Senate Bill No. introduced by D. Fern proposes amendments to Section 17-7-130 of the Montana Code Annotated, which governs the budget stabilization reserve fund and the transfer of excess funds. The bill stipulates that by August 15 of each fiscal year, the state treasurer must transfer an amount equal to the balance of unexpended and unencumbered general fund money that exceeds 180.5% of the total general fund appropriations for that fiscal year into the budget stabilization reserve fund. Additionally, if the transfer increases the budget stabilization reserve fund balance beyond 16% of general revenue appropriations, the excess will be allocated to the capital developments long-range building program account.

Notably, the bill introduces a new provision that mandates 10% of any funds exceeding the established thresholds to be transferred to the Montana coal severance tax permanent fund, while also adjusting the percentage of remaining funds in the general fund from 25% to 15%. The effective date for these changes is set for July 1, 2025.

Statutes affected:
LC Text: 17-7-130
SB0171_1(1): 17-7-130
SB0171_1(2): 17-7-130
SB0171_1(3): 17-7-130
SB0171_1(4): 17-7-130
SB0171_1(5): 17-7-130
SB0171_1: 17-7-130