HELENA — As the Legislature arrives at its midsession transmittal deadline today, a swarm of tax relief bills has emerged and it’s likely that only some of them will survive.

As usual, there are bills from the competing parties, but this time there is plenty of competition among Republicans over measures for property taxes, business equipment taxes and income taxes.

The Republicans however, are making it clear that tax relief is a serious priority, and that is one reason why so many bills are being advanced, with the exception of a bill advocating Gov. Steve Bullock’s proposed $400 rebates to Montana homeowners.

That bill is being held up in the House Taxation Committee.

The most direct rival to Bullock’s proposal is a bill sponsored by Rep. Scott Reichner, R-Bigfork, promising permanent tax relief for all property owners.

Reichner’s bill was debated and passed the House on Wednesday. Reichner pointed out that the governor’s proposal amounts to $100 million in total relief, just as his does.

“This provides relief,” Reichner said on the floor. “This is not a gimmick bill. This is not a rebate.”

He stressed that it provides breaks to utilities and landlords that will provide “trickle down” benefits to ratepayers and tenants.

But Democrats sounded off against Reichner’s bill. Rep. J.P. Pomnichowski, D-Bozeman, called it “devastating” legislation that would hinder the state’s ability to maintain a protective surplus.

She pointed out that it would provide the average homeowner with just $44 a year in relief while giving corporations expansive tax breaks. For example, BNSF would benefit by $1.4 million and NorthWest Energy would get $3.2 million in relief, she said.

Reichner said the “great divide” in the debate is whether the money belongs to taxpayers or the government, and in the past the Legislature “didn’t recognize the taxpayer. We recognized government.”

The bill passed 61-39.

Reichner’s bill may ultimately compete with a bill sponsored by Sen. Llew Jones, R-Conrad, that passed the Senate last week with much praise.

Senate Bill 175 relies on an influx of natural resource revenue as it provides revenue sought by school officials while also providing tax relief for homeowners. It would increase school funding and cut property taxes for a total cost of more than $100 million over the two-year budget period.

Although they are in the minority, Democrats are working to get traction for their proposals.

Rep. Ed Lieser, D-Whitefish, touts a property tax relief bill sponsored by Sen. Dick Barrett, D-Missoula.

Lieser describes it as a “circuit breaker” bill that relates property taxpayers’ income, or ability to pay, to their property tax bills.

“It’s so fair to me,” Lieser said. “It is a progressive tax policy.”

Barrett’s bill is still in the Senate Taxation Committee.

There also are competing bills for business equipment tax reductions, chief among them a bill from the governor and one sponsored by Sen. Bruce Tutvedt, R-Kalispell.

The governor’s bill would eliminate the equipment tax for business with equipment valued at less than $100,000. While Bullock touts the elimination of the tax, Tutvedt contends that having a threshold is bad policy because a company with $101,000 in equipment would pay tax on the entire amount.

He said his bill would raise an exemption on equipment from the current $3 million to $10 million with the tax rate reduced from 3 percent to 1.5 percent. These days, Tutvedt said, even some of the smallest businesses, including farms, have equipment worth millions.

Tutvedt pointed out that he also is sponsoring legislation that would exempt companies from taxes on new pollution control equipment required because of new federal regulations. And he said there are income tax reform bills in the works too.

Tutvedt emphasized that in the end, there will only be so much available for tax relief. Most recently, he said, Legislative Fiscal Services has advised that only about $50 million can be mustered for ongoing relief and he downplayed the ability to augment that amount with one-time surplus money.

Reichner sees it differently. “It depends on how much they want to leave in the bank for an ending fund balance,” he said. The budget for the last session set aside $250 million.

Some Republicans argued during the debate on Reichner’s bill that such large balances may not be necessary, while Democrats urged caution, saying that a strong reserve is what has shielded Montana from financial problems other states have experienced.

Speaker of the House Mark Blasdel, R-Somers, and Senate Majority Leader Art Wittich, R-Bozeman, both say they want as many tax relief bills around as long as possible.

“I want to keep them in the mix,” Blasdel said of the varying proposals. “We obviously will have big decisions at the end but we’ll have as many measures as possible at the end.”

Blasdel said that during his previous three sessions, there has been “very little tax relief” but there has been continued government growth. “I think taxpayers have overperformed and it’s time that be addressed.”

“We should move them all, so at the end we can decide,” said Wittich. “I want taxpayers to be represented at the table.”

Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by email at jmann@dailyinterlake.com.