Montana Department of Commerce details bed-tax programs, awards and priorities for biennium

Mandy Rambo, deputy director of the Montana Department of Commerce, briefed the Senate Local Government Committee on the department’s 2025 biennium goals and several bed-tax-funded programs aimed at supporting tourism, local infrastructure, and business development.

Rambo outlined that 52% of bed-tax revenue administered by Commerce is distributed directly back to communities as grants or loans and that an additional more than 17% goes to tourism regions and destination marketing organizations, amounting to roughly 70% of bed-tax receipts flowing to local entities. She described several programs: a $24 million tourism revolving loan fund distributed to local economic development organizations; a $2.7 million pilot communities program that selected seven communities; regional assistance for tourism regions and CVBs/DMOs; a staggered tourism events grant designed to make events self-sustaining after three years; the Montana Emergency Tourism Assistance Program (METAP); agritourism grants recently awarded; and an expanded Big Sky Film Grant program tied to prior legislation.