Assessments

The City administers the following assessments, which are placed on tax bills.

Street Maintenance:
This assessment pays for the operation of the city street and traffic divisions. These divisions routinely provide services such as street repair, cleaning, sweeping, snow removal, traffic signals, data collection, signs and pavement markings. The street maintenance rate was increased for 2009.  The new rates are listed below.

1) Residential and Vacant $111.10 flat fee
2) Commercial $0.01851 /sq. ft., $111.10 minimum, $18,510.00 maximum
3) Commercial Residential $0.01851 /sq. ft., $111.10 minimum, $13.882.50 maximum

Solid Waste:
This Assessment is for the collection and disposal of residential solid waste. Housing units up to, and including, a four-plex are charged on the tax bill. The residential collection rate is $170.57 per residential unit per year. The residential solid waste rate was increased for 2009. The solid waste assessment funds the cost of remediation measures necessary at the old city landfill as well as ongoing maintenance and operation costs.  Taxpayers qualifying for the State Property Tax Assistance Program receive a reduction for their solid waste assessment.

Each year you are allowed to haul 2 tons to the transfer station without incurring any additional charges.  If you exceed the 2 ton limit, overages are billed to you directly and charged at the current tipping rate of $61.25 per ton.

Loads brought in containing only acceptable recyclable material do not count against the 2 ton limit and are not subject to additional transfer station charges.

Dust Control Districts:
Neighborhoods create dust control districts to pay for the extra cost of maintaining unpaved streets near their property.  The charges are assessed on a lineal-foot basis and vary by district. For the current tax year, no dust control districts will be assessed.

Storm Water Utility:
The dollars generated by this assessment help finance improvements to the city’s storm water drainage system. The storm water utility assessment rate was increased for 2009. The new rate is 0.01183 cents per square foot of impervious area in excess of 2,222 sq. ft. Impervious or impermeable area includes such things as driveways, parking lots and roofs. The minimum charge for a property, including vacant parcels, is $26.28 per year. Taxpayers qualifying for the State Property Tax Assistance Program receive a 50% reduction for their storm water utility assessment.


Sidewalk Replacement:
This is an annual charge for a period of nine years assessed to those property owners who volunteered to participate in the city’s annual sidewalk replacement program.

Tree Maintenance District:
This $10.00 per property per year charge appeared on the 1997 tax bills for the first time. The district was created on August 25, 1997 to plant, protect, maintain, preserve and care for trees in public parks, city rights-of-way and on open space land. The rate is unchanged from last year.

Lighting Districts:
Neighborhoods create lighting districts to pay for the cost of street lights in their area. Currently there are 49 districts. The charges generally are assessed on a square-foot basis and vary by district. Tax year 2009 lighting district rates are based on an annualized electrical rate increase of .045%.

Special Improvement Districts (SIDs):
This is an annual charge for a period of 15 years to pay for the cost of major improvements such as water mains, sewer mains, and/or paving.

Forestvale:
This assessment, approved by the Helena area voters, is used to maintain the Forestvale Cemetery. The charge is based on taxable value. The 2009 assessment charge is 3.28 mills.

Water Quality District:
Each residential property within the city limits is assessed a flat fee of $6.60. Commercial properties that use more than 1,000 gallons of water per day are assessed an incremental fee based on water usage. These funds go toward protecting and preserving the quality of Lewis and Clark County's drinking water sources.

SID Payoffs:
For information on special improvement district payoffs, please call 447-8416 or 447-8415. Please have your property identification number available. This is the 15-digit number in the upper right hand corner of your tax bill.

Open Space:
The general purpose of the open space district is to protect, maintain, preserve, restore, and care for the City of Helena's open space lands or natural parks.  This cost will be assessed to each lot or parcel in the City of Helena with base amounts of $17.00 per lot, plus $0.00215 per square foot of impervious area in excess of 2,222 square feet for each lot.

Phone:
Property taxes and assessments 447-8415 or 447-8417

Mailing Address:
City of Helena
316 N Park Ave.
Room320
Helena, MT 59623