Lawmakers Review MSF Fee Proposal as Special Budget Session Kicks Off

State lawmakers looking to address a projected $227 million budget deficit reviewed a proposal Monday to impose a management fee on certain assets owned by the Montana State Fund. A joint hearing of the House Business and Labor and the Senate Business, Labor and Economic Affairs committees held its first hearing on Senate Bill 4, which would authorize a 3% “management fee” on the State Fund’s investment portfolio. The bill requested by Gov. Steve Bullock and sponsored by Sen. Edward Buttrey, D-Great Falls, is forecast to bring $29.7 million into the state’s general...