Representative Brad Barker

06/14/2026

📚 Heading to Helena next week for School Funding Interim Commission Meetings🏛️

Next week is another meeting of the School Funding Interim Commission on June 17-18, where we continue the work of examining how Montana funds its public schools and preparing recommendations for the 2027 Legislature.

A few of the items on our agenda:

🎓The Successful School District Study. APA Consulting will present their analysis identifying high-performing districts and what their per-pupil funding actually looks like. This foundational work helps us understand what adequate, efficient funding requires.

📈Inflation and school budgets. Montana's current formula adjusts school funding for inflation using a three-year lookback, which means funding consistently lags behind real costs creating a gap for districts from 2021 to 2025. We'll review options to make the calculation more responsive, including whether the existing 3% cap should be revisited. It’s important to find ways to keep schools whole without driving up the property tax burden on homeowners.

🧩Special education funding. The state's allowable cost payment hasn't kept pace with rising special education costs, pushing more of the burden onto local permissive levies. We'll discuss options including a potential "high-cost pool" so that smaller districts aren't sunk by the occasional enrollment of a student with extraordinary needs.

🏫We'll also take up school facilities, student mental health, and begin narrowing the list of recommendations that will go into our final report.

As always, the meeting is open to the public. You can attend in person, watch online, or submit written comments through the Legislature's website. If you have thoughts on any of these issues, please reach out.

Please email, text, or call me with any questions or concerns. It is an honor to serve you.

Brad Barker
Representative
House District 55 (Carbon County)
[email protected]

06/06/2026

Never forget. Eighty-two years ago today, on June 6, 1944, the largest seaborne invasion in history launched the liberation of Europe. Young Americans dropped into the dark skies over and onto the beaches of Normandy not knowing if they'd live to see the outcome.

The men in this photo are the Filthy 13, a 101st Airborne demolition section that inspired The Dirty Dozen. The war paint was a nod to Sergeant Jake McNiece's Choctaw heritage (Maysville, Oklahoma). Their mission was to jump behind enemy lines and take the bridges over the Douve River. Half were killed, wounded, or captured. The rest pressed on and got it done.

They were just one small piece of the massive effort on D-Day of nearly 160,000 coalition forces of paratroopers, soldiers, airmen, and sailors who answered the call on the beaches, in the air, and behind enemy lines. Many never came home.

They didn't win that day as individuals. They won it as Americans pulling together with our Allies, watching each other's backs, and putting the mission above themselves. That's the lesson worth carrying forward. The freedom they secured is defended the same way it was won: when we set aside our differences and stand together as one nation.

Freedom is never free. It has been paid for again and again by Americans like these.

We will not forget.

06/04/2026

Thank you! Whether you voted, wrote a letter, put up a sign, talked with a neighbor, or simply offered an encouraging word, you carried this campaign. I'm grateful and humbled by the trust you continue to place in me.

The past couple of weeks have pulled my mind back to what service really means. A trip to Fort Rucker to watch our oldest son in Army flight training brought it full circle: military service, and the service of our EMTs, firefighters, and police, is by design pure. It serves no faction – only our fellow Americans. Our oaths are to the Constitution, not to a person or a party.

Between Uncle Gary's stories of Vietnam and Panama, and the life he shared, celebrated recently at his wife's service; my Dad's 85th birthday while still a full-time large animal veterinarian serving his community; my mom's support for us all after suffering a stroke at the young age of 44; remembering brothers and sisters who gave their lives in combat; and calls from fellow veterans who fought alongside us in some of the world's hardest places to check on me and my family – I was reminded how blessed we are as Americans.

And the work continues. Here's where I'll be this month:

School Funding Interim Commission (SFIC) – Wed June 17 & Thu June 18, 8:00 AM, Room 317 & Zoom. This commission studies how Montana funds K-12 education: the costs, the needs, and how we keep our schools strong and accountable. Its work shapes school finance for years to come.

Interim Budget Committee, Section E (IBC-E) – Mon June 22 & Tue June 23, 8:00 AM, Room 317. The interim budget committees keep watch over state agency budgets between sessions, reviewing spending and reporting so the dollars you send to Helena are used wisely.

Legislative Finance Committee (LFC) – Wed June 24, 8:00 AM, Room 317. The LFC reviews the state's fiscal health overall: revenues, spending, and the big-picture budget questions that affect every Montana family.

These meetings are open to the public. Agendas and materials are posted at committees.legmt.gov as they become available, and most sessions can be joined by Zoom. I welcome you to listen in.

The best work gets done when we're willing to sit down, listen, and work together for the good of everyone – not a faction, not a slogan, but our neighbors. That's the kind of representation I owe you, and I intend to keep earning it. Thank you for your continued support.

As always, you can email, text, or call me with any questions or concerns. It is an honor to serve you.

Brad Barker
Representative
House District 55 (Carbon County)
[email protected]

06/02/2026

Almost a year ago, this race began. Tomorrow, it ends.

This primary started last summer, and it has tested everyone's patience - including mine. There have been more smears, more slander on billboards, more attack mailers, and more negativity than this county deserves. Carbon County is better than that.

Here's the thing: that kind of campaigning only stops if it doesn't work. If the mudslinging and out-of-state money win, we'll see more of it next cycle, and worse. So let's send a clear message tomorrow about what kind of politics belongs here, results over the noise.

To everyone who has donated to my campaign, written letters, spoken to neighbors, put up a sign, and offered an encouraging word: Thank you from the bottom of my heart! This campaign runs on you, not on the dark money pouring in from elsewhere.

Tomorrow, Tuesday, June 2, please vote. Turn in your absentee ballot by 8 PM, or vote in person (polls open 7 AM–8 PM). If you've already voted, thank you!

I've worked to earn your trust. Tomorrow, I'm asking for your vote.

Results over politics.
- Brad

06/01/2026

06/01/2026

Please SHARE: Over 3,000 Carbon County absentee ballots haven't been returned as of last Friday. Make yours count.

If your ballot's still at home, here's the deal:

🗳️ Your ballot must be RECEIVED by 8:00 PM Tuesday, June 2. It's too late to mail. Hand-deliver it.
📍 Before Tuesday: Carbon County Election Office, 17 11th St W, Red Lodge
📍 Election Day, June 2: drop it off at your precinct polling location or the Election Office, 7 AM–8 PM.

This is about local control and local representation - decisions made here, by the people who live here. Results over politics.

Vote Barker - HD 55.

📲 Find your voting precinct: app.mt.gov/voterinfo

05/31/2026

Proud to have earned the trust of the people who keep Montana working.

The Montana Farm Bureau, Montana Stockgrowers Association, and the NRA have all endorsed me for House District 55 because results matter more than politics.

These aren't out-of-state interests or party bosses. They're the Montana farmers, ranchers, business owners, and families I've spent my time in Helena fighting for: lower property taxes, a responsible budget, strong support for agriculture, and protecting our constitutional rights.

I'll keep putting Carbon County first. Always.

Primary Election is Monday, June 2nd. I'd be honored to have your vote.

05/30/2026

Carbon County deserves representation that answers to Carbon County.

Great piece from the Montana Independent on what's at stake this election - link below.

Here's the record: property tax cuts for Montanans, with more relief coming. Income taxes down to 5.4%. Business equipment tax exemptions raised from $300K to $1 million. A framework letting our school districts share resources and cut costs. All bonded state debt has been paid off. Infrastructure investment that stays here at home. And greater transparency with published agendas and video recordings required for government meetings. That's what two terms of showing up have delivered.

The Montana Independent took a hard look at this primary, and the contrast is clear. The groups spending against me - Americans for Prosperity, Make Liberty Win, the Freedom Caucus PAC, etc. - aren't from here, and they're not interested in what's good for Carbon County. They're interested in control.

The question on Tuesday is simple: a representative who answers to you, or a seat run from somewhere else?

Read the full analysis, then vote June 2. Results over Politics.

📰 https://montanaindependent.substack.com/p/analysis-hd-55-primary-pits-local

05/30/2026

PLEASE SHARE: Most people never think about who their precinct committeeman or committeewoman is. But these are the folks who quietly set the tone for our local party: who gets recruited to run, what issues rise to the top, and whether our politics stays focused on Carbon County or gets hijacked by drama and outside agendas.

That's why this race matters more than the ballot line suggests.

The people below are serious, level-headed neighbors who want the same thing most of us do: strong local voices, decisions made close to home, and a party that spends its energy solving real problems instead of manufacturing fights. They're not in it for the show. They're in it to get things done.

On Tuesday, June 2, please join me in supporting:
✓ Precinct 1 — Les Fuglevand
✓ Precinct 3 — Carla Lawrence
✓ Precinct 5 — John Jordan & Anna Simons
✓ Precinct 7 — Nick Dobbel
✓ Precinct 9 — Steve Frederickson & Megan White
✓ Precinct 11 — Rob Saurers & Jenny McPhail
✓ Precinct 15 — Melissa Oswald

Local politics works best when serious people show up. You can vote in person or by absentee ballot. Let's keep Carbon County focused on results.

🗳️ Vote Tuesday, June 2 — Republican Primary

05/30/2026

🌾 Proud to earn the endorsement of the Montana Farm Bureau for House District 55.

Agriculture is the backbone of Montana, and I’m honored to stand with the farmers, ranchers, and rural communities that keep our state strong. Thank you to the Montana Farm Bureau for your support and confidence in my service.

Together, we’ll continue fighting for rural Montana, property rights, water rights, strong local schools, and the future of family agriculture.