The Department of Administration serves as the backbone of state government and also provides a variety of services to local governments.   More information about the services available to Montana's political subdivisions can be found below. 

  Montana Health Centers

Are your self-funded health plan costs on the rise? Do your employees need better access to primary care and wellness? The Montana Health Centers could be a good fit for you. 

Contact:  Amy Jenks  (406) 444-2553  |  HCBD (800) 287-826  |  benefits.mt.gov/medical/montana-health-center

VEBA

Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Association (VEBA) gives public employees the opportunity to get more from their sick and annual leave payouts by converting them tax-free into a Health Reimbursement Account. If you have employees retiring soon, they may be interested in VEBA. 

Contact:  Melanie Denning (406) 444-3745  |  HCBD (800) 287-8266  |  benefits.mt.gov/retirees/veba

Proper Social Security & Medicare Coverage

The State Social Security Administrator (SSSA) assists local governments in securing Section 218 coverage for their employees, assists in ensuring local governments are properly withholding and reporting Social Security and Medicare, acts as a liaison with the SSA and IRS to address coverage related issues and questions, and performs education and outreach to State and political subdivision employers and employees. Reasons entities would contact the SSSA include:

• When an entity's name changes;
• When (or prior to) a new entity is created;
• When an entity is merging with, or separating from another: Annexation, Consolidation, and/or Dissolution;
• When an entity is non-operational for 3 or more years;
• When the IRS audits and requests to see an entity's Section 218 Agreement - the SSSA maintains record of all existing Montana agreements;
• When organizing a joint educational outreach session - the SSSA assists in coordinating with the SSA and IRS;
• To receive assistance in determining if an entity is a political subdivision;
• To receive assistance in determinging whether Mandatory Social Security and Medicare coverage is necessary or if a Section 218 Agreement is needed;
• To receive assistance in determining what "coverage groups" (by retirement) are covered by a Section 218 Agreement - some entities may have more than one retirement system (example: most counties have some employees under PERS and some employees under SRS);
• To receive assistance in obtaining Section 218 coverage - when an entity (or board of an entity) wishes to start paying Social Security for the employees.

Contact:  Chuck Richardson (406) 444-4689  |  sfsd.mt.gov/sssa

Annual Financial Reporting Assistance

The Local Government Services (LGS) provides local governments with resources to assist in preparing their Annual Financial Reports. Resources include:

• On-demand training videos
• Live presentations
• Newsletters
• Tools
• Forms
• Policies
• Compliance Supplement

For local governments who wish to work with an independent firm to prepare their annual financial report, LGS maintains a list of firms that are also qualified to be on their Auditor Roster who provide these services. LGS also collects these reports and makes them available for the public to view, through their LGS Portal.

Contact: Darla Erickson, Reporting (406) 444-9491 or  Audit (406) 444-9105  |  LGS (406) 444-9101 |  sfsd.mt.gov/lgsb

Cooperative Purchasing

Tribal Governments and Montana’s Political Subdivisions may purchase supplies and services in cooperation with the State, permitting local public procurement units to take advantage of the cost savings realized by the State’s volume purchasing. Interested entities need to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the State Procurement Bureau (SPB) in order to participate. 

Term Contracts and eMACS

Local governments may leverage the state’s purchasing power by utilizing the State’s Term Contracts for commonly used goods and services. Entities purchase directly from the contractor. eMACS is an online purchasing portal where entities can make purchases online.  Contracts available online through eMACS are: 360 Office Solutions, Dell, Encompass Supply LLC, Fastenal, Hewlett Packard, Office Depot, Staples, and Grainger.  Other term contracts not online but available can be found at: https://spb.mt.gov/Cooperative-Purchasing/Cooperative-Purchasing-Program .  Visit https://spb.mt.gov/eMACS-Resources for portal access instructions. 

Vehicle Purchasing

Local governments may include their vehicle purchases along with the State's order by submitting the proper request forms by the established deadlines. The State will solicit bids from vendors and notify local governments of the results. Contact SPB for more information on set bid times, or visit https://spb.mt.gov/Cooperative-Purchasing/Vehicle-Purchasing to learn more.

MDT Commodities

Local governments may join the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) in purchasing certain commodities, including: road oil, traffic line paint and glass beads, road salt and chemical deicer, snowplow wear blades, rubberized asphalt, preformed thermoplastic pavement markings, and fencing materials. For complete information on how to participate in the purchase of these commodities, contact the MDT at (406) 444-6365. 

Procurement Training

SPB partners with the Professional Development Center (PDC) to offer procurement related training. These classes are ideal for new employees working in the area of procurement, and are available in the Spring and Fall of each year. The classes offered are: Basic Procurement Methods and Issues; Advanced Procurement Methods and Issues; Initiating and Navigating the RFP Process; and Contract Management. Visit pdc.mt.gov for more information and to register. 

Contacts:  Meghan Holmlund (406) 444-1459  |  SPB (406) 444-2575  |  spb.mt.gov

Surplus Property

The State of Montana’s Surplus Property program allows qualified applicants (state agencies, city/county, police, fire, and non-profits) to buy State surplus as needed, at a set price. Items available include vehicles, OHV’s, heavy equipment, office furniture, tools, and miscellaneous items. Call (406) 444-9921 or visit Surplus Property at 16 W Custer Ave in Helena, open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., to see what is available. The State's surplus property is also available for purchase at the State's surplus on-line auction site, new items will continuously be added to the auction site as they become available. All purchases will be billed directly to the purchasing agency or organization. 

Additionally, the Surplus Property program runs the Federal Excess property program for Montana. The program screens and picks up federal surplus property from federal agencies throughout Montana and nearby states and makes them available for a fraction of the original cost to qualified applicants. The Surplus Property program maintains an electronic "want list" of items or qualified applicants may receive a password to search the Federal website for available equipment nationwide. For information or to receive an application call (406) 444-9921 or email the Tama Lutsko, the Program Manager, at tlutsko2@mt.gov.

The program is also available to sell surplus items for cities or counties, either through the on-line auction service or at the annual public equipment and vehicle auction, which generally takes place at the end of September. Please contact Surplus Property for details. 

Contact:  Tama Lutsko  |  (406) 444-9921  |  gsd.mt.gov/Surplus-Property-and-Recycling/Surplus-Property-Program

Printing

The Print and Mail Services Bureau (P&M) offers these services to local governments:

• Printing - tax forms, W-2s, 1099s, warrants, payroll, titles, dailies
• Color Copies - brochures, flyers, booklets, magnets, posters, envelopes, letterhead, business cards
• Design Services - brochures, flyers, posters, annual reports, CD/DVD covers, websites, logo design, and more
• Wide Format Posters and Signs
• UV Coating - very high shine finish
• CDs, DVDs, and USBs
• Mail Prep & Distribution - folding, addressing, data merging, postal discounts, sorting & metering, shipping, tabbing, envelope inserting

Contact:  Ryan Bahnmiller (406) 444-0588  |  P&M (406) 444-3053  |  gsd.mt.gov/Print-and-Mail

Information Technology

The State Information Technology Services Division (SITSD) offers these services to local governments:

• SummitNet - internet access, data center access, web filtering
• eGov Services - custom development, ready to implement applications, and payment solutions
• Application Development - .Net, Java, Oracle
• Data Center - rack space for IT equipment (includes redundant power), environment monitoring, secure access
• Hosting (Compute/Storage) - server virtualization, storage and archiving services
• Application Hosting, Database Hosting, and/or Management
• Website (static) Hosting, DNN Professional Services, and mt.gov domain name
• Enterprise Content Management

See SITSD's Customer Relationship Managers List for contact information by service.

Contact: Tim Bottenfield (406) 444-2700  |  SITSD (406) 444-2000  |  sitsd.mt.gov/

 Back to Top