The Speaker of the House of Representatives is calling for a special session on immigration and marijuana tax distribution

Montana House Speaker Matt Regier called for a special session to discuss immigration and the distribution of the state’s marijuana tax in a letter to the secretary of state on Tuesday.

The Kalispell Republican’s letter was signed by 12 other Republican lawmakers, asking the Legislature to reconvene to address the two current issues.

The request follows rhetoric from Montana politicians who claim without evidence that a Flathead nonprofit used “dark money” and connections to the Biden administration to relocate a migrant family crossing the southern border and into the Flathead Valley traveled. The organization has said this accusation is false.

On the issue of marijuana distribution, Republican leaders are frustrated by what they see as unconstitutional action by the courts, which allowed lawmakers to try to override the governor’s veto of a bill that would fund a portion of marijuana taxes to support the provincial infrastructure. However, that override poll failed.

This is the second call for a special session this week from separate groups of Republicans. A dozen Republican lawmakers signed a request Monday to reconvene and consider legislation that would allow Supreme Court nominees to declare party affiliation on the ballot. The state’s judicial races are currently nonpartisan.

While no Republican leadership has signed on to the call for a special session to address the party affiliation of judicial nominees, Regier’s request Tuesday includes signatures from Majority Leader Sue Vinton, Speaker Pro-Tempore Rhonda Knudsen and Senate President Pro Tempore Ken Bogner.

The Secretary of State has five days to send a poll to lawmakers asking whether they want to call a special session; a simple majority vote is needed to recall lawmakers to Helena. The Legislature has met in special session 33 times in Montana’s history and six times since the turn of the century.

LAST WEEK, Montana politicians, including Rep. Ryan Zinke, U.S. Sen. Steve Daines and Gov. Greg Gianforte, spoke out against a migrant family who flew from Texas to New York and ultimately to Kalispell after crossing the U.S. Mexico border for the first time was reported by the Daily Mail. Intermeer. Those state leaders, all Republican, blamed the Biden administration for the family’s arrival.

Flathead Sheriff Brian Heino told the Daily Inter Lake he believed the family was undocumented, but also noted there was a language barrier.

Johnny Ratka Skinner of the nonprofit Valley Neighbors of the Flathead told the Daily Montanan on Tuesday that the organization that helps migrant families respects the privacy of vulnerable clients and cannot release personal information.

“Our understanding of the interactions this family had with other local nonprofits prior to our arrival leads us to believe that no one took the time to carefully investigate any potential documents they may have,” Skinner said in an email.

Regier wrote in his letter that the crisis at the southern border stemmed from “individuals ignoring immigration laws” and that the federal government “has not only ignored the crisis, but has exacerbated it.”

“Since the federal authorities have refused to act, we as a state must act to implement law and order for the safety and security of our citizens,” he said. “If we don’t take action quickly, we could see an increasing level of illegal activity in Montana, especially along our state’s northern border.”

Kalispell residents and volunteers from the local nonprofit that helps immigrants, including the family who arrived last week, denounced politicians’ rhetoric Monday, saying the organization was tied to “dark money” or tied to the Biden administration at all . were false.

During public comment at a Kalispell City Council meeting, Ron Gerson, along with Valley Neighbors of the Flathead, said politicians’ rhetoric was a “cover” to avoid addressing underlying problems in the community.

“Misinformation, name-calling and victim blaming do nothing to solve the problems,” Gerson said.

Immigration reform and border security remain a hot topic this election year after Congress failed to pass funding for border security earlier this year.

Zinke claimed in a social media post that a “dark money nonprofit” was “bringing illegal aliens to Montana.”

“I can tell you they didn’t get there by walking across the border to Babb and hitchhiking,” Zinke said in his post.

Zinke tweeted Tuesday his request for the Department of Homeland Security to investigate and deport them.

A handful of speakers at the Kalispell meeting denounced claims that the nonprofit was associated with “dark money.”

Dee DeYoung, a volunteer with the nonprofit, said the claim was an “outright lie” that was “designed to manipulate us and our community.”

“Let me tell you, we could use some of that money,” she said, laughing in the room. “We would put it to very good use.”

The organization was also involved in helping resettle Ukrainian refugees in 2022, as reported by the Flathead Beacon.

Gianforte and Daines made similar statements saying the border crisis had reached the Flathead.

“Joe Biden and Senate Democrats failed to secure the border, and now Montanans can see that failure firsthand,” Daines said.

Heino released a lengthy statement last week saying his department has seen an increase in undocumented immigrants in the region, putting a strain on his department’s resources, and claiming immigrants were contributing to the region’s housing crisis.

“Undocumented and illegal individuals currently live in the Flathead, and many are working, often under the table, without contributing to the resources designed for those who work and live here legally,” Heino said. “They may use resources such as Medicare, food stamps, housing assistance and other resources designed to help our legal citizens in times of need.”

Heino was not immediately available Tuesday afternoon to answer questions about data sources for immigrant populations in the region. However, Flathead County Commissioner Randy Brodehl told the Flathead Beacon that the county has no data on how many undocumented immigrants are in the area.

Undocumented immigrants do not have access to most state or federal assistance, and make up a fraction of the state’s population — fewer than 5,000 people in total, according to Pew Research.

There were twenty speakers at Monday evening’s meeting. Two said they supported immigrants in the community but wanted them to come here legally; the majority spoke about the positive experiences they had with undocumented people in the community and their contribution to the economy.

Across the country, undocumented immigrants work in agriculture, as nurses, entrepreneurs and construction workers – often without job protection or insurance. This is the case in other parts of Montana, where immigrants are essential workers in Bozeman’s housing boom, working in new weather conditions and with injuries they can’t afford to treat, as recently reported by High Country News.

REGIER SAID he also wants the Legislature to consider taking action on the distribution of marijuana tax revenue in the ongoing saga following the controversial veto of Senate Bill 442 during the last legislative session.

As the distribution currently stands, the Treasury Department will first set aside three months of operating expenses — about $4.1 million — from the entire pot of money, which totaled $56.4 million in fiscal year 2023.

Next, $6 million will go to the Healing and Ending Addiction through Recovery and Treatment (HEART) Fund for behavioral health and treatment programs.

The money will then be distributed as follows: 20% for wildlife habitat and conservation funding; 4% each for state parks, trails and recreational facilities, and non-wildlife; $200,000 for veterans and surviving spouses; and $150,000 to the Board of Crime Control. The rest of the money then goes to the General Fund.

SB 442 would change the way marijuana funds are currently distributed, so behavioral health and treatment programs in the HEART Fund would get 11% of tax revenue instead of a flat $6 million, veterans and spouses would get 5%, the Board of Crime Control will receive 0.2%, state highways will receive 20%, and the other allocations will remain unchanged, except for the decrease in money going to the General Fund.

Regier said in his letter that the end of the session “raised procedural questions that led the courts to unconstitutionally interfere with the legislative process.”

“The distribution of marijuana tax revenues should be determined by the Legislature,” the letter said.

Republican leaders signed a letter earlier this year accusing the Supreme Court of violating the separation of powers after the Montana Supreme Court cleared the way for an “override poll” to be sent to lawmakers. The veto override failed.

The inability to override the governor’s veto of Senate Bill 442 means revenues will continue to be distributed as lawmakers determined during the 2021 session.

Regier proposed calling the Legislature into a special session on June 24, the same day requested by other Montana Republicans for the special session on judicial elections.

Nicole Girten is a reporter for the Daily Montanan, a nonprofit newsroom. Reporter Blair Miller contributed to this report.