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Secretary of State tells committee Montana's business filings are now fully digital and 2024 election ran smoothly
Summary
The Secretary of State briefed the House State Administration committee on a fully digital business filing system serving over 300,000 businesses, waived annual report filing fees for 2024 (and plans for 2025), staff reductions, and the office's role in administering a successful 2024 election.
The Secretary of State told the House State Administration committee the office completed a nationwide-first transition to a fully digital business filing system that serves more than 300,000 businesses and has waived the 2024 annual report filing fee, with plans to waive it again in 2025.
"We were the first in the country to go completely digital for our business filing system that serves over 300,000 businesses in the state," the Secretary said, adding that the office has reduced staff over the last four years while maintaining service metrics. The office described tracking metrics for customer response times and phone-answering and emphasized continued efforts to improve operations.
On elections, the Secretary said the 2024 primary and general elections went well and the office is already preparing for the next cycle. The presentation listed senior staff, recent administrative improvements such as replacing an 18-year-old administrative rule system, and customer outreach efforts including an election video series and a youth voting program.
Committee members asked a brief scheduling question about the office's weekly Capital Coffee drop-in; the Secretary confirmed it is Wednesdays at 7:30 a.m.
The Secretary concluded by offering continued cooperation with the committee during the session.
