5-5-227. Revenue and transportation interim committee -- powers and duties -- revenue estimating and use of estimates. (1) The revenue and transportation interim committee has administrative rule review, draft legislation review, program evaluation, and monitoring functions for the state tax appeal board established in 2-15-1015 and for the department of revenue and the department of transportation and the entities attached to the departments for administrative purposes, except the division of the department of revenue that administers the Montana Alcoholic Beverage Code.

(2) (a) The committee must have prepared by December 1 for introduction during each regular session of the legislature in which a revenue bill is under consideration an estimate of the amount of revenue projected to be available for legislative appropriation.

(b) The committee may prepare for introduction during a special session of the legislature in which a revenue bill or an appropriation bill is under consideration an estimate of the amount of projected revenue. The revenue estimate is considered a subject specified in the call of a special session under 5-3-101.

(3) The committee's estimate, as introduced in the legislature, constitutes the legislature's current revenue estimate until amended or until final adoption of the estimate by both houses. It is intended that the legislature's estimates and the assumptions underlying the estimates will be used by all agencies with responsibilities for estimating revenue or costs, including the preparation of fiscal notes.

(4) The legislative services division shall provide staff assistance to the committee. The committee may request the assistance of the staffs of the office of the legislative fiscal analyst, the legislative auditor, the department of revenue, and any other agency that has information regarding any of the tax or revenue bases of the state.