House GOP splits up building bill

HELENA — House Republicans said Thursday they are splitting Gov. Steve Bullock’s single infrastructure bill into at least seven separate bills and would eliminate most of the governor’s proposed use of bonding to finance projects.

As a result, Republicans, who have criticized Bullock’s proposal that relies heavily on bonding, will rely heavily on cash in their plan.

A preliminary comparison they provided showed Republicans would spend about $175 million in cash on projects compared to the $179 million Bullock wants to spend in cash, according to estimates from Reps. Mike Cuffe, R-Eureka, and Ryan Osmundson, R-Buffalo. Both numbers include $70 million in spending authority for universities to raise private money for buildings.

However, Bullock’s plans also include $212 million in bonds.

The two Republicans said they are considering at least $138 million in other funds, which could come from bonds, cash or a combination.

And the GOP totals don’t yet include any funding for projects for Eastern Montana counties that have felt the impact of oil and gas development. However, Cuffe and Osmundson said the Republicans will present several plans in the coming days. Bullock has proposed $45 million in bonding for Eastern Montana.

House Speaker Austin Knudsen, R-Culbertson, and Senate Majority Leader Matt Rosendale, R-Glendive, and Sen. John Brenden, R-Scobey, are all working on bills for infrastructure in the oil and gas counties, but details weren’t immediately available.

Cuffe, who chairs the budget subcommittee overseeing public works projects, said the panel had been planning to take action next week on the Democratic governor’s bill, House Bill 5, by Rep. Jeff Welborn, R-Dillon.

Cuffe said HB 5 was simply too big for members to digest and comprehend and needed to be broken up.

“Oftentimes legislators vote no when they don’t fully understand a bill, and I can tell you the governor’s bill is difficult to understand,” Cuffe said at a press conference.

In response, Bullock’s spokesman Dave Parker said, “The Republican leadership in the Legislature should not be playing political games. They should be helping Gov. Bullock address the infrastructure needs of our state.”

Parker said Bullock said in his State of the State address Wednesday night that “any infrastructure plan that is paid for by all Montanans, but only prioritizes pet projects of certain legislators, will be met with a veto.”

Senate Minority Leader Jon Sesso, D-Butte, who sits on the long-range building budget panel, criticized the Republican move. Sesso said he wasn’t having any trouble understanding HB 5 and appreciated having all the projects in one bill.

“I don’t understand how breaking it up moves the ball forward on behalf of Montanans around the state,” Sesso said. “Scores of Montanans from all over the state came to testify in favor of it and tell us about their critical infrastructure projects. These people want us to get something done.”

Cuffe likened Bullock’s HB 5 to the Bubba Burger served by a café in Eureka a few years ago.

“They had a slab of meat, a bunch of cheese, some onions, some shrimp, some sausage, some bacon, some ham,” Cuffe said. “And what you wound up with was a burger that was so big you couldn’t hardly get your mouth open far enough to take a bite. And if you did manage to eat the whole thing, it’s like a gut bomb. You got a bellyache afterward.”

HB 5 is the Bullock Burger, Cuffe said.

“We put everything between two buns, shove it in everybody’s mouth and ask them to chew it and say take it the governor’s way or nothing at all” he said. “Put everything in. You either eat it or we veto it.”

He said Republicans are splitting the bill now because House Appropriations Chair Nancy Ballance, R-Hamilton, wants to get them moving through the process.

Cuffe expressed his concern about the bonding recommended by Bullock in HB 5.

“I have a basic feeling that you bond when you need to bond,” Cuffe said. “You don’t bond just because it’s convenient to bond. I am not convinced that the need to bond is there.”

Bullock has said it’s an opportune time to bond with low interest rates. Some business executives from around the state testified they never pay cash for costly heavy equipment but bond to get the money to buy it.