HRDC is pleased to announce the successful purchase of property in Gardiner, Montana to help address the community’s workforce housing needs. The property, located at 40 Jardine Road, consists of a three-bedroom home on 4.6 acres. HRDC is working to design a development consisting of a mix of ownership and rental opportunities to meet community needs.

HRDC has been working closely with the Gardiner community since 2015 to assess housing needs and identify potential solutions. Both availability and affordability of homes in the Gardiner community has continued to deteriorate for local workers as more homes are converted to second homes or short-term rentals. This has affected small businesses, local schools, and community organizations.

For the past five years, identifying a property for the development of new affordable housing has been a priority. HRDC staff has vetted properties as they come to market, worked with community members to find out when properties may be available, and talked with owners
about potential development partnerships. This new property represents the culmination of these efforts, and the opportunity to make a significant contribution to the community’s housing needs.

While still in its early development phases, HRDC hopes to engage community members throughout 2021 to refine the proposed project.

For more information about HRDC, visit thehrdc.org.

The Salvation Army is taking its iconic red kettles virtual. This holiday season, The Salvation Army is seeing a greater need for their services – more than any in recent history. COVID-19 has not only created a bigger need for the organization to fill, it will also decrease the number of traditional red kettles our community used to seeing on street corners and at store entrances each Christmas season.

 
That’s why The Salvation Army is offering the Virtual Red Kettle. It allows the community to support their neighbors in need and allows them to participate in the traditional red kettle experience, all without ever leaving their homes. It’s the ultimate socially distant way to give back this holiday season.

 
Donors can go online to bozemanredkettle.org to give a gift or create their own fundraiser for The Salvation Army. Donations given to the Bozeman campaign stay in the Bozeman community. For example, a gift of $25 could provide a toy for two children this Christmas. When you click the donate button, you’ll hear an actual Salvation Army bell ring!

 
Last holiday season, The Salvation Army raised more than $126 million nationally through red kettles. Due to closing of retail stores, a decrease in foot traffic, consumers carrying less cash and coins, The Salvation Army could see up to a 50 percent decrease in funds raised nationally through red kettles. If this happens, our ability to provide services for the most vulnerable every day and during disasters would be severely reduced.

 
People count on The Salvation Army to be there when they need help. Now, we’re asking for assistance. We are calling on the community to donate their time and/or money to help rescue Christmas for their neighbors in need. Here are some other ways we’re making giving back easier and safer than ever:
 
• Make a donation to The Salvation Army at bozemanredkettle.org
• Give cash, change or use Apple Pay or Google Pay at an in-person red kettle
• Sign up to become a bell ringer at volunteer.usawest.org  (The Salvation Army has adopted nationally mandated COVID-19 safety protocols)
 
The red kettle tradition began in 1891 when Salvation Army Captain Joseph McFee wanted to help feed needy citizens in San Francisco. McFee remembered the ferry landings in Liverpool England, where people would sit with small kettles that travelers would toss spare change into to help the less fortunate. Placing his own kettle on Market Street in Oakland California, McFee was able to help individuals on Christmas. The idea traveled to Boston in 1897 and the Red Kettle Campaign has been a tradition ever since.

With the holiday season comes the idea of giving gifts, and, according to Montana State University Extension, gifting an asset can be not only a great opportunity to express love and affection but also an opportunity for the gift to become a living legacy. Children and grandchildren could have the opportunity to participate in the management of a family business or could finance their education using assets gifted from family members.

According to Marsha Goetting, MSU Extension family economics specialist, the types of property that can be living legacies include almost any item with monetary value. Examples include real estate, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, certificates of deposit, U.S. savings bonds, cars or trucks, livestock, and cash. 

“Giving away assets may sound simple at first, but federal gift tax laws should be followed to avoid potential problems later,” Goetting said. "While Montana does not have a gift tax, the federal government levies one upon transfers of real and/or personal property made during life if the person making the gift does not receive something of similar value in exchange.”

For example, if a father gives his son land with a fair market value of $100,000, the father has made a $100,000 gift. If the father sells the same land to his son for $1,000, he has made a gift of $99,000, the difference between the fair market value and the value received.

Federal law permits an annual exclusion of up to $15,000 on gifts below which payment of gift tax is not necessary, Goetting said. The recipients do not have to be family members and no gift tax return needs to be filed for gifts up to $15,000. 

“The gifts can also be used in other efficient ways,” Goetting added. “A grandmother in Billings gifted $15,000 to her adult granddaughter. The granddaughter split up the gift by putting portions in Montana Medical Care Savings Accounts, an IRA and a Montana First Time Home Buyer’s Account. In doing so, the grandmother’s gift saved her granddaughter $1,635 in state and federal income taxes.”

A copy of the MontGuide “Gifting: A Property Transfer Tool of Estate Planning” is available at https://store.msuextension.org/publications/FamilyFinancialManagement/MT199105HR.pdf. Physical copies are also available at local MSU county or reservation Extension offices.

Montana State University Extension has a new, free, 40-page color booklet available about diagnosing herbicide injury on plants.

“While herbicides are useful tools for managing weeds, sometimes they can also injure desired plants,” said Noelle Orloff, a diagnostician in the Schutter Diagnostic Lab. “This injury is referred to as non-target injury, or damage to plants other than the target weeds intended to be controlled by an herbicide application.”

Orloff said non-target herbicide injury is a continuing concern in Montana. For example, plant samples assessed for herbicide injury symptoms by MSU’s Schutter Diagnostic Lab increased 90% between 2013 and 2018, from 60 to 115 samples annually. The new guide is part of a response to help MSU Extension agents and others diagnose herbicide injury issues. Orloff said diagnosis can be difficult because symptoms may look like those caused by insects, disease or weather conditions. Another goal of the guide is to help pesticide applicators understand and prevent common causes of non-target herbicide injury, Orloff said.

The guide describes common causes of non-target herbicide injury, such as herbicide drift and herbicide carryover; operator error and faulty application equipment; and environmental and plant factors that make herbicide injury more likely. It summarizes how to prevent herbicide injury, then describes how to diagnose herbicide injury, including a list of evidence to gather and questions to ask. It also includes a key to plant symptoms, as well as photos and descriptions of plant symptoms for different types of herbicides. The guide is written by Orloff; Jane Mangold, MSU Extension invasive plant specialist; and Tim Seipel, MSU Extension cropland weed specialist. The printed guides are funded by a grant from USDA-NIFA.

A printed copy of the spiral-bound booklet (EB0232) is available to order from the MSU Extension Distribution Center. A nominal shipping charge will be applied. Orders may be placed by visiting www.msuextension.org/store or calling 406-994-3273. The booklet is also available as a downloadable PDF at store.msuextension.org/publications/AgandNaturalResources/EB0232.pdf
and as an HTML website at msuextension.org/pubs/herbicideinjuryguide/index.html.

Plumbing is anything that transports fluids to various locations for various purposes. Plumbing includes pipes, fittings, pipes fixtures, and various other apparatuses for carrying fluids around. In the United States, plumbers are trained on how to install, repair, and maintain plumbing systems. Plumbing repairs can be very costly, especially if you do not have professional expertise, but there are many plumbing companies that offer their services at reasonable rates and charges. This article provides a brief overview of the many types of plumbing systems that are found in homes.

Common Types of Plumbing Systems
The most common type of plumbing system in the home is the toilet. A toilet is a device that is attached to a sink. A typical toilet consists of a bowl and some parts of the pipe system. The pipes are usually made of copper or plastic, and there are also some which are made of cast iron and made into some special fixtures.

A bathtub is another type of plumbing system used in the home. Bathtubs are usually made up of plastic piping and fixtures that carry water into the tub and out of it. These pipes and fixtures can vary greatly from one bathroom to another. You can even have a bathtub that has a jetted spray feature and a showerhead in it.

A sink is a device that sits under a faucet. In older homes, the sink was usually connected to the faucet through a hole in the sink, but in newer homes, the sink usually sits atop the faucet and has its own pipe system. There is usually a small pipe attached to the faucet that is used to draw water. When the water reaches the sink, it goes through the pipe system until it reaches the drain. When the drain is full, the water travels back to the faucet, and the cycle continues.

The next type of plumbing system is the hot water heater. Hot water heaters are usually installed in the basement or on the first floor of the home. These devices heat water in a tank that contains a coil. The heating coil is located in a tank that is filled with water, and in order to turn on the device, a switch is used.

The next type of plumbing system is the gas line that connects the hot water heater to the rest of the plumbing in the home. A gas line is also known as a gas pipe. A hot water tank also called an ice box, contains liquid fuel to burn the gas to produce steam. The water in the tank is burned as fuel for producing steam in a system similar to a boiler.

Finally, the electric line connects the hot water tank and the plumbing in the home to the electrical power source. The water is heated when the tank is filled with gas and this system usually has two electric wires. These wires run to a thermostat that controls the temperature. The thermostat is a device that controls the heat to control the water heater.

Plumbing Repair Companies
There are many plumbing repair companies out there that are ready to give you advice about the various types of plumbing systems that are used in homes and the Yukon Heating and Plumbing repair companies that will work with you to fix your plumbing system. However, before hiring a plumber, it is important to find a company that has experience with the kind of plumbing that is involved with your home and the type of system you have.

There are many plumbing repair companies that advertise themselves as having knowledge about all types of plumbing. The important thing is to do some research into the plumbers before you hire them. If you find one that has a large amount of experience with plumbing but doesn't have a great reputation, then you may want to look elsewhere to find a qualified plumber.

Find someone with experience and someone who can take care of your home when it needs fixing. Don't take chances by hiring an inexperienced plumber, because you could end up having to pay more for the work than what you would have to.

You can find plumbing repair companies in your local phone book. you can also find some plumbing repair companies online.

A plumber is a person who provides plumbing services. Plumbing refers to any method that carries liquids for various purposes. Plumbing systems include septic systems, sewage, underground, and surface-water systems. The word "plumbing" has come from "plastra", an ancient form of water treatment that involves the use of salt or potassium as part of the treatment process.

Plumbing System
A plumbing system consists of different components and equipment. It comprises the pipes themselves, such as tubs, toilets, sinks, faucets, showers, sinks, baths, showers, kitchen sinks, toilets, drains, and toilets. These are then followed by valves or valve boxes. Water is pumped through the pipes via the valves. When you turn on the toilet, water is passed through the pipes and then into the drain.

Another important component of the plumbing system is the tank. The tank can be made of steel or concrete, depending on the type of system it serves. In addition to the tank, there are valves which are used to control the flow of water from the toilet and into the tank.

Plumber also refers to someone who works with Danforth Heating & Plumbing systems such as sewer lines. The system will either run inside a house or outside of the house; in either case, the plumber's work is to maintain, repair, install, or replace any plumbing system in the house.

Basic Functions of a Plumber
A plumber is also referred to as sewer man because he or she works with sewer lines and the pipes and equipment that serve them. Plumbers carry out their job by installing pipe joints, fixing clogs in the pipes and cleaning out any clogs before they cause major problems. Plumbers also use special equipment to clean out drains and sewers and to check for leaks.

Plumbers also have to do minor repairs on the sewer line or drain. These repairs include replacing damaged pipes, cleaning out blockages, repairing damaged joints, and tightening and lubricating the pipe. They also perform maintenance on valves to check for leaks. leaks, repairing damaged pipes and fixtures and unclogging clogs. If there is a problem with a pipe or drain, plumbers will need to fix the leak or repair the pipe by either replacing it or by adding a new one.

Plumbers also install and repair drains and sewer lines if the homeowner doesn't know how to do it themselves. When a homeowner isn't skilled in plumbing repair or installation, it's best to contact a licensed plumber. To find a licensed plumber, a good source of information to look up plumbers in your area is the Better Business Bureau. Plumbers should also be licensed, bonded, and insured.

Plumbers also need to have a license, be properly trained and have undergone proper training and examinations to safely and efficiently carry out their work. This training and certification are very important if they are going to be using a particular type of plumbing system, such as plumbing for your home. Licensed plumbers should be properly trained to work with the equipment that is being used to install, or repair the plumbing system on a home, as well as having been properly insured.

Plumbing safety training includes basic techniques for plumbing systems as well as procedures for installing and repairing the plumbing system. Plumbers should be able to teach you how to identify dangerous substances in the home. Plumbers should also be able to show you how to use equipment safely. While some types of plumbing systems can be used by non-experienced people, plumbers need to be able to teach the steps involved in handling those types of plumbing systems.

Once you have been trained by a certified plumber, it is important that you keep your home well maintained so that the plumber knows exactly what to do if there is a problem. Or a hazard in your home. Plumbers are often asked to come to your home to help you keep it safe and ensure that all household chemicals, liquids, materials, gases, foods, and medications are kept in good condition and in an appropriate place.

Plumbing inspections, repairs, and installations are not inexpensive to do and a plumber will charge a lot of money to do a job. This is why it is important to research a plumber before making an agreement. If you are planning to hire a plumber, you should make sure to ask lots of questions. It is important that the plumber can give you honest answers so that you can get a true picture of how much money you will have to pay him or her for the service.

Once you find a reputable plumbing contractor, they will likely offer to let you call their office and talk to a professional plumber at a later time, usually for free. They will be able to tell you exactly what they charge for the service and you will be able to see what is included in the contract.

If you own a home, you know that being a homeowner requires a constant stream of investments into your property to keep it running smoothly and in good shape. One area that you may not invest in often enough is pest control. Keeping pests out of your home is incredibly important, as they can cost you thousands of dollars’ worth of damage or transmit diseases to you and your family. Continue reading to find out about five updates you can make to your home to protect it from wildlife.

Repair Entry Points
One of the most important steps you can take to protect your home from pests is to find any areas where they may be coming into your home. It is important to inspect your house from top to bottom in order to find even the smallest gaps, holes, and cracks. Start your inspection by looking all around your home’s foundation, both inside and outside. Then move onto your walls, and where your roof meets the walls. Check all along your roof, particularly where your roof contacts a chimney or any other structure. If you found any holes or cracks in these places, you can repair entry points by sealing them with an all-weather sealant, or you can patch over them by using thin sheet metal. Also check any pipes and outlets that come out of your home, as any gaps or cracks in these areas can often be fixed with sealant or simply plugged with some steel wool. A final entry point to check is your windows and doors. Be sure that the weatherproofing is in good shape and make sure they are always closed tight. Be thorough, and you can really seal up your house well from pests.

Install a Snake Fence
In many places across the country, snakes commonly find their way into people’s homes. These snakes are generally non-venomous, but no one likes living with snakes either way. Snakes are a lot like mice and rats, in that they do not require a large opening to enter homes. In addition to a home invasion by snakes, it is important that you keep venomous snakes out of your yard, especially if you have pets or children. To accomplish this task, a great upgrade you can make to your property is installing a snake fence. These snake fences are highly effective at keeping snakes out, both venomous and non-venomous, providing you with protection in your yard and within your home. If you live in venomous snake territory and have children, it is one of the wisest investments you can make.


Set Up Bird Spikes
Birds are one of the most annoying nuisance animals to have around on your property. They leave their excrement everywhere, including on your vehicles, grills, gardens, and every other item you possess. They can also make their way into your chimney or even into your attic if you give them enough time. Luckily there is a product called bird spikes that will ensure they won’t hang around on your property. Bird spikes are literally spikes that can be anchored to your roof, or wherever your problem area with birds is. Once you have set them up, they discourage birds from landing there and sitting there by poking them. This is one of the best ways to deter birds, as it is cost-effective and lasts for years.

Clean Up Your Yard
It might surprise you to learn that by simply making your yard less appealing to nuisance wildlife, that they will less likely end up in your home. One of the best first steps you can take is to simply lock up your garbage and pet food. Leaving these two things out unsecured is a surefire way to entice nuisance animals onto your property, and potentially into your home. Clean up any woodpiles, brush piles, or tall grass and weeds, as these are all great places for rodents, snakes, and bigger pests to hide. Finally, clean up any fallen fruit from any fruit trees you have. This is the best upgrade because it is completely free!

Repair Your Deck
Even if your deck is in perfect structural condition, it can still bring pests close to your home, and eventually into your home. If the stain or paint has worn off of your deck, it is much more likely to be invaded by termites, carpenter bees, and carpenter ants. Stain or paint your deck to reduce the risk of the wood retaining moisture, which attracts those insects. Keeping them off of your deck will definitely keep them away from your home as well.

The Center for American Indian and Rural Health Equity, or CAIRHE, at Montana State University has been awarded a two-year grant from the National Institutes of Health to examine COVID-19 testing strategies among underserved populations in Montana and Washington.

The grant of $1,797,140 to CAIRHE is part of the NIH’s $1.4 billion Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics initiative, or RADx, created in the early weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic to address the need for scaled-up testing across the country. A component targeting underserved populations known as RADx-UP funds community-engaged projects, including CAIRHE’s, that partner with vulnerable communities hardest hit by the pandemic.

The CAIRHE project is one of 70 RADx-UP grants nationwide and the only one in Montana.

“The significant health disparities that already existed among Native and rural communities in Montana and our region have become even more pronounced with COVID-19,” said physician Alexandra Adams, director of CAIRHE and principal investigator for the new study. “Because of poor access to testing in those areas and high rates of existing chronic disease, we are very concerned about the significant impact of COVID-19 in these communities.”

CAIRHE and MSU will lead the study, partnering with the University of Washington’s School of Medicine and Institute of Translational Health Sciences (ITHS); the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle; and Salish Kootenai College and the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes on the Flathead Reservation in Montana. A local community advisory board will be involved in all stages of the research in each study location.

“Montana State is committed to building strong, equitable and sustainable partnerships with tribal nations, as well as the University of Washington’s ITHS program,” said Jason Carter, MSU vice president for research, economic development and graduate education. “Dr. Adams and her CAIRHE team are experienced at building meaningful and impactful partnerships, and I am not at all surprised by the NIH investment to this remarkable team.”

The Washington team — led by physicians Matthew Thompson and Paul Drain at UW — will provide expertise on home-based testing as part of the Seattle Coronavirus Assessment Network. Behavioral scientist Linda Ko at Fred Hutchinson and her team will work with their community partners in Washington’s Yakima Valley, home to a large Latino population that includes migrant agricultural workers.

The Montana team — led by Adams and Selena Ahmed at CAIRHE, with Virgil Dupuis and Wendy Westbroek at Salish Kootenai College — will use CAIRHE’s existing research partnerships on the Flathead Reservation to study testing approaches among the area’s Native population.

“These communities are very similar in the rural barriers to testing that they face,” Adams said. “And they’re connected by seasonal farm workers who travel between the two areas, possibly bringing the coronavirus with them.”

In each of the two locations, the project will conduct a 200-person randomized trial in the spring of 2021 that compares two approaches to home-based COVID-19 testing, Adams explained. In the “active” approach, local health educators who are trusted community members will deliver tests to study participants and provide assistance. In the “passive” approach, participants will instead receive test kits by mail or at a pick-up location. All participants will receive culturally adapted printed and video instructions, as well as a survey on their current symptoms and medical conditions.

“It’s our hypothesis that home-based testing will be more efficient, have a greater impact and be better accepted using the active delivery of test kits by trusted community members,” Adams said.

Currently the research team is waiting to see if tests suitable for home use, with results immediately available to the participant, will receive U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval and be commercially available in time for the study. If not, home-based sampling will be analyzed in an alternative way.

The project’s clinical partners in Washington, led by physician Allison Lambert of Providence Medical Group in Spokane, will consult with participants about test results. Those who test positive for COVID-19 will be referred to local public health agencies for contact tracing and clinical follow-up.

Prior to the testing trial, a series of interviews and focus groups in each study community will explore individuals’ knowledge of COVID-19 and preventive measures; beliefs about COVID-19 testing; and cultural factors that affect their testing decisions. This data will help study leaders determine the cultural, social, behavioral and economic barriers to testing that exist in those communities, Adams said.

“Using this information, we can develop the educational materials that will accompany the test kits so that they’re culturally appropriate and most effective for each community,” she added.

Following the trial, the joint study team will evaluate the acceptability and feasibility of the home-based testing approaches through participant surveys. That information will allow CAIRHE and its partners to create testing protocols that could significantly increase home-based testing among Native and Latino communities nationwide, Adams said.

“At the end of the day, our goal is to decrease the devastating impact of COVID-19 in these vulnerable rural areas,” she said.

The CAIRHE-led study, titled Protecting Our Community: A Pragmatic Randomized Trial of Home-Based COVID Testing with American Indian and Latino Communities, is funded by the Office of the Director of the NIH and administered by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, which provides CAIRHE’s Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence, or COBRE, grant. In 2019 CAIRHE received a competitive renewal of its COBRE grant totaling $10.7 million through 2024.

Montana’s general deer and elk hunting seasons have ended, and biologists with Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks saw mixed hunter participation and success in southwest Montana.

Hunter participation and success can be heavily influenced by weather. Severe winter weather over opening weekend limited hunter travel and access in some areas, but significant snowfall didn’t persist over the following weeks enough to cause elk to move to winter range in large numbers. So hunter harvest was lower than average in some areas.

Six game check stations operated during some or all weekends of the general deer and elk hunting season in parts of southwest Montana, including Alder, Blacktail Deer Creek, Cameron, Divide, Gallatin and Mill Creek. At these check stations, biologists met with 4,990 hunters who harvested 69 white-tailed deer, 113 mule deer and 338 elk, among other species.

Biologists use check stations to collect data on hunter numbers, success and wildlife observations, as well as the species, sex and age class of the animals harvested. This supplements data collected through hunter harvest phone surveys, which give a broader perspective on hunter participation and harvest.

Biologists observed below-average harvest of elk and deer at the Ennis check station, which was open both days of each weekend except Oct. 26. This year, 126 elk, 27 mule deer and 15 white-tailed deer were checked at the station. The 1989-2019 averages are 167 elk, 54 mule deer and 25 white-tailed deer.  

The number of hunters checked per day at the Gallatin check station has decreased measurably since the unlimited elk permit for Hunting District 310 was removed and the district returned to general license hunting. The average number of hunters checked per day during the unlimited elk permit (2010-17) was 95. The average number of hunters checked per day during general license hunting (2018-20) was 60. In total, FWP staff at the Gallatin check station met with 421 hunters, who harvested one white-tailed deer, seven mule deer and 33 elk.

The Alder check station checked 806 hunters this year, which was similar to 2019 but well below the 8-year average for the check station. Peak hunter participation occurred during the first week of the season, then progressively declined. Elk harvest was about half of average during the first and third weekends, but it was substantially higher than harvest from the past two years over the sixth weekend. In total, the Alder check station saw 806 hunters, who harvested 25 white-tailed deer, 23 mule deer and 57 elk.  

Biologists at the Divide check station met with 1,375 hunters, who harvested 17 white-tailed deer, 42 mule deer and 84 elk. The number of hunters here was down 8 percent from 2019 and 10 percent lower than the 10-year average. This year’s hunter success rate of 10.5 percent was 50 percent higher than 2019 and 13 percent higher than the 10-year average. The increase in hunter success is driven mainly by the lower number of hunters and the increased harvest of both mule and white-tailed deer compared to recent years. Elk harvest here was slightly above that of 2019 and on par with the 10-year average.  

As the end of the year approaches, Montana State University Extension educators say there is still time for Montanans to deposit funds into a Montana Medical Care Savings Account and lower their state income taxes.

Extension has updated its MontGuide, “Montana Medical Care Savings Accounts (MSAs) for the 2020 Tax Year,” with free information exploring this option. The MontGuide is available at http://msuextension.org/publications/FamilyFinancialManagement/MT199817HR.pdf. Paper copies are also available from county Extension or reservation offices.

An MSA is an account used to reduce the cost of saving for medical expenses and long-term health care. According to Marsha Goetting, MSU Extension family economics specialist, an MSA offers individuals several benefits, including a reduction on state income taxes.

For example, if a person has taxable income over $18,400 they could save approximately $276 in state income taxes by opening an MSA and depositing up to $4,000. The MSA earns interest free from Montana income taxation and the balance at the end of the year rolls over for use in the future. Funds must be deposited by Dec. 31.

Goetting added that an MSA can also be a legacy. By placing a payable-on-death (POD) designation on the account, individuals can provide a legacy for spouses, children or grandchildren to use on their medical expenses. There are also no inheritance taxes on MSAs, and as long as an individual’s estate is less than $11.58 million, there is no federal tax either.

“Without a POD beneficiary, the money passes your heirs according to your written will,” said Wendy Wedum, Pondera County Extension agent. “If you do not have a written will, the MSA passes by Montana law to your heirs with priority given to a spouse. Either way, a legacy is provided. If you do not have heirs, you could name your favorite nonprofit as the POD beneficiary.”

Although the maximum amount used to reduce a Montanan’s taxable income annually is $4,000, Goetting and Wedum said a person can also put less than $4,000 in an MSA. The amount used to reduce income for Montana residents is the total deposit in the MSA during the tax year, not the amount withdrawn for eligible medical care expenses during the year.

Eligible expenses include medical insurance premiums; prescription drugs; medical, dental and nursing home care; eyeglasses; crutches; and transportation for medical care.

“Montana considers eligible medical care expenses as any items the IRS accepts,” Goetting said. The IRS publication 502 provides a detailed list of eligible expenses and can be found at http://www.irs.gov/publications/p502/index.html.

All resident taxpayers are eligible to establish an MSA even if they have another health care plan provided by their employer or a Section 125 Flexible Spending Account or a Federal Health Savings Account. A taxpayer does not have to be in a high deductible health insurance plan to be eligible for the MSA. And, remember, Goetting added, any money left in your MSA rolls over to be used for eligible medical expenses in future years.