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Commerce tells lawmakers it is directing bed‑tax dollars to communities and funding tourism resiliency
Summary
Deputy Director Mandy Rambo told senators Commerce's priorities include improving customer service, administering new grants funded by bed‑tax revenue, dispersing tourism to under‑visited regions, and supporting agritourism and tribal tourism programs.
Mandy Rambo, deputy director of the Montana Department of Commerce, gave the Senate committee a high‑level overview of the department's mission and 2025 biennium goals: improving customer service and accountability, implementing program and process improvements, and business attraction.
Rambo described rolling out new programs authorized by the 2023 Legislature, including the State Local Infrastructure Partnership Act, an Emergency Shelter Facility Grant program and seven lodging facility use tax‑funded grant programs created under Senate Bill 540. She said Commerce awarded $8,000,000 through the Big Sky Economic Development Revolving Loan Grant Program to economic development organizations across the state.
Addressing tourism pressures, Rambo said Commerce focuses on "dispersal" — moving visitation from over‑visited gateway sites to less visited areas statewide — and noted a tourism resiliency study funded by the Economic Development Administration to support planning for wildfire, pandemic or infrastructure shocks. She said the department awarded a $2.75 million pilot community grant that included one tribal community and grants in each tourism region to build local capacity.
Rambo outlined BrandMT's bed‑tax distribution: more than 52 percent of bed‑tax funding goes out in direct grants to businesses and communities, 17 percent supports tourism regions and CVBs, and Commerce spends less than 20 percent of its bed‑tax budget on marketing. She said the department is focusing marketing on nearby drive markets rather than distant billboard buys.
On agritourism and collaboration with agriculture officials, Rambo said Commerce does not yet maintain a comprehensive agritourism database but is coordinating with the Department of Agriculture and the Ag Development Council to expand outreach and grant opportunities.
Senators asked about overflow at Glacier National Park and other gateway communities; Rambo said resiliency plans and grant funding aim to help gateway and under‑visited communities build capacity and disperse visitation. She offered to share links to campaign materials, regional resiliency plans and program guidelines with committee staff.
Rambo closed by offering follow‑up materials and her contact information for members seeking more detail on specific grant programs or regional initiatives.
