By Jen Clancey STAFF WRITER
Senate Bill 260 narrowly passed its second reading with a vote of 26-24 on the Montana Senate floor this afternoon, April 4. The district boundary bill was presented in the Senate Taxation Committee in February, proposing to ease property owners’ abilities to withdraw from a special district that provides services that are inaccessible.
The bill follows attempts by Madison County residents within Big Sky to leave the Madison Valley Hospital District and enter a soon-to-be-formed Big Sky Wellness District, resulting in disputes in commission hearings and lawsuits. Between the communities of Ennis and Big Sky is a private road, purportedly obstructing residents in Big Sky from more direct access to the Madison Valley Medical Center and Ennis schools.
Sen. Greg Hertz (R-Polson) presented the bill on Friday, highlighting recent amendments including reconciliation payment solutions between the Ennis School District and the Big Sky School District, and a three-year funding transition to minimize financial disruptions during withdrawals from a hospital or school district.
Representing Madison County, Sen. Tony Tezak (R-Ennis) opposed the bill.
“It violates fair election rights and this completely bypasses all involvement from local government, the district court, and the Montana Supreme Court,” Tezak said. SB 260 requires a certified petition by willing landowners in the area seeking withdrawal, a public hearing with the hospital district board regarding the petition, and an election amongst the landowners in the removal area to finalize the withdrawal.
Tezak said there is already a process in place for withdrawals. “They have a signed petition. They had a hearing with the county commissioners that was rejected. They took it with the process and went to appeal it to the courts. The judge ordered a hearing later this month on that decision, it is appealable to the Montana Supreme Court if they fail there.”
About $3 million go to the Madison Valley Hospital District yearly from Big Sky’s Madison County landowners, according to Feb. 12 testimony in committee from Daniel Bierschwale, Big Sky Resort Area District executive director.
Sen. Shelley Vance (R-Belgrade) said in the floor discussion that SB 260 is a question of where that $3 million goes—“whether that money should go to the hospital where the residents receive care or go to a facility they will never use.”
“It’s a simple fairness, in my opinion,” Vance concluded, urging a green light for SB 260.
Before Sen. Hertz’s conclusion of the bill discussion in preparation for a vote, Sen. Cora Neumann (D-Bozeman) voiced her support.
“This bill is not about Yellowstone Club. It’s not about a resort. It is about the 3,800 Big Sky residents, mothers, fathers, children, teachers, health workers, caregivers, people who are serving the tourists,” Neumann said.
Tomorrow, April 4, senators will make their final vote on SB 260, choosing whether to send the district boundary bill on the second half of its legislative journey.
