_____________ bill NO. _____________

INTRODUCED BY _________________________________________________

By Request of the ****

A BILL FOR AN ACT ENTITLED: "AN ACT submitting to the qualified electors of montana an amendment to article viii of the montana constitution TO RETURN REVENUE THAT EXCEEDS 10% OF THE GENERAL FUND ESTIMATED REVENUE to montana resident TAXPAYERS; and providing a delayed effective date."

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:

NEW SECTION. Section 1. Article VIII of The Constitution of the State of Montana is amended by adding a new section 18 that reads:

Section 18. Return of excess revenue to taxpayers. (1) As soon as is practicable after adjournment sine die of a regular session of the legislature, the governor shall cause an estimate to be prepared of revenues that must be received by the general fund for the biennium beginning July 1 of the year of the regular legislative session.

(2)        As soon as is practicable after the end of the biennium, the governor shall cause actual collections of revenues received by the general fund for that biennium to be determined.

(3)        If the revenues received from general fund revenue sources during the biennium exceed the amount estimated to be received from the sources for the biennium by 10% or more, the total amount of the excess must be returned to Montana resident taxpayers as determined by law.

(4)        The legislature may enact laws:

(a)        establishing a tax credit, refund payment, or other mechanism by which the excess revenues are returned to Montana resident taxpayers and establishing related administrative procedures; and

(b)        permitting a taxpayer's share of excess revenues to be offset by any liability of the taxpayer for which the state is authorized to undertake collection efforts.

(5)        Prior to the close of a biennium for which an estimate described in subsection (1) has been made, the legislature, by a two-thirds majority vote of all members elected to each house, may enact legislation declaring an emergency and increasing the amount of the estimate prepared pursuant to subsection (1).

(6)        This section does not apply if, for a biennium or any portion of a biennium, a state tax is not imposed on or measured by the income of individuals.

NEW SECTION. Section 2. Two-thirds vote required. Because [section 1] is a legislative proposal to amend the constitution, Article XIV, section 8, of the Montana constitution requires an affirmative roll call vote of two-thirds of all the members of the legislature, whether one or more bodies, for passage.

NEW SECTION. Section 3. Effective date. [This act] is effective January 1, 2025.

NEW SECTION. Section 4. Submission to electorate. [This act] shall be submitted to the qualified electors of Montana at the general election to be held in November 2024 by printing on the ballot the full title of [this act] and the following:

[]          YES on Constitutional Amendment ____.

[]          NO on Constitutional Amendment ____.