HELENA -- Gov. Brian Schweitzer on Friday alleged that a New York millionaire is helping bankroll a spending-cap initiative in Montana, and challenged him to a public debate on the measure.

Standing in front of the state Capitol, Schweitzer invited real-estate developer Howard Rich to a debate in Montana on the merits of Constitutional Initiative 97.

CI-97, which is on the Nov. 7 general election ballot, would limit any increases in state spending to the rate of inflation and the rate of population growth in Montana.

"Your so-called 'spending cap' is not necessary here and if you had read the Montana constitution, you would know that,'' Schweitzer said in a letter to Rich, referring to the state's constitutional requirement for a balanced budget.

Neither Rich nor the Montana backers of CI-97 have said Rich is behind the measure.

Press reports have quoted Rich as saying he supports property-rights measures that are on the ballot in several states, including Montana.

The Montana measure, Initiative 154, would allow property owners to demand compensation from the government if they feel a government action has devalued their property.

Trevis Butcher, a Winifred rancher and political activist who's coordinating the CI-97 and I-154 campaigns in Montana, said Friday he's not aware of any financial support from Rich for the measures.

However, Butcher has steadfastly refused to identify the main financial backers of the initiatives. He is the treasurer of Montanans in Action, a group that has routed at least $735,000 to the campaigns of CI-97, I-154 and another measure.

Montanans in Action won't reveal its donors.

In a related action Friday, state Commissioner of Political Practices Dennis Unsworth formally requested that Montanans in Action respond to a complaint that says the group is breaking Montana law by not revealing its source of money.

The group missed an Aug. 26 deadline for responding, and a second request was sent Friday, Unsworth said.

Chris Gallus, a Helena attorney representing Butcher and the pro-initiative forces, said Friday he's been busy working on other legal challenges facing the initiatives and will respond quickly.

Unsworth said he hopes to resolve the issue before the Nov. 7 election, so voters can know who's behind the initiatives before they cast their vote -- if that's what the law requires.

"The interest of this office is disclosure of who pays the (campaign) bills, so the public can know that information when they decide on these measures,'' he said.

Butcher said Friday if Schweitzer wants to debate someone on CI-97, he'd be glad to oblige.

"If he wants to talk about the issues, I would personally challenge him to a debate on (CI-97),'' Butcher said. "He needs to debate somebody in Montana, and I would propose that person to be me.''

Schweitzer said he'd prefer to debate Rich: "I don't want to debate the batboy. I want to debate the owner of the team.''