Bill to clarify which agency allocates federal transit funds draws support as a technical cleanup

Representative Jerry Schellinger presented House Bill 345 to the House Transportation Committee, saying the bill amends section 60-2-129 to clarify how federal transit and other pass-through funds are allocated and to reflect current practice at the Montana Department of Transportation.

Schellinger (R., House District 34) said the statutory language has a potential alternative interpretation that could be read to require the Transportation Commission to allocate some grants that in practice are administered and passed through by department staff. “So all this change does is reflect the reality of it,” Schellinger said.

Larry Flynn, deputy director of the Montana Department of Transportation, testified the bill is “a simple cleanup bill” and explained that the Transportation Commission’s primary role is to allocate and approve federal highway funds and construction projects, while other funding sources such as transit and rail are typically pass-through grants to local transit entities administered by MDT staff. Flynn said the statute clarification would prevent an undue workload for the Transportation Commission if those pass-through funds were interpreted to require commission action.

Flynn told the committee the bill is short and intended to remove a gray area in statute; he said the department and its staff handle daily allocation tasks for pass-through programs and the Transportation Commission should remain focused on highway construction priorities. There were no opponents and no informational witnesses. Committee members did not register substantive objections during the hearing.

The committee opened the hearing for House Bill 345 following the close of the HB 351 hearing; no committee vote was recorded during the session.