A new study by the Tax Foundation has Montana scoring relatively poorly in corporate tax rates, especially in our five-state region.  The brief study examined the combined state and federal corporate tax burdens for each state and then compared them with the corporate tax burdens for other countries.  Montana was at the middle of the pack among the states, and narrowly behind Idaho and North Dakota in our region.  Wyoming and South Dakota do not impose income taxes on corporations or individuals.

According to the study's author, Tax Foundation President Scott Hodge, "Competition for jobs and investment is fierce, and the US continues to fall further and further behind.  Our states should be the world's leaders in many things, but the high taxation should not be one of them."

We think Mr. Hodge is right.  Governor Schweitzer obviously doesn't.  Despite record revenue surpluses (and contrary to the Gov's own misleading rhetoric) he raised taxes on business during the last legislative session and opposed common-sense property tax cuts for homeowners and businessowners alike.

I can already anticipate the responses coming, so let me answer you in advance.  No, I'm not going to count the $25 million repeal of the Water Adjudication fee as tax relief for business because Gov. Schweitzer is the one who signed that fee into law in the first place.  And no, you don't get to claim that somehow general fund expenditures into state retirement funds is tax relief for business.  And nope, you don't get to claim that you cut taxes for 16,000 small businesses (or whatever that number is) when all you really did was just shift the tax burden and raise taxes on medium and large businesses.