Dear Editor: Don't be Fooled by the Rebate

Dear Editor,

Do you own a home and wonder what it's worth? You can easily look up your address on Zillow and see the estimated value is rapidly rising, translating to more property taxes.

Too many Montana families cannot keep up with an annual $249-million property tax increase imposed by Republican Governor Gianforte and his party in the Legislature. Yet, after months of analysis by the Governor's property tax task force, they recommended a complicated process that will raise our taxes again! Why didn't they consider the new taxes they already took from our wallets and give us our money back? Now they want to bill us for more taxes over the next two years. More bad news. Zillow reflects your home's current value, unlike the state's property appraisal system, which is always two years behind.

When will this end? Unless Governor Gianforte adopts the simple solution to reduce the residential property tax rate that we pay, as other governors have done, Montanans will continue to pay more, and lose their homes while rich folks benefit.

Don't be fooled by Governor Gianforte's rebate and the multiple marketing materials reminding you to apply to get a wee bit of your property tax money back. The truth is your home value is rapidly increasing. What can you do? Vote for the candidates that will truly lower your taxes or buckle up because you'll be paying way more property taxes in the future with the current leadership.

JAN LOMBARDI

Seeley Lake, Montana