[{"_1":2,"_105":-5,"_106":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,85,95],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":-5,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":59,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":65,"_66":67,"_68":69,"_70":71,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6381113,"mediaKeyId","2129069-ee5439505cd95c364f65d97ae304bf3b","parentId",2129069,"title","Five rural bridge projects seek MCEP bridge grants to replace century‑old structures and remove load limits","audioSeconds",615,"startMs",8365000,"endMs",8980000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2129069-ee5439505cd95c364f65d97ae304bf3b&start=8365&end=8980","thumbnailUrl","https://d352y6ypj4mjo3.cloudfront.net/AudioPlaceholder.png","articleUrl","/articles/6381113/Montana/Five-rural-bridge-projects-seek-MCEP-bridge-grants-to-replace-centuryold-structures-and-remove-load-limits","mediaUrl","author","Montana Legislature","date","2025-01-17T00:00:00Z","article","Several counties presented bridge applications to the subcommittee, describing structures that are old, load‑posted and in some cases damaged by flooding.

Lewis and Clark County Commissioner Candace Payne asked for $750,000 to replace the 1915 Augusta–Clemens bridge on Elk Creek; the county has set aside roughly $758,700 as its local match. Payne said the single‑span steel pony‑truss is scour‑critical, is load‑limited and lacks modern rail and guardrail features.

Madison County Commissioner Duke Gilman asked for funding to replace the 1927 Silver Springs Bridge over the Ruby River, which has a heavy corrosion on steel beams and an exposed foundation; the bridge is posted at only 5 tons and county engineers recommended replacement to restore public‑safety and emergency access.

Park County consultant Kathy Thompson asked the committee to fund Horsesh Creek Road Bridge replacement east of Wilsall; Park County has about 80 bridges, many aged and some damaged by the 2018, 2022 and 2023 floods. Powder River County presented a Randall Bridge replacement project on Moorehead Road; the county said a failure would require an 80‑mile detour around Broadus and cited access to agricultural and public lands. Wibaux County Commissioner Darren Misky requested replacement of the Pine Unit Bridge (poor condition, important oil‑field and school bus route access), saying a detour would add 40–45 miles to daily travel.

Commerce staff told the committee only six bridge projects were submitted in this funding cycle and that all were recommended for funding in the HB 11 package.

Ending: County officials said replacing these bridges would restore safe access for agriculture, emergency services and school routes and reduce costly detours; commissioners asked lawmakers to support the MCEP bridge grants.","mediaType","Audio","parentTitle","Joint Subcommittee on Long-Range Planning 2025-01-17","oneSentenceSummary","County commissioners and engineers described bridge failures, load postings and long detours that motivate five county bridge replacement requests in HB 11. All six bridge applications in this cycle were recommended for funding, Commerce staff said.","taxTitle","2025 Legislature MT, Montana","taxId",77694,"location","Montana","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":50,"_51":82,"_53":-5,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":83,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":84,"_66":67,"_68":69,"_70":71,"_72":73,"_74":73},6381118,"Cooke City/Silver Gate seeks regional support to install community sewer system as tourism strains private systems",314,6436000,6750000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2129069-ee5439505cd95c364f65d97ae304bf3b&start=6436&end=6750","/articles/6381118/Montana/Cooke-CitySilver-Gate-seeks-regional-support-to-install-community-sewer-system-as-tourism-strains-private-systems","Deb Purvis, representing the Cooke City/Silver Gate County Water and Sewer District, told the subcommittee that the unincorporated community of Cooke City (about 63 year‑round residents) receives more than 200,000 visitors during summer months and has no public wastewater treatment system. Purvis quoted the Park County sanitarian that failed on‑site septic systems have created a public‑health hazard.

Cooke City has pursued a phased approach. Purvis told the panel that phase 1 (collection system) is scheduled to be completed this year; the MSAP grant under HB 11 is sought for phase 3 to acquire Forest Service land for a drain field, construct a treatment system and build a force main. She said the community has assembled a funding package that includes an MCEP request of $750,000, $500,000 in RD grant funding, $640,000 in SRF loan forgiveness and a large Economic Development Administration award valued at roughly $7.56 million. Purvis said the project total was estimated at about $14.7 million and that additional WERDA (state) funding — $1.3 million secured and a possible further $3.6 million expected in a future biennium — would help close the gap.

Purvis said the U.S. Forest Service has provided letters of support and is willing to sell or negotiate a permit for the drain field site. She emphasized the seasonal population pressure: a small permanent population, heavy summer visitation and local businesses that rely on a dependable wastewater solution.

Ending: Cooke City urged the committee to preserve the MSAP award because the project is the precondition for other community development efforts, including potential employee housing that requires an operable public sewer system.","Cooke City representatives said failed on‑site septic systems and summer visitor loads force a community sewer solution; the project has multiple funding sources and an EDA award but still needs additional grants to complete a roughly $14.7 million buildout.",{"_33":86,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":87,"_41":88,"_43":89,"_45":90,"_47":91,"_49":50,"_51":92,"_53":-5,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":93,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":94,"_66":67,"_68":69,"_70":71,"_72":73,"_74":73},6381122,"Tiny Drummond says $8.35 million wastewater overhaul depends on MSAP grant, town clerk tells subcommittee",575,4325000,4900000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2129069-ee5439505cd95c364f65d97ae304bf3b&start=4325&end=4900","/articles/6381122/Montana/Tiny-Drummond-says-835-million-wastewater-overhaul-depends-on-MSAP-grant-town-clerk-tells-subcommittee","Robin Wright, clerk and treasurer for the town of Drummond, told the House Appropriations Subcommittee F that her town of about 271 people cannot complete an $8,350,000 wastewater upgrade without the MSAP grant the 2023 legislature awarded.

Wright outlined the project’s scope: sludge removal from a single‑cell facultative lagoon, construction of a three‑cell configuration, installation of an impermeable liner (two leakage studies showed substantial leakage), and ultraviolet treatment before discharge as required by the Department of Environmental Quality. She said the preliminary engineering report was submitted in May 2022 and that the legislature awarded $500,000 in MCEP funding in 2023.

“Our town cannot afford to complete this project without the awarded MSAP funding,” Wright told the committee. She said the town had secured a competitive grant of roughly $2,405,600 and an RRGL award of $125,000, that an adjacent landowner has agreed to accept sludge land‑application, and that Northwestern Energy will supply power for the UV system. Wright said the town expected to advertise for bids in February and begin construction in April, with completion in November of the same year.

Brad Koon, the town’s engineer, estimated the town had secured approximately $3.5 million in funding to date and said the town had applications pending with USDA Rural Development and Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) programs. He told the committee he expected Rural Development to issue a commitment in January and CDBG in February, subject to the agencies’ timelines.

During questioning, Commerce staff clarified that MSAP awardees must meet five startup conditions before Commerce will execute a contract: an updated budget, an implementation schedule, a management plan, compliance with local auditing and financial reporting, and commitments for other funding sources. Several lawmakers noted inflation has raised construction costs since awards were made and that funding contingencies remain a common reason projects remain on the “not met startup” list.

Ending: With a low median household income of $31,667 and nearly 69% of households classified as low to moderate income, Drummond officials said the MSAP grant is critical to completing the project and avoiding environmental and public‑health risks tied to lagoon leakage.","Town officials told the House subcommittee that an awarded Montana Coal Endowment Program (MSAP) grant is essential to an $8.35 million lagoon upgrade intended to stop leakage and meet DEQ discharge rules; applicants say they have secured some funding but are awaiting final loan and grant commitments.",{"_33":96,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":97,"_41":98,"_43":99,"_45":100,"_47":101,"_49":50,"_51":102,"_53":-5,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":103,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":104,"_66":67,"_68":69,"_70":71,"_72":73,"_74":73},6381128,"Subcommittee opens hearings on HB 11 as lawmakers review coal‑trust earnings and $35 million in infrastructure grants",515,1275000,1790000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2129069-ee5439505cd95c364f65d97ae304bf3b&start=1275&end=1790","/articles/6381128/Montana/Subcommittee-opens-hearings-on-HB-11-as-lawmakers-review-coaltrust-earnings-and-35-million-in-infrastructure-grants","Members of the House Appropriations Subcommittee F opened a hearing on House Bill 11, a funding bill that would use interest earnings from Montana’s coal severance endowment to finance local infrastructure grants.

Rep. John Fitzpatrick, the bill sponsor, told the subcommittee HB 11 would appropriate $20,300,000 for 33 water and wastewater projects, about $3,500,000 for bridge rehabilitation projects, $150,000 for emergency Commerce grants, $1,500,000 for planning grants and $10,000,000 to the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation for regional water system projects. Fitzpatrick said the payments would come from interest on the coal severance endowment and related trust accounts.

The committee heard a technical briefing from Sam Schaeffer, lead revenue analyst at the Legislative Fiscal Division, who explained how coal severance tax collections feed multiple state funds and trusts. Schaeffer said fiscal 2024 coal severance collections totaled about $77.1 million and that Montana’s constitution requires at least 50% of those collections be deposited into the coal trust; he said roughly $38.6 million was deposited in fiscal 2024. Schaeffer described the trust structure — a large permanent fund and several sub‑trusts created by statute — and said the consolidated trust balance was roughly $1.3 billion at the snapshot he used. He told the panel the trust’s fixed‑income investments produced a collective return of about 3.86% last year and that interest earnings are deposited into an income fund until the legislature appropriates them.

Commerce staff and program managers outlined how the Montana Coal Endowment Program (MCEP) evaluates and contracts grants. Becky Anseth, infrastructure program manager at the Department of Commerce, described the program’s “startup conditions” required before a grant contract is executed: an updated project budget, an implementation schedule, a management plan, compliance with local auditing and reporting requirements, and commitments for other funding sources. Commerce staff told the subcommittee they report annually on projects that had not met startup conditions and invited those applicants to testify.

The subcommittee decided not to rehear testimony from several projects that Commerce confirmed had met startup conditions since the September report. The projects excused from testifying included Bigfork, Boulder, Hideaway Water and Sewer District, Geraldine, Lockwood, and Thompson Falls; two projects — Corvallis and the Drummond bridge offer — had been withdrawn and were noted as such.

Why it matters: HB 11 distributes interest earnings from a constitutionally protected coal endowment and thereby converts investment income into local infrastructure aid. Committee members pressed staff on the durability of trust earnings, statutory limits on distributions and on the criteria used to rank and target assistance to especially small and low‑income communities.

Subcommittee staff said there were no formal votes recorded at the hearing segment covered; lawmakers asked Commerce for follow‑up materials on how the “target rate” used in grant scoring is calculated and asked LFD for a multi‑year history of coal severance receipts to provide broader context for appropriations decisions.

Ending: The subcommittee continued project‑level testimony. Staff promised to provide written follow‑ups on the target‑rate calculation and a detailed history of coal severance collections. The committee scheduled additional hearing time to consider remaining applicants and to review the revenue history behind the coal trust.","A House appropriations subcommittee reviewed House Bill 11, which would appropriate Montana Coal Endowment interest to fund water, wastewater and bridge projects statewide, heard a fiscal explanation of coal severance trust mechanics, and set which grant recipients must still demonstrate startup conditions before contracts are executed.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Five rural bridge projects seek MCEP bridge grants to replace century‑old structures and remove load limits

Cooke City/Silver Gate seeks regional support to install community sewer system as tourism strains private systems

Tiny Drummond says $8.35 million wastewater overhaul depends on MSAP grant, town clerk tells subcommittee

Subcommittee opens hearings on HB 11 as lawmakers review coal‑trust earnings and $35 million in infrastructure grants