What is the Impact of a Local Gas Tax in Montana?

As one source of funding for transportation projects, the federal government and all states place a tax on fuel purchases. However, at the local and regional level, authorization and use of fuel taxes vary widely. In Montana, for example, state law has authorized a local option gas tax since 1979, but it has not been utilized. That changed in June 2020 when voters in Missoula County approved a historic local option gas tax, marking the first time any county in the state has done so.