Welcome to our final 2024 edition of the Community Banker. Another year is on its way out, and another Montana Legislative session is on its way in. Given that I am writing this column just a few days short of Halloween, it is appropriate to label that last fact as “spooky” for, as Gideon Tucker famously wrote, “No man’s life, liberty or property are safe while the Legislature is in session.”

The 2025 Montana Legislature will convene a little later this session, with a start date of Monday, Jan. 6, 2025. In turn, the Legislature is slated to finish a bit later than usual with a sine die date of May 9, 2025. This last day is significant because it indicates that the Legislative Session will not be butting up against the ICBA Washington Policy Summit, which is set for May 12 to May 15, 2025. 

By way of a reminder, the annual D.C. fly-in is MIB’s best opportunity to speak directly with all members of Montana’s congressional delegation about federal issues and policies that impact the community banking industry. As such, the Association always encourages any and all of its members to join us in Washington, D.C., to meet with our two senators and two members of the House of Representatives. But, just because the annual trip to our nation’s capital does not yet happen for a few months, MIB’s legislative advocacy services continue year-round on behalf of the membership.

Turning back to Montana, the 2025 Legislative Session will be another active one for the Association, but perhaps not as active as usual. This is because Banking Commissioner Melanie Hall has indicated that the Banking Division does not plan to carry any agency legislative bills this coming session for the first time in years.

The upcoming Legislature will likely be a tough one for legislators. If you have picked up a newspaper or turned on a news broadcast over the last several months, you have heard that property tax is a hot button issue in Montana right now. What’s more, the Medicaid coverage expansion bill enacted by the 2019 Legislature is up for renewal this coming session. Medicaid expansion is always a controversial topic. And, with the state experiencing record budget surpluses, you can bet there will be a lot of political posturing and a lot of wheeling-and-dealing to get the constitutionally required House Bill 2 state spending bill passed. 

Speaking of the legislature, the Association is pleased to announce the dates when they will be hosting the bi-annual state legislative advocacy meeting. MIB has scheduled for Jan. 7-8, 2025, as the dates for the membership to come to Helena to meet with their legislators and their banking colleagues to advocate on behalf of Montana’s community banking industry. As we get closer to that date, the Association will provide more detail on the legislative dinner and associated advocacy activities. In the meantime, make sure to mark those January dates on your calendar and make your plans now to meet us in Helena at the Great Northern Best Western Hotel.

As discussed above, strong legislative advocacy and good public policy are two of the major benefits the Association provides to its membership. For the last several years, the Association and the MIB Board of Directors have stepped up its public profile and are doing even more outreach to our elected officials and to the public about the benefits of community banking both nationally and in Montana. However, to maximize our efforts, the Association needs your input as to the legislative and regulatory issues most important to your banking operation, and as to what the Association can be doing better to maximize your membership dues. So, let us hear from you before the session starts in January. And we look forward to seeing you in Helena and in Washington, D.C., in 2025.

Speaking of member benefits, the Association successfully hosted its annual member Cat and Griz tailgate parties earlier this fall. The Griz tailgate was held on an absolutely beautiful bluebird Montana day and was capped off by a decisive win over Morehead State. The Cats also prevailed over their gridiron opponent, Northern Colorado,  on another beautiful fall day. The MIB tailgate was held in conjunction with MSU’s homecoming celebration and, as a result, tailgate party saw record attendance. We thank our tailgate sponsors UBB and Bell Bank for their generous contribution to the success of the events and for their continued strong support of the Association in other ways.

The tailgate parties provide one of the best opportunities, outside of the annual state convention, for MIB’s members to socialize and interact. If you were unable to make one of the two tailgate parties this year, we look forward to seeing you at one of next year’s games. And for those who did make it to Missoula or Bozeman, see if you can spot yourself in one of the tailgate photos contained inside this issue of the Community Banker.

As this will be the last edition of the Community Banker before year-end, let me take this opportunity to remind you that you will be seeing your membership renewals hit your mailbox around the middle of December. The MIB has a well-deserved reputation of being known as the “biggest, little community banking association in the West.” The MIB has one mission, and one mission only — to champion Montana community banks. Whether it’s advocacy services, member relations, community outreach or access to product vendors and providers, when you renew your membership with the MIB, your membership gives you unmatched access to a variety of benefits designed to benefit your banking institution, your customers and the communities you serve.

Thanks for being a part of Team MIB. I look forward to seeing you in the new year, if not before. 

Sincerely,

Jim Brown
MIB Executive Director