Crisis Services Levy

Election results from the November general election show this levy did not pass with a majority vote.

The crisis services levy failed in the Nov. 8 election. The programs it would've paid for all have funding through the end of this fiscal year, and some longer. Local government will continue to leverage grants and other outside funding as much as possible, but leaders will likely need to make difficult budget decisions going forward.

This levy can also be referred to as the "crisis intervention levy." The Missoula County commissioners voted Aug. 4 to put a crisis services levy on the ballot for the November general election. If passed, funds from the levy would have paid for services to support people in crisis, including services addressing mental health, addiction and homelessness, as well as programs to facilitate criminal justice reforms.

Open house and press conference

The City of Missoula and Missoula County held an educational open house for the Missoula County crisis services levyon Thursday, Oct. 13, at the Missoula Fire Station #4 at 3011 Latimer Street. The first half-hour featured a press conference. Speakers included County Commissioner Josh Slotnick; Mayor Jordan Hess; John Petroff, operations manager for the Mobile Support Team based at the Missoula Fire Department; Theresa Williams, Crisis Intervention Team program manager; Lt. Ben Slater, Missoula Police Department; and Jill Bonny, executive director of the Poverello Center.

Representatives from programs that support people in crisis and would benefit from the levy were available for one-on-one conversations and to answer questions at tables throughout the fire station. The public was invited.

The Missoula County commissioners voted on Aug. 4 to put the crisis services levy on the ballot for the November general election. Funds from the levy would pay for services to support people in crisis, including services addressing mental health, addiction and homelessness, as well as programs to advance criminal justice system reforms.

Programs and services the levy could have funded include:

• Calibrate is the Missoula County Attorney’s Office’s prosecution-led pretrial diversion program that seeks to divert first-time, non-violent offenders away from jail and criminal conviction and into a program of individualized supervision and services. The program aims to address the root causes of why an individual became involved in the criminal justice system, reducing their likelihood of reoffending.
  
  
• Civil Commitment Mental Health Services provides licensed mental health professionals to evaluate and advocate for people experiencing a mental health crisis as they undergo the court-ordered emergency detention and civil commitment process.
  
  
• Community Justice Department collaborates with Missoula City and County Courts, City and County Attorney’s Offices, law enforcement agencies, and other criminal justice partners and stakeholders to promote the safety of citizens, the protection and healing of crime victims, the efficient and just treatment of defendants and offenders, the ongoing improvement and coordination of the justice system’s response to crime, and the prevention of crime and the reduction of recidivism.
  
  
• Crime Victim Advocate Program helps victims of relationship and sexual violence through the court system, with an emphasis on early intervention services that can help prevent lethal violence down the road.
  
  
• Crisis Intervention Program provides voluntary, hands-on, nationally vetted training to law enforcement and other first responders to recognize and address individuals having a behavioral health crisis.
  
  
• Crisis Receiving Center is a planned medical site that will provide stabilization services for up to 24 hours for people in crisis who may otherwise end up in an emergency room or jail.
  
  
• Jail Mental Health Team provides mental and behavioral health services to people incarcerated at the Missoula County Detention Facility. The team works to stabilize individuals, both inside the jail and upon release, when needed, to help ensure they can better re-integrate into the community.
  
  
• Mobile Support Team sends EMTs and clinicians trained to help people experiencing a mental health crisis, instead of law enforcement or other first responders. The team also connects clients to appropriate services, diverting them from the emergency room or jail.
  
  
• Sheriff’s Office Community Supported Re-entry Program and Missoula County Pretrial Supervision Program help formerly incarcerated people succeed upon release, without falling into homelessness or reoffending while they await trial. The programs connect people to intensive case management, as well as services such as drug treatment, permanent supportive housing solutions and employment programs.
  
  
• Temporary Safe Outdoor Space and Emergency Winter Shelter provide shelter during extreme weather and help prevent people from living in makeshift camps. The barriers and services offered at these sites vary depending on the community members they serve.
  
  
• Trinity Navigation Center will provide low-barrier services to people experiencing homelessness in Missoula, including connection to the Missoula Coordinated Entry System and housing navigation, warming space, basic health care and other support services.

Missoula County and the City of Missoula currently pay for many of these services with temporary funding sources, such as federal American Rescue Plan Act funding and grants.

A crisis services levy could have provided up to $5 million annually in dedicated funding to maintain and expand these services. If passed, the tax impact of the levy would have been $27 for every $100,000 in assessed property value. This would have been reflected in the November 2023 tax bill. Look up your assessed property value on your tax bill: itax.missoulacounty.us/itax/

The ballot language will read:

Shall the Board of County Commissioners of Missoula County, Montana (the “County”), be authorized to levy permanently up to twenty (20) mills per year, to raise approximately $5,000,000 per year, to pay costs of services to support people in crisis, including services addressing mental health, addiction, and homelessness and facilitating criminal justice reforms? 

If this mill levy proposition is passed, based on the current taxable value of the County, the property taxes on a home with an assessed market value for tax purposes of $100,000 would increase by $27.00 per year and property taxes on a home with an assessed market value for tax purposes of $200,000 would increase by $54.00 per year.