Debate is now open for this bill for 72 hours. - Begins (UTC): 2026-06-16T13:00:00Z - Ends (UTC): 2026-06-19T13:00:00Z Please keep discussion on-topic and substantive. After debate closes, voting will automatically begin.

Mr. Speaker, this is the kind of bill folks in rural states understand without needing a white paper to explain it. When inflation hits, it does not hit everybody the same. A family trying to heat a home through a Montana winter, or a producer trying to keep equipment moving and feed in the barn, feels it first and feels it hardest. A temporary suspension on certain taxes and fees for farm diesel, propane, fertilizer, seed, and feed is a practical way to take some weight off their backs. Now, I know the argument we are going to hear is about lost state revenue, and that is a fair question. But this bill is limited to 12 months, it is targeted, and it includes anti-fraud rules plus a public report on what the savings and revenue impacts actually were. That is the right way to do relief: focused, temporary, and accountable. Better to give direct breathing room on essentials than pretend rural inflation can be solved with speeches. As Governor of West Virginia, I can tell you mountain and farm communities do not ask for miracles. They ask for some common sense and a government that knows the difference between luxury and necessity. Heating fuel is a necessity. Farm inputs are a necessity. If Montana wants to use its tax code to help working families and producers weather an inflation squeeze, I think that is a reasonable choice, and I support the bill.

Voting is now open for 72 hours. - Ends (UTC): 2026-06-22T14:00:00Z Members may vote Aye, Nay, or Present. Results are visible in real time.