Montana renters are about to pay the price for one lawmaker’s political gamesmanship.
Rep. Llew Jones of Conrad the self-styled architect of Montana’s property tax “reform” is now scrambling to explain how his signature legislation wound up raising taxes on apartment buildings across the state. That mistake, buried deep in hundreds of pages of last-minute bill language, will almost certainly mean higher rents for working families.
The irony? Property tax relief was supposed to be the top priority of the 2025 session. Instead, it’s turning into one of its biggest blunders.
Jones Held the Bills Hostage for Leverage
Gov. Greg Gianforte urged lawmakers to pass property tax reform by mid-February so the Department of Revenue would have time to implement the changes. But that timeline didn’t fit Llew Jones’ style.
Jones, who’s served in the legislature for 20 years and chairs powerful appropriations committee, kept the bills bottled up until the very end of the session — not because of procedural necessity, but to maximize his leverage. By holding the governor’s top legislative priority hostage, Jones ensured that when the deal finally came together, it would be on his terms.
And that’s exactly what happened.
Both major tax bills were rammed through in the final hours of the 85-day session, leaving legislators with almost no time to read or debate them. The result: a significant drafting error that raised the property tax rate on multifamily housing from 1.35% to 1.89%. That may sound small, but for landlords higher taxes and for tenants, it means higher rents.
A “Republican” in Name, a Democrat in Practice
The Jones tax bill passed with near-unanimous Democratic support and only a small handful of Republicans — a pattern that defined his entire legislative strategy this year. Throughout the session, Jones and a small band of left-leaning Republicans repeatedly sided with Democrats on big-ticket issues, from judicial reforms, to spending and taxes.
That alliance gave Democrats more power than their numbers warranted, and it gave Jones the kingmaker role he clearly craved.
But power plays come with consequences. In this case, the consequence is that Montana renters — not lawmakers — will bear the cost of Jones’ miscalculation.
Sen. Greg Hertz of Polson, one of the few Republicans to oppose the Jones plan, put it bluntly: “In the rush to amend the bill, they forgot how it would impact multifamily rental units.”
The Fallout Lands on Montana Families
Developers across the state are already reporting massive tax hikes. One Missoula landlord said his property taxes jumped by $1.5 million this year, with some properties rising 40%. Predictably, he plans to raise rents.
“Everything’s expensive already and then your rent goes up another hundred bucks — that hurts,” he told Lee News State Bureau.
For renters, that pain is immediate and real. For Jones, it’s political.
The rate increase was never supposed to happen, but it’s locked in for the 2025 tax year. While lawmakers say the problem will fix itself next year, anyone who’s ever rented an apartment knows that once rents go up, they almost never come down.
Political Ambition Over Good Governance
Llew Jones has built his reputation as a left-leaning, big government Republican, a lawmaker who cuts deals and keeps things moving. But there’s a fine line between pragmatism and opportunism.
In this case, Jones’ insistence on holding his bills until the final hours of the session, his partnership with Democrats, and his push to get his way on every detail all contributed directly to this costly error.
The governor wanted timely, clean reform. What Montana got instead was a rushed, messy, mistake-riddled product that punishes renter and rewards one lawmaker’s political ego.
If Jones really wants to call himself a fiscal conservative, he should start by taking responsibility for the financial pain his tactics are inflicting on Montanans.
Until then, this isn’t tax reform. It’s tax folly — courtesy of Llew Jones.
By: Jake Eaton
Editor’s note: Jake Eaton is an entrepreneur, investor, and Republican political consultant based in Billings, MT. Mr. Eaton is an investor in the parent company of this site.