HomeMy WebLinkAbout05-21-26 Correspondence - MT Dept of Commerce - Commerce Weekly Roundup - Volume 3, Issue 20From:Montana Department of CommerceTo:Bozeman Public CommentSubject:[EXTERNAL]Commerce Weekly Roundup - Volume 3, Issue 20Date:Thursday, May 21, 2026 2:33:25 PM
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May 21, 2026 – News, events, grants, loans and other funding opportunities
Montana Department of Commerce
Weekly Roundup
The Weekly Roundup is a summary of events, news and information important to
Commerce's constituents this week. Click on any topic for more information.
Housing
Montana Board of Housing Public Meeting: June 8. This public meeting will include
the Board’s consideration of submitted loan applications.
Montana Board of Housing Public Meeting: July 20.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has published the following
income and rent limits for the HOME Investment Partnerships and Housing Trust Fund
programs. The new limits are effective June 1, 2026.
HOME income limits
HOME rent limits
HTF income limits
HTF rent limits
HUD also released the HOME per-unit subsidy limits, which Commerce applies to
HOME and HTF projects. These are now incorporated in the maximum subsidy tab of
the Pro Forma and Subsidy Review spreadsheet available on Commerce’s website.
The per-unit subsidy limits were effective May 11, 2026.
Infrastructure and Planning
The Lead Service Line Technical Assistance Program migrated to the Montana
Department of Environmental Quality on May 9. Contact Jayde Duysen at DEQ at
jayde.duysen@mt.gov or 406-444-0917 for more information or help regarding lead
service lines.
The Montana Main Street Program seeks additions to its MMS murals catalog. MMS
members may submit a mural by visiting the project's web page.
The Community Development Block Grant Planning Program will accept
applications for a third round of funding starting May 26 through 11:59 p.m. on July
10. Application guidelines are available on the CDBG planning web page.
The Montana Coal Board is hosting a public quarterly meeting June 4, at 8:30
a.m. The meeting is at the Hilton Garden Inn, 2465 Grant Road, Billings or can be
attended virtually.
The Community Technical Assistance Program is available to assist with your
community planning needs including help with growth policies, subdivision regulations,
downtown master plans or any type of long-or short-range planning. Contact the CTAP
team to chat about how they might help.
Business
The Opportunities in Rural Economies Program is accepting applications from
economic development organizations through its online application portal. The
enrollment period is open-ended; organizations engaged in active economic
development are encouraged to apply. Lenders interested in participating in the ORE
Loan Participation Program may contact program staff for more information and, if
eligible, will be required to execute a General Lender Loan Servicing Agreement with
Commerce. For more information, contact Business Resource Partner Josh Bennett at
406-841-2748 or josh.bennett@mt.gov.
The Wood Products Revolving Loan Fund is accepting new applications. The
program offers a loan participation structure for requests up to $2 million and continues
to provide direct loans to eligible businesses for amounts under $1 million. The
application portal will remain open until all available funds are committed, with
approximately $1.4 million currently available. For more information, contact Program
Specialist Chris Ryan at chris.ryan@mt.gov.
The Montana State Small Business Credit Initiative 2.0 Loan Participation
Program-Recycled Funds application is open and will remain so for the duration of
the program, with capital availability contingent on repayments from existing borrowers.
A list of participating lenders with funds for recycling is on the SSBCI web page.
Native American Collateral Support Program funding is available. The NACS
Program is accepting applications online, which can be found on the website under
“Application Process.” Currently, approximately $61,235 in cash funding is available.
For more information, contact Program Specialist Chris Ryan at chris.ryan@mt.gov or
406-841-2594.
The Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Program is returning to Montana.
Applications are open until May 18 for this tuition-free, 12-week program. One-on-one
advice and personalized guidance, as well as better tools, clearer financials, stronger
strategy and a trusted peer network will be offered to help grow small businesses.
Participants will learn from experienced faculty and join a national community of
entrepreneurs who keep collaborating long after graduation. Businesses must be at
least two years old, have at least two employees and revenues over $75,000 in the
most recent fiscal year. Classes start in September.
Join Commerce’s export team for a trade mission to Argentina and Uruguay,
Sept. 7-11. Montana companies are well-positioned to benefit from exports and
increase their international sales in these countries. For more information, contact our
export team.
Join Commerce’s export team for a trade mission to India, Oct. 5-9, to initiate or
expand your business profile there. For more information, contact our export team.
Commerce News/Upcoming Events
Montana’s Affordable Housing Champions Receive Awards
The Montana Heritage Commission seeks concessionaires interested in running
business operations in Virginia City and Reeder's Alley in Helena. A list of currently
available opportunities is at commerce.mt.gov. Please email mhc@mt.gov with any
questions.
The Research and Information Services Bureau assists in providing research data
for tourism in the State of Montana. Part of their contribution is collecting data from
Destination MT to develop bed tax collection forecasts as well as to create the Lodging
Facility Use Tax Dashboard. The dashboard displays quarterly tax collections for
Montana, its counties and CVBs, with data available from 1988 to present. Users can
view data by fiscal or calendar year across five tabs: Lodging Tax Dashboard, Single
Geo – Annual Trend, Single Geo – Quarterly Trend, Single Geo – Datasheet and All
Data. Data can be sorted, compared and exported, along with charts and PowerPoint
slides via Tableau. For additional visualizations contact Commerce’s RIS team, Jacob
Starner or Ben Gill.
The Montana Heritage Commission will meet June 5 at 9 a.m. via Zoom and in-
person in Virginia City. In-person space is limited. Registration is required for online
participation; click the Zoom link in advance to do so.
Early bird registration is now open for the 2026 Montana Department of
Commerce Governor’s Conference on Tourism. This year’s conference will be held
Sept. 16-18 in Great Falls. The event brings together more than 350 tourism and
business professionals to educate, network and inspire one another. In place of
standard breakout sessions, this year we are proud to offer rural immersive
experiences. These sessions provide hands-on learning designed to show you exactly
what our landscapes need to thrive. Register today.
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Montana Department of Commerce
301 S Park Ave, Helena, MT 59620
Contact Us: 406-841-2700
commerce.mt.gov
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Montana Department of Commerce
301 S Park Ave, Helena, MT 59620
406-841-2700