Gov. Gianforte: Court Ruling a Win for Pro-Housing Reforms

• September 03 2024

HELENA, Mont. – Governor Greg Gianforte today praised a ruling from the Montana Supreme Court that lifted an injunction on two pro-housing reforms from his bipartisan Housing Task Force, which were ultimately passed into law by the Legislature.

“Home ownership is a key part of the American dream,” Gov. Gianforte said. “I appreciate the Montana Supreme Court for rejecting this injunction, which held back two key reforms identified by our bipartisan Housing Task Force and passed into law by the Legislature. We will continue to find innovative ideas to increase housing supply so that affordable, attainable housing is within reach for every Montanan.”

Spearheading state efforts to resolve the housing supply shortage, the governor launched a diverse, bipartisan Housing Task Force in July 2022. The Task Force produced two reports last year that identified problems at the root of the state’s housing shortage and provided solutions that could be implemented administratively or through changes to law.

The Court’s decision today lifted an injunction on two reforms from the Task Force that were passed by the Legislature and the governor signed into law.

Senate Bill 323, sponsored by Sen. Jeremy Trebas, R-Great Falls, allowed duplex housing in city zoning, while Senate Bill 528, carried by Sen. Greg Hertz, R-Polson, restored landowners’ rights to build affordable starter homes by allowing accessory dwelling units.

In August, the governor received the third report of the Task Force, in which members provided 23 recommendations, including proposals to streamline procedures to construct housing, to clarify roles and responsibilities between building codes and fire marshals, and to set reasonable limits on local impact fees, which can increase housing costs.

More information about Gov. Gianforte’s Housing Task Force is available here.

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