State Legislature 2022: Daniel Zolnikov

My why is that I understand policy, politics and process and thoroughly enjoy implementing positive change for Montana.

I plan on working on a variety of legislation ranging from human trafficking to tax policy. The impact depends on the consensus I build prior to the session.

The local health board and School District 2’s school board’s recent failures are great examples of why balance and oversite of local authority is necessary. I would say it is situational but we have witnessed a few unnecessary moves coming from the local level that were above and beyond.

I would like to see the local ideas and solutions that have been considered and understand what impact these ideas would ideally have on these problems.

Energy policy tends to be overly political based on the color of the electron, instead of functional based on short term and long-term investment and the cost of power. The best thing Montana can do is limit the politics and have its politicians watch from afar. Regulatory volatility decreases investment.

I believe the vast majority should be kept locally or regionally.

Our tax code is antiquated and was originally based on natural resource extraction, something our courts have done a fine job at pretty much ensuring will never occur in Montana again, save for the occasional exception. Without taxes from natural resource extraction, our tax system relies heavily on residential properties to compensate. The system needs a course correction, not another band aid like the local option tax.

The legislature can require local governments to remove burdensome zoning requirements.