Senate Bill No. 257

Introduced By depratu, lawson



A Bill for an Act entitled: "An Act generally revising the disposition of gasoline taxes and federal highway funds; correctly identifying the local technical assistance transportation program; correctly identifying route designation in accordance with federal law; allowing the disbursement of gasoline taxes to consolidated city-county governments; modifying funding allocation formulas to reflect the most recent census data; revising the definition of "rural population" and "rural road mileage"; amending sections 15-70-101 and 60-3-206, MCA; and providing an effective date."



Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Montana:



Section 1.  Section 15-70-101, MCA, is amended to read:

"15-70-101.   Disposition of funds. (1) All taxes collected under this chapter must, in accordance with the provisions of 15-1-501, be placed in a highway revenue account in the state special revenue fund to the credit of the department of transportation. Those funds allocated to cities, towns, and counties, and consolidated city-county governments in this section must, in accordance with the provisions of 15-1-501, be paid by the department of transportation from the state special revenue fund to the cities, towns, and counties, and consolidated city-county governments.

(2)  The amount of $16,766,000 of the taxes collected under this chapter is statutorily appropriated, as provided in 17-7-502, to the department of transportation and must be allocated each fiscal year on a monthly basis to the counties, and incorporated cities and towns, and consolidated city-county governments in Montana for construction, reconstruction, maintenance, and repair of rural roads and city or town streets and alleys, as provided in subsections (2)(a) through (2)(c):

(a)  The amount of $54,000 must be designated for the purposes and functions of the Montana rural local technical assistance transportation program in Bozeman.

(b)  The amount of $6,323,000 must be divided among the various counties in the following manner:

(i)  40% in the ratio that the rural road mileage in each county, exclusive of the federal-aid interstate national highway system and the federal-aid primary system, bears to the total rural road mileage in the state, exclusive of the federal-aid interstate national highway system and the federal-aid primary system;

(ii) 40% in the ratio that the rural population in each county outside incorporated cities and towns bears to the total rural population in the state outside incorporated cities and towns;

(iii) 20% in the ratio that the land area of each county bears to the total land area of the state.

(c)  The amount of $10,389,000 must be divided among the incorporated cities and towns in the following manner:

(i)  50% of the sum in the ratio that the population within the corporate limits of the city or town bears to the total population within corporate limits of all the cities and towns in Montana;

(ii) 50% in the ratio that the city or town street and alley mileage, exclusive of the federal-aid interstate national highway system and the federal-aid primary system, within corporate limits bears to the total street and alley mileage, exclusive of the federal-aid interstate national highway system and federal-aid primary system, within the corporate limits of all cities and towns in Montana.

(3) (a) For the purpose of allocating the funds in subsections (2)(b) and (2)(c) to a consolidated city-county government, each entity must be considered to have separate city and county boundaries. The city limit boundaries are the last official city limit boundaries for the former city and must be used to determine city and county populations and road mileages in the following manner:

(i) Percentage factors must be calculated to determine separate populations for the city and rural county by using the last official decennial federal census population figures that recognized an incorporated city and the rural county. The factors must be based on the ratio of the city to the rural county population, considering the total population in the county minus the population of any other incorporated city or town in the county.

(ii) The city and county populations must be calculated by multiplying the total county population, as determined by the latest official decennial census or the latest interim year population estimates from the Montana department of commerce as supplied by the United States bureau of the census, minus the population of any other incorporated city or town in that county, by the factors established in subsection (3)(a)(i).

(b) The amount allocated by this method for the city and the county must be combined, and single monthly payments must be made to the consolidated city-county government.

(3)(4)  All funds allocated by this section to counties, cities, and towns, and consolidated city-county governments must be used for the construction, reconstruction, maintenance, and repair of rural roads or city or town streets and alleys or for the share that the city, town, or county, or consolidated city-county government might otherwise expend for proportionate matching of federal funds allocated for the construction of roads or streets that are part of the federal-aid primary or secondary highway system or urban extensions to those systems, except that the. The governing body of a town or third-class city, as defined in 7-1-4111, may each year expend no more than 25% of the funds allocated to that town or third-class city for the purchase of capital equipment and supplies to be used for the maintenance and repair of town or third-class city streets and alleys.

(4)(5)  All funds allocated by this section to counties, cities, and towns, and consolidated city-county governments must be disbursed to the lowest responsible bidder according to applicable bidding procedures followed in all cases in which the contract for construction, reconstruction, maintenance, or repair is in excess of $4,000.

(5)(6)  For the purposes of this section in which distribution of funds is made on a basis related to population, the population must be determined by the last preceding official federal census annually for counties and biennially for cities according to the latest official decennial census or the latest interim year population estimates from the Montana department of commerce as supplied by the United States bureau of the census.

(6)(7)  For the purposes of this section in which determination of mileage is necessary for distribution of funds, it is the responsibility of the cities, towns, and counties, and consolidated city-county governments to furnish to the department of transportation a yearly certified statement indicating the total mileage within their respective areas applicable to this chapter. All mileage submitted is subject to review and approval by the department of transportation.

(7)(8)  Except by a town or third-class city as provided in subsection (3) (4), the funds authorized by this section may not be used for the purchase of capital equipment.

(8)(9)  Funds authorized by this section must be used for construction and maintenance programs."



Section 2.  Section 60-3-206, MCA, is amended to read:

"60-3-206.   Apportionment of state funds to secondary highway system. (1) Each fiscal year the department shall apportion the federal-aid highway funds allocated for the secondary highway system among the counties. The proportion that each county receives is computed on the following basis:

(a)  one-fourth in the ratio of land area in each county to the total land area in the state;

(b)  one-fourth in the ratio of the rural population in each county to the total rural population in the state;

(c)  one-fourth in the ratio of the rural road mileage in each county to the total rural road mileage in the state;

(d)  one-fourth in the ratio of value of rural lands in each county to the total value of rural lands in the state.

(2)  To the extent necessary to permit orderly programming and construction of projects, obligations in any a county may exceed the amount apportioned to that county. The amount of any excess obligations must be deducted from future apportionments to that county.

(3)  For the purposes of this section, terms are defined as follows:

(a)  "Rural population" means total county population as reported in the latest decennial federal census less the population in cities over 5,000 persons and their unincorporated fringe urban areas as reported in determined by the department, using the latest decennial federal census. Federal census population figures must be adjusted in the interim between censuses in accordance with the percentage of change in annual motor vehicle registration figures for each county.

(b) (i)  "Rural road mileage" means all road mileage outside of incorporated cities and towns, exclusive of road mileage on the primary highway system and the national highway system, and those roads that are inside incorporated cities and towns and are functionally classified and approved by the commission as a major collector or a minor arterial, exclusive of road mileage on the primary system and the national highway system.

(ii) Road mileage that lies within incorporated cities over 5,000 persons and their unincorporated fringe urban areas, whose population is determined by the department, using the latest decennial federal census, is not considered rural road mileage.

(iii) Rural road mileage reported by the road inventory of the department must be used in determining rural road mileage.

(c)  "Value of rural lands" includes the value of state-owned lands from which the state derives grazing, timber, and agricultural income.

(i)  The basis for the value of rural lands must be computed from the latest biennial report of available information from the department of revenue.

(ii) The basis for the value of state-owned lands must be computed from the latest figures on the total grazing, timber, and agricultural lands in each county contained in the latest biennial report of the based on the most recent information available from the department of state lands natural resources and conservation.

(iii) The average value of privately owned lands is the average value of state-owned lands if the actual value is not available."



NEW SECTION. Section 3.  Effective date. [This act] is effective July 1, 1997.

-END-