Montana Department Of Environmental Quality

Montana Department Of Environmental Quality Financial Services Division, a U.S. state government entity and child agency within the Montana Department of Public Health, receives federal grants and purchase orders primarily for environmental permitting, compliance, monitoring, and infrastructure financing activities as a grant recipient. The division does not hold prime federal contracts and operates entirely within grant-funded environmental protection programs, with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA Region 8) and Department of Interior offices providing the majority of its 439 total awards spanning water quality management, drinking water and wastewater infrastructure capitalization, air quality monitoring, abandoned mine land reclamation, petroleum tank cleanup, brownfield assessment, and forest management permitting across Montana.

Over the past five years, award volume has fluctuated between 20 and 34 grants annually, with 2023 showing peak activity at 34 awards. The combined potential value across all awards totals $1.7 million, though obligated dollars reached $1.29 billion (75,575% of potential value), reflecting the scale of revolving loan fund capitalizations and state environmental program support grants that pass through federal dollars to municipal and community subrecipients. The portfolio is heavily weighted toward EPA Region 8 and allied environmental agencies: the EPA accounts for 147 awards, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement holds 40 awards, and the Department of Energy funds 26 awards; together these three account for 77% of the award count. By potential value, the Department of Agriculture Forest Service Region 1 anchors the portfolio with 15 awards worth $980 thousand for open burn permit administration and smoke management services, followed by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers districts (Omaha and Seattle) funding wastewater permit services at federal facilities such as Libby Dam.

The division's capability footprint centers on state-level environmental regulatory administration and federal facility support. Representative work includes Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) capitalization grants totaling $11.256 million (awarded August 2023) and $13.396 million (awarded August 2024), through which the division functions as an intermediary lender providing low-interest financing to municipalities for wastewater infrastructure; Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) capitalization grants including a $23.16 million award (August 2023) supporting public water system improvements with focus on emerging contaminants and lead service line replacement; and Formula Grants under Nonpoint Source Implementation (CFDA 66.460) totaling approximately $1.779 million to $1.857 million (awards from July 2024 and September 2025) funding watershed restoration, water quality monitoring, and education activities. The division also administers Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation (AMLR) program grants from OSMRE including a $4.598 million Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act award (October 2025) addressing coal mining hazards. On the permitting side, the division receives purchase orders from the U.S. Forest Service Region 1 and Army Corps of Engineers for Montana Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (MPDES) permit fee services and open burn permit administration — recent examples include a $87.68 thousand order from Forest Service (awarded January 2026) and a $75 thousand order from the Army Corps (March 2025).

The division's posture is purely grant-recipient, with no subcontract activity recorded in the award history (only 2 sub-grant awards, both in 2025–2026). Award completion dates cluster heavily in the 2024–2027 window; 22 awards with combined potential value of $88 thousand face ultimate completion within the next 24 months, presenting a modest recompete exposure tied mainly to revolving loan fund recapitalizations and annual environmental program support formula grants. The top NAICS category is Administration of Air and Water Resource and Solid Waste Management Programs (32 awards), with Support Activities for Forestry (14 awards) and Regulation, Licensing, and Inspection of Miscellaneous Commercial Sectors (10 awards) rounding out the operational focus. The division's federal footprint reflects Montana's state-role responsibilities under the Clean Water Act, Safe Drinking Water Act, Clean Air Act, and Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act, with emphasis on water infrastructure capitalization and environmental compliance support.