Montana Chamber

Montana, land of blue sky and amazing natural resources, is undergoing a transformative process of reinventing its national image through job growth and modernization of state infrastructure. Rebuilding the state has been made possible through the Stimulus Act of 2009.

With the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Montana has invested over 227 million dollars into rebuilding their highway and transit transportation infrastructure helping provide close to 11,000 new jobs across the state.

Another important aspect of rebuilding Montana economy has been recharging energy production in the form of bio-fuels, wind energy, and expanding coal mine operations.Is this new to you? Catch up here Since 2005, 50 new wind projects have been initiated across the state, capitalizing on an abundant source of power in particularly windy districts. Six new sites boast newly initialized bio-fuels activity which is expected to continue growing as national demand increases.

Another large emphasis in rebuilding Montana has been a focus in improving educational standards. Reinvestments have been made across the board, in K-12 education as well as in higher education. State Fiscal Stabilization Funds has focused on four areas of development in K-12 education: Achieving Equity in Teacher Distribution, Improving Collection and Use of Data, Standards and Assessments, and Supporting Struggling Schools. For Higher Education, the Reinvestment Act makes it possible to hold down tuition costs for Montanans to attend college and put large increases in funds for technical training colleges as well as community colleges. In addition, the Reinvestment Act gave the University system the opportunity to make energy improvements across the campuses, not only decreasing energy consumption but creating new jobs in those fields.

The reinvestment and rebuilding of Montana is an ongoing process made possible by federal dollars and the restructuring of funding priorities within the state. With continued improvement throughout the state of Montana, their future is looking bright.