House Bill No. introduced by S. Rosenzweig aims to revise the allocation and use of lodging facility use taxes in Montana, specifically to provide funding for county and municipal roads and infrastructure. The bill establishes two new state special revenue accounts: the County Roads and Infrastructure Account and the Municipal Roads and Infrastructure Account. Funds collected from the lodging facility use tax will be deposited into these accounts and distributed to counties and municipalities based on specific formulas. Counties will receive funds based on the amount of tax collected in the previous fiscal year, ensuring a minimum of 0.5% and a maximum of 8% of total funds for each county. Municipalities will have their distribution based on population, with towns under 200 residents considered to have a population of 200 for funding purposes.

The bill also amends existing laws regarding the distribution of tax proceeds, including the deletion of previous allocation percentages and the introduction of new provisions for distributing remaining funds, which will be equally divided between the newly established accounts. Additionally, it includes a provision to increase certain allocations by one-half of the average rate of inflation over the prior three years each biennium. The legislation specifies an effective date of July 1, 2025, for the new legal language, and it establishes termination dates for various sections of existing law, with several provisions set to expire between 2025 and 2031. Overall, this bill seeks to enhance local infrastructure funding through a more structured and equitable distribution of lodging tax revenues.

Statutes affected:
LC Text: 15-65-121, 17-7-502
HB0914_1: 15-65-121, 17-7-502