Ahead of the Nov. 5 election, the Daily Inter Lake sent questionnaires to state Legislature candidates running in contested races in Northwest Montana. Candidates were instructed to keep their answers to each of the four questions to under 150 words. Answers were lightly editing for brevity, clarity, Associated Press style and grammar.

House District 8

Lukas Schubert (R)  

Age: 19

Occupation: Marketing and sales

Family: Unmarried

Background: Secretary of the Flathead County Republican Central Committee and county Transportation Advisory Committee member

What property tax reform policies do you support? 

I support cutting property taxes, which we can do without cutting services since there was another multi hundred-million-dollar surplus. I support requiring property tax levy elections to be on the primary or general election date so there is increased voter turnout when determining if they will pass or not. We also need to take action to ensure that Montanans don’t get priced out of the property they’ve lived in for decades, especially for people that are retired. Making the valuation used to determine property taxes be primarily based on purchase price could provide this solution. 

Did the 2023 legislative session do enough to address the state’s housing crunch? Are there other avenues you’re in favor of pursuing?  

I would support reducing the taxes involved with the production, maintenance and sale of homes, because if those are lower than the end sale or rent price will be lower. Deporting illegal immigrants will also help free up housing units, increasing the supply and decreasing the price. We also need to prevent foreign citizens who do not live in Montana from purchasing tons of property. You cannot go to China and buy land yet they can come here and buy our land. Foreign globalist corporations should also not be able to buy up tons of land and property. 

Public school districts across the state are facing budget shortfalls. What role can the Legislature play in shoring up public education funding?  

New home production will expand the tax base. 

How do you view the judicial branch in the state? 

The judicial branch is completely out of control. They are very far left, are paid off by liberal organizations and they blatantly violate what the constitution actually says. The state supreme court struck down four election integrity laws the Legislature passed in 2021, despite the fact that the constitution plainly states “The Legislature shall provide by law the requirements for residence, registration, absentee voting and administration of elections.” and “[the Legislature] shall insure the purity of elections and guard against abuses of the electoral process.” These judges also prevent laws that protect kids from harmful transgender surgery from staying on the books. I support making judicial elections more transparent by allowing judges to file with a party so the general ideology of judges is more clear to voters. I also am in favor of impeachment of the corrupt judiciary. 

What other policies or issues would you like to address if elected?  

Illegal immigration is a huge issue that needs to be addressed. Unlike my opponent, who has publicly stated “I don’t think we can kick [illegal aliens] out of Montana who are trying to set up shop here” and has also said she volunteers for Valley Neighbors, an organization that helps illegal aliens in Flathead County, I believe we need to take serious action at the state level to remove illegal immigrants from Montana. We should take similar action as Texas to do this, and doing so will help reduce drug and sex trafficking, alleviate some of the stress of the housing crunch and will stop illegals from taking jobs and decreasing wages. 

Beth Sibert (D) 

Age: 43

Occupation: Recreational therapist

Family: Mother of two school-aged children

Background: Flathead High School graduate, Eastern Washington University graduate, 16 years working at an in-patient psychiatric unit and in-patient physical rehabilitation units, Logan Health employee since 2006

What property tax reform policies do you support?  

I support the proposed measures from the Montana House Democrats that highlight: 1. Reducing property tax rates on modest and middle incomes to values that are fair. 2. Utilizing the true homestead exemption. 3. Prevent property taxes from rising above an affordable percentage of income for seniors, renters and modest to middle income residents. 

Did the 2023 legislative session do enough to address the state’s housing crunch? Are there other avenues you’re in favor of pursuing? 

No, the Republican supermajority and Republican governor increased property taxes making the housing situation much worse. I’m in favor of working for Montanans across party lines to make living, working and playing here more affordable for its residents. 

Public school districts across the state are facing budget shortfalls. What role can the Legislature play in shoring up public education funding? 

I will work to help our public education system in any way I can. I feel strongly about increasing teachers’ pay and keeping our schools safe by improving aging infrastructure, particularly the directly unsafe emergency situations and repairs that have failed with the community levy votes. 

How do you view the judicial branch in the state? 

I view the current Montana Judicial Branch as working very hard to uphold our Montana Constitution and protecting Montanans.

What other policies or issues would you like to address if elected? 

I would like to use my years in mental health to create more access and more services to Montanans. I will work to ensure that Montana Medicaid Expansion Renewal is successful in 2025 and get health care to Montanans who need it most.