Construction fees in Montana
This state has a general impact fee enabling act. Local governments here charge under a statewide statute, which means there are written limits on what can be charged, how it must be calculated and when it must be refunded.
Mont. Code Ann. tit. 7, ch. 6, pt. 16
Guiding standard in the act: proportionate share; reasonably relates. That phrase is the ceiling on what may be charged, and it is the cheapest argument a fee payer has.
Your fee stack in Montana
Answer four things and get the list of every body that can bill this project, what each one is allowed to charge for, and the rights your state's law gives you before you pay.
What Montana says about your project
Fees for anything beyond water, wastewater, transportation, drainage, fire and police need a two-thirds vote of a city council or a unanimous county commission vote. Parks, libraries, schools and general government all sit behind that supermajority.
The act phrases the level of service rule unusually well: new development may not be held to a higher standard than existing users unless there is a mechanism for existing users to fund the upgrade too.
What the fees may pay for
6 of 10 facility categories are eligible here. A charge for anything not on this list is resting on some other authority, and that is a fair question to ask.
| Facility type | Eligible for impact fees |
|---|---|
| Roads and transportation | Yes |
| Water facilities | Yes |
| Wastewater and sewer | Yes |
| Stormwater and drainage | Yes |
| Parks and recreation | Not listed |
| Fire | Yes |
| Police | Yes |
| Libraries | Not listed |
| Solid waste | Not listed |
| Schools | Not listed |
What the jurisdiction had to do first
These are the homework requirements in the act. Where one is required and missing, that is a procedural defect you can raise without a lawyer.
| Planning requirement | In the act |
|---|---|
| Written analysis required | Yes |
| Service areas required | Yes |
| List of projects required | Yes |
| Growth projections required | Yes |
| Level of service standards required | Yes |
Timing, credits, refunds and waivers
| Provision | What the act says |
|---|---|
| When the fee may be collected | building permit |
| Recoupment of prior costs allowed | Yes |
| Advisory committee | at least one member |
What to do next in Montana
- Confirm whether your parcel is in a city or unincorporated, then pull the taxing district list from the assessor's record. Why that list is the real fee list.
- Request the current adopted fee schedule and a written fee estimate for the address. The six-step sequence.
- Call each utility separately. Tap fees usually sit outside the act, and are often the largest line.
- If you are dedicating land or building improvements, request the credit in writing before assessment. How to ask.
- Pay under protest if you intend to dispute anything at all. What that preserves.