HOUSE BILL NO. 426
INTRODUCED BY R. JORE
A BILL FOR AN ACT ENTITLED: "AN ACT AMENDING THE STATE-TRIBAL COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS ACT TO CLARIFY THE REQUIRED GENERAL AND DETAILED CONTENTS; REQUIRING TAX AGREEMENTS AFFECTING FEE LAND TO BE SUBMITTED TO THE ELECTORATE PRIOR TO ADOPTION; REQUIRING ANNUAL AUDIT REPORTS; REQUIRING AUDIT REPORTS TO BE AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST AND TO BE SPECIFIC TO EACH AGREEMENT; PROHIBITING AN AGREEMENT CEDING JURISDICTION OVER NONTRIBALLY OWNED FEE LANDS WITHIN A RESERVATION WHERE EXCLUSIVE STATE JURISDICTION HAS BEEN JUDICIALLY DETERMINED; CLARIFYING DISTRIBUTION OF REVENUE; AMENDING SECTIONS 18-11-103, 18-11-104, 18-11-110, AND 18-11-112, MCA; AND PROVIDING AN IMMEDIATE EFFECTIVE DATE AND AN APPLICABILITY DATE."
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:
Section 1. Section 18-11-103, MCA, is amended to read:
"18-11-103. Authorization to enter agreement -- general contents. (1) Any one or more public agencies may enter into an agreement with any one or more tribal governments to:
(a) perform any administrative service, activity, or undertaking that a public agency or a tribal government entering into the contract is authorized by law to perform; and
(b) assess and collect or refund any tax or license or permit fee lawfully imposed by the state or a public agency and a tribal government and to share or refund the revenue from the assessment and collection.
(2) The agreement must be authorized and approved by the governing body of each party to the agreement. If a state agency is a party to an agreement, the governor or the governor's designee is the governing body.
(3) The agreement must set forth fully the powers, rights, obligations, and responsibilities of the parties to the agreement.
(4) (a) Prior to entering into an agreement on taxation with a tribal government, a public agency shall provide public notice and hold a public meeting on the reservation whose government is a party to the proposed agreement for the purpose of receiving comments from and providing written and other information to interested persons with respect to the proposed agreement.
(b) At least 14 days but not more than 30 days prior to the date scheduled for the public meeting, a notice of the proposed agreement and public meeting must be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the county or counties in which the reservation is located.
(c) At the time the notice of the meeting is published, a synopsis of the proposed agreement must be made available to interested persons.
(d) For a tax agreement affecting fee land, the proposed tax must be submitted to the affected electors for approval prior to adoption of the agreement."
Section 2. Section 18-11-104, MCA, is amended to read:
"18-11-104. Detailed contents of agreement. (1) The agreement authorized by 18-11-103 must specify the following:
(a) its duration;
(b) the precise organization, composition, and nature of any separate legal entity created by the agreement;
(c) the purpose of the agreement;
(d) the manner of financing the agreement and establishing and maintaining a budget for the agreement;
(e) the method to be employed in accomplishing the partial or complete termination of the agreement and for disposing of property upon partial or complete termination;
(f) the provision for administering the agreement, which may include creation of a joint board responsible for administration;
(g) the manner of acquiring, holding, and disposing of real and personal property used in the agreement; and
(h) other necessary and proper matters.
(2) If an agreement involves law enforcement, it must also include:
(a) the minimum training standards and qualifications of law enforcement personnel;
(b) the respective liability of each public agency and tribal government for the actions of law enforcement officers when acting under the provisions of an agreement;
(c) the minimum insurance required of both the public agency and the tribal government; and
(d) the exact chain of command to be followed by law enforcement officers acting under the provisions of an agreement.
(3) If an agreement involves the assessment and collection or refund of a similar tax or license or permit fee by the state or a public agency and a tribal government, it must also include:
(a) the procedure for determining the amount of revenue to be shared by the state or a public agency and the tribal government;
(b) the administrative procedures for collection of the shared revenue;
(c) the minimum insurance or bonding, if any, required by the state or a public agency or the tribal government;
(d) a statement specifying the administrative expenses, if any, to be deducted pursuant to 18-11-112 by the collector of the tax or license or permit fee;
(e) a statement that the state or a public agency or the tribal government collecting the tax or license or permit fee is subject to an annual audit report, available upon request, by a mutually agreed upon auditor of the revenue collected and administrative expenses specific to each agreement;
(f) a statement that the state or a public agency and the tribal government will cooperate to collect only one tax and will share or refund the revenue as specified in the agreement;
(g) a statement that a taxpayer may not be required to pay both the state tax and the tribal tax but shall pay only one tax
to one government in an amount established in the agreement; and
(h) a statement that the parties to the agreement are not forfeiting any legal rights to apply their respective taxes by entering into an agreement, except as specifically set forth in the agreement; and
(i) for any agreement proposing a tax, license fee, or permit fee for the recreational use of federal, state, tribal, or fee patent lands, a statement specifically identifying the recreational uses covered by the tax, license fee, or permit fee."
Section 3. Section 18-11-110, MCA, is amended to read:
"18-11-110. Specific limitations on agreements. Nothing in this This chapter may not be construed to authorize an
agreement that:
(1) is not permitted by federal law. However, the parties are encouraged to deal with substantive matters and
enforcement matters that can be mutually agreed upon, but no such an agreement may not be considered to affect the
underlying jurisdictional authority of any party unless expressly authorized by congress.
(2) authorizes a public agency or tribal government, either separately or pursuant to agreement, to expand or diminish
the jurisdiction presently exercised by the government of the United States to make criminal laws for or enforce criminal
laws in Indian country; or
(3) authorizes a public agency or tribal government to enter into an agreement except as authorized by their its own
organizational documents or enabling laws; or
(4) authorizes the state in an agreement to cede jurisdiction over nontribally owned fee lands within the exterior boundaries of any Indian reservation in Montana where exclusive state jurisdiction has been judicially determined to exist."
Section 4. Section 18-11-112, MCA, is amended to read:
"18-11-112. Revenue account -- administrative account -- distribution of revenue. (1) The revenue collected by the state, a public agency, or a tribal government under a state-tribal cooperative agreement and the administrative expenses, if any, deducted under subsection (2) from the total revenue collected must be deposited in separate special revenue accounts and then distributed under the provisions of the agreement to the appropriate state agency, public agency, or tribal government.
(2) Administrative expenses deducted by the state, a public agency, or a tribal government for collection of revenue may not exceed the actual cost of collecting the revenue on a reservation or 5%, whichever is less. Money from an administrative account may be expended only for the purpose of administering the tax or fee imposed under the state-tribal cooperative agreement or for paying the costs incurred in terminating the agreement.
(3) Except for administrative expenses, if any, deducted under subsection (2), revenue collected by a public agency under a state-tribal agreement must be deposited in separate special revenue accounts and must be disbursed as provided for in the agreement. If a public agency that is a party to an agreement is a local government, the agreement must provide for the disposition of revenue.
(4) Money deposited in a state administrative expenses account and in a state special revenue account is statutorily appropriated, as provided in 17-7-502, to the department or public agency that is a party to a state-tribal cooperative agreement under 18-11-103, for the purpose of paying administrative expenses or paying to a tribe its portion of the tax or fee.
(5) If a tax, or license fee, or permit fee is collected or refunded pursuant to a state-tribal cooperative agreement, each
party must receive its share as provided in the agreement, notwithstanding any contrary state statutory, public agency
ordinance, or tribal ordinance distribution formula. For distribution of the remainder, the state statutory, public agency, or
tribal distribution formula must apply as if the amount remaining after each party to the agreement receives its share were
the total revenue collected from the tax, or license fee, or permit fee."
NEW SECTION. Section 5. Notification to tribal governments. The secretary of state shall send a copy of [this act] to each tribal government located on the seven Montana reservations and to the Little Shell band of Chippewa.
NEW SECTION. Section 6. Effective date -- applicability. [This act] is effective on passage and approval and applies to agreements entered into on or after [the effective date of this act].
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Latest Version of HB 426 (HB0426.01)
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Status of this Bill
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