Lawmakers Hammer Out Ag Land Property Tax Reform Proposal

By Clayton Murphy UM Legislative News Service Montana Legislators are pitching a tightrope of a bill in hopes of closing a loophole for large “unqualified” landowners who benefit from the lower agricultural property tax rate.

But to do that, House Bill 27 would also create more hoops for farmers and ranchers to jump through to sort out who’s “bonafide” in agriculture and who’s not.

”We’ve had a lot of people waltzing right through that loophole and taking advantage of our good nature and getting that ag rate,” said Rep. Sherry Essmann, R-Billings. “We’re not going to penalize anybody. We are going to ask people to pay their equitable and fair share of property taxes.”

Essmann is carrying HB 27, which is still being ironed out after its first committee hearing on Feb. 7 in the House Taxation Committee. The four-hour hearing drew long lines of both proponents and opponents. Committee Chair Rep. Paul Fielder, R-Thompson Falls said in his three sessions as a legislator, it’s the longest hearing he’s had.

At its core, HB 27’s aim is to address rising property taxes, a top issue at the 2025 Montana Legislature, by targeting “trophy ranches” and organizations that buy up land and automatically qualify for and benefit from the lower ag rate, despite not producing ag products ...