested budget significantly; party leaders contend it restores accountability to the budgeting process.
But the move angered the governor, who said the new process lacks “transparency,” and left Democrats in the dark, the legislators said Thursday.
“I think it’s outrageous,” Williams said.
Rep. Dave McAlpin said the move had the feeling of something Republicans did “just because they can.”
On the other hand, Williams said there was still plenty of time to salvage a workable budget for the next two years.
Elsewhere, the Democrats were pleased with efforts to reform the initiative process, provide some tax relief, modernize the state’s health laws and reduce workers’ compensation costs. They also pointed to the following bills that are still alive:
n Funding for all-day kindergarten statewide.
n Regulating what are known as “constituency accounts,” which have allowed legislators to raise and spend money in any way they see fit.
n Expanding the Children’s Health Insurance Program.
n Requiring new or expanding coal-fired generation plants to sequester their carbon dioxide emissions in an effort to decrease pollutants that contribute to global warming.
“Despite some of the rhetoric, we are getting some good things done,” Reinhart said.
But some things Democrats hoped to get done aren’t happening. An effort to re-regulate the utility industry has floundered, and Sen. Greg Lind said it’s difficult to even get Montanans interested in the topic. Lind said he’s seen more interest in regulating two-cycle boat engines than he has in regulating the utility industry.
“People think the genie is already out of the bottle on that, it seems,” McAlpin said. “This wouldn’t put it back in, but it would help.”
Democrats were also unhappy with Republican efforts to return some of the current budget surplus through tax cuts that they claim benefit mostly the wealthy and business owners.
“This will be really helpful if you own a million-dollar house,” Rep. Ron Erickson said.
Democrats said considerably more caution should be shown with the surplus. Giving some of it back to taxpayers through programs like Schweitzer’s proposed $400 rebate is fine, they said, but the state also needs to look forward to the inevitable lean times.
The state is also woefully behind in some areas - the university system, infrastructure, health care and corrections were a few areas cited as underfunded.
“It’s unwise to start handing it back just because you have it,” Erickson said. “Some of the surplus can be used to solve problems created by neglect.”
The Montana Legislature returns for the second half of its 2007 session on Monday.
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