Politics
Montana Municipal Revenue Sharing Act: Billings Allocation Differs From Bozeman and Great Falls Under New Formula
Billings city services draw from a state aid pool calculated on population tiers and local tax base size that sets the city apart from smaller and faster-growing Montana communities.
How we reported this
The Montana Legislature enacted the Municipal Revenue Sharing Act in the 2025 session. The measure changes how state funds reach city governments by adding a tiered formula that weighs population size, assessed property values, and commuter counts. Billings enters the top tier because its population exceeds 110,000 and its commercial tax base covers the airport industrial corridor.
State budget documents from the 2025 session list the new formula as a response to enrollment and valuation data collected after the most recent census update. The change starts with fiscal year 2027 allocations. Billings therefore prepares its operating plan against a different set of multipliers than those applied to Missoula or Great Falls.
Daily Effects on City Services
Billings residents pay property taxes that support the police department, street maintenance crews, and the public library system. Under the revised formula the city receives a base amount scaled by its total assessed valuation rather than a flat per-capita grant. This structure means funding for snow removal on major arterials such as Grand Avenue and 27th Street depends on the same valuation reports the city files each spring with the state Department of Revenue.
Local government budget summaries show Billings maintains more lane miles of collector roads than Bozeman. The legislation therefore assigns an infrastructure weight that reflects those miles when the aid total is divided. Residents who use the Billings MetraPark or the downtown transit hub see the direct connection between the state formula and the city’s ability to keep those facilities running without raising local mill levies.
The act requires each municipality to submit updated valuation and enrollment figures by September 2026. Billings officials compile those numbers from county assessor records and school district reports already on file. The government projects that larger cities will receive stable multi-year aid once the first round of submissions is complete.
Side-by-Side City Outcomes
Bozeman receives an additional multiplier tied to its university enrollment that the formula does not extend to Billings. Great Falls, with a smaller population and different commercial concentration, falls into a middle tier that produces a lower base allocation than Billings. Policy analysts compare the three cities by running the same valuation data through the statutory tiers to illustrate how the single statute produces three distinct dollar amounts.
Implementation begins when the state auditor releases the final 2027 aid table in December 2026. Billings then adjusts its capital improvement schedule for the following summer paving season. The legislation states that future updates to the formula will occur only after the next full census cycle.