For Paula Koch, this is her first year entering politics. If she wins, she estimates the financial sacrifice will cost her more than $11,000 in lost wages.

Koch, a Democrat, is running for the House District 4 seat, which covers the city of Columbia Falls and the east side of Whitefish.

The 59-year-old has been teaching Spanish and gifted and talented classes at the Columbia Falls Junior High for 30 years now. She lived in Whitefish for 35 years and moved to Columbia Falls in 2019, so she knows both communities well. Koch and her husband, Matt Ford, have three grown children.

“I don’t think there’s anyone who knows this district who is willing to run for office better than I do,” she said in a recent interview.

As a teacher, she can get the time off to serve in office if she wins, but she has to pay the school district back the full substitute costs while she is gone. She calculates the difference in pay as a legislator, which is $128 a day, against the cost of the substitute will be about $11,698 that she will lose in income if she wins.

The district estimates she would need to pay back $21,682, based on 78 days absent. The state Legislature pays $128. So over 78 days that's $ 9,984. The difference is the above figure.

She will not, however, be penalized for accrued teacher retirement days while in office.

But Koch said it’s worth it to serve her communities.

“I knew this and I’ve chosen this,” she said.

On how to curb repeat DUI and drug offenders, she said she attended the recent county DUI  Task Force community meeting. One idea is a dedicated DUI court, which insures offenders are both complying with the laws and monitoring programs. 

She said she is willing to work across party lines to come up with other solutions as well.

On property taxes she said she was impressed with how the 2025 changes helped primary residents, but she would want to see data on how it has or hasn’t worked for communities before changing the law.

On a flat income tax, it’s another matter of examining the data before making a decision.

“Currently, if we were to move towards the Governor’s suggested flat tax my first thought is about the families that live and work in House District 4. Most of these families need every cent they can in their pocket,” she said. “A flat tax does not serve them well  The Legislative Fiscal Division estimates revenue drops by $130 million to $140 million annually. State budget cuts threaten public schools and healthcare. Infrastructure and local services face potential funding shortfalls. These are all the systems in which serve and benefit the very families that make up this district. They are my community and the people I serve as an educator everyday. I could not go to Helena and support a flat tax until we carefully examine who benefits, who bears the cost, how much revenue the state would receive, and what the change could mean for funding our schools, public services, and communities.”

On public lands, she said she does not favor the state taking over federal lands.

“We could not as a state manage these lands without federal funding,” she said.

On corner crossings where public lands are checkerboarded between private land, she said she supported ladder crossings, which were recently deemed legal in Wyoming.

“If we have public lands that are inaccessible, what’s the value of public lands?” she said.

On Constitutional Initiative 132, which would keep judges races non-partisan, she said she was “100%” in favor of it, noting that judges shouldn’t be influenced by political party.

On I-194, which prohibits “artificial persons” from contributing to political campaigns, she supported that as well.

She noted her campaign funding is coming directly from her supporters.

With the School District 6 bond failing again, she spoke to that as well.

“We’ve maxed out our community members financially,” she said.

She suggested that more state funding should be utilized toward capital projects by lifting the 3% inflationary cap on education funding.

As far as her campaign, she said she was a “Democrat with an independent spirit.”