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69th Legislature 2025 HB 511.1
- 1 - Authorized Print Version – HB 511
1 HOUSE BILL NO. 511
2 INTRODUCED BY S. DEMAROIS, S. NOVAK, J. REAVIS, B. EDWARDS, J. ISALY, M. LEE, P. STRAND, T.
3 CROWE, J. SECKINGER, B. CLOSE, P. ELVERUM, S. FYANT, J. WEBER, J. SOOKTIS, M. CUNNINGHAM,
4 S. ROSENZWEIG, E. TILLEMAN, E. BUTTREY, E. MATTHEWS, T. RUNNING WOLF, F. SMITH, M. FOX, G.
5 LAMMERS, D. BAUM, M. CAFERRO, B. CARTER, J. COHENOUR, J. FITZPATRICK, T. FRANCE, D. HAWK,
6 S. HOWELL, J. KARLEN, C. KEOGH, G. NIKOLAKAKOS, M. ROMANO, K. SULLIVAN, M. THANE, Z.
7 ZEPHYR, M. MARLER, D. JOY, C. FITZPATRICK, J. LYNCH
8
9 A BILL FOR AN ACT ENTITLED: “AN ACT CREATING A FIREFIGHTING TRAINING FACILITY GRANT
10 PROGRAM TO FUND CAPITAL CONSTRUCTION, MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR PROJECTS, AND
11 EQUIPMENT PURCHASES; PROVIDING DEFINITIONS; PROVIDING AN APPROPRIATION; ALLOWING
12 APPROPRIATIONS TO CONTINUE INTO THE 2027 AND 2029 BIENNIUMS; AND PROVIDING AN
13 EFFECTIVE DATE AND A TERMINATION DATE.”
14
15 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:
16
17 NEW SECTION. Section 1. For the purposes of [sections 1 through 6], unless otherwise
18 provided, the following definitions apply:
19 (1) "Department" means the department of military affairs established in 2-15-1201.
20 (2) "Local government firefighting authority" means a governmental fire agency organized under
21 Title 7, chapter 33.
22
23 NEW SECTION. Section 2.
24 a firefighting training facility infrastructure account within the state special revenue fund provided for in 17-2-102
25 to provide grant funding to local government firefighting authorities that provide firefighting services and for
26 administrative costs related to administering the grants. The department shall administer the account.
27 (2) Up to 3% of the funds appropriated in [section 8] may be allocated for the department's
28 administrative costs. ****
69th Legislature 2025 HB 511.1
- 2 - Authorized Print Version – HB 511
1
2 NEW SECTION. Section 3. (1)
3 The department is authorized to make up to $5 million in grants to local government firefighting authorities for
4 property acquisition, construction, space acquisition, remodeling, repairs, and the purchase of appliances and
5 equipment. The grants authorized in this section are subject to the conditions set forth in [section 5].
6 (2) The department shall receive proposals from local government firefighting authorities for
7 firefighting training facility infrastructure projects.
8 (3) Funding for projects may be provided only as long as there are sufficient funds available from
9 the amount that was deposited or transferred in the firefighting training facility infrastructure account for grants
10 established in [section 2]. Funding for these projects must be made available in the order that the grant
11 recipients satisfy the conditions described in [section 5].
12
13 NEW SECTION. Section 4. (1) A local
14 government firefighting authority may apply to the department for firefighting training facility infrastructure grants
15 under [section 3].
16 (2) Local government firefighting authorities shall submit grant applications to the department in
17 order to be eligible for funding under [section 3].
18 (3) The department is authorized to adopt guidelines necessary to implement [sections 3 through
19 5].
20
21 NEW SECTION. Section 5. (1) The disbursement of
22 grant funds for the projects chosen by the department pursuant to [section 3] is subject to the following
23 conditions:
24 (a) for grants in an amount of $25,000 or more, the department may require a grant recipient to
25 provide a 1% match in cash or donated services to be eligible to receive a grant;
26 (b) the grant recipient shall execute a grant agreement with the department that includes a project
27 management plan and reporting requirements to track the outcomes of allocated grants; and
28 (c) the grant recipient shall satisfy other specific requirements considered necessary by the ****
69th Legislature 2025 HB 511.1
- 3 - Authorized Print Version – HB 511
1 department to accomplish the purpose of the project as evidenced by the application to the department.
2 (2) Projects must adhere to the design standards required by applicable regulations. Recipients of
3 program funds for projects that are not subject to any design standards shall comply with generally accepted
4 industry standards.
5 (3) If actual project expenses are lower than the projected expense of the project, the department
6 shall reduce the amount of grant funds to be provided to grant recipients.
7
8 NEW SECTION. Section 6.
9 (1) The amount of state funding allocated to entities within an individual county under [sections 3
10 through 5] may not exceed $500,000. No more than two applications may be funded in any one county.
11 (2) The amount of a grant to a single project may not exceed $250,000.
12
13 NEW SECTION. Section 7. By July 1, 2025, the state treasurer shall transfer $5
14 million from the general fund to the firefighting training facility infrastructure account established in [section 2].
15
16 NEW SECTION. Section 8. There is appropriated $5 million from the firefighting
17 training facility infrastructure account established in [section 2] to the department of military affairs for the
18 biennium beginning July 1, 2025, for grants authorized in [sections 3 through 5]. Appropriations are authorized
19 to continue through the biennium beginning July 1, 2029.
20
21 NEW SECTION. Section 9. [This act] is effective July 1, 2025.
22
23 NEW SECTION. Section 10. [This act] terminates June 30, 2031.
24 - END -