More tourists or lower property taxes?

Here’s a rhetorical question for Montanans: Would you rather state government spend public money on things like billboards in Chicago to attract more tourists, or use that money to lower your property taxes?  

I know exactly how my constituents in the Flathead Valley would answer that question and I’m sure their opinion is shared by other Montanans. That’s why I’m bringing a bill in the upcoming legislative session to change how the state uses money collected from lodging taxes and car rentals.  

For years, tourists and Montanans alike have paid a tax on their hotel stays and rental cars. It’s one of the only ways Montana — without having a sales tax — can collect revenue from the millions of tourists who visit our state every year.