(1) The owner or operator of an establishment in Montana that is licensed by the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) to provide lodging may claim the credit described in (2) against the taxes imposed in 15-30-2103, or 15-31-101, MCA, for furnishing temporary lodging in Montana, at no cost, to an individual who has been referred by a DPHHS designated charitable organization because the individual is in immediate need of shelter based on an imminent or existing threat to the safety or security of the individual or family. Additional information regarding the program is available at dphhs.mt.gov/publichealth/FCSS/PublicAccommodations/emergencylodging.aspx.

(2) The amount of credit is $30 for each night, up to five nights, of gratis lodging provided to a referred individual or family during a calendar year. The credit must be claimed by the person that owns or operates the licensed establishment in the Montana tax return or report that includes the establishment's lodging receipts for the period during which the creditable lodging was provided. If the credit is claimed by an entity taxed as an S corporation or partnership, the credit must be attributed to shareholders or partners in the same proportion used to report the corporation's or partnership's income or loss for Montana income tax purposes. The credit is "refundable," and if the amount of the credit exceeds the taxpayer's liability, if any, under 15-30-2103, or 15-31-101, MCA, for the period during which the creditable lodging was provided, the excess will be refunded to the taxpayer.

(3) The credit is $30 per night for each referred individual or family. For example, if two people or two families are provided lodging in the same room for three nights, the amount of the credit is $90 (three nights of lodging multiplied by $30 per night).

(4) When applying the limitation of five nights' lodging under 15-30-2381 and 15-31-171, MCA, each individual or family is treated as having been provided one night of lodging even if two or more referred individuals or families share a room for one night. An establishment may offer a referred individual or family more than five night's emergency lodging during a calendar year, but only the first five nights qualify for the credit.

(5) The room must be provided at no cost to either the individual, family, or the referring organization.

(6) The credit must be claimed on Form ELC, Emergency Lodging Credit.

(7) The taxpayer claiming the credit must retain a voucher, letter, or similar documentation from the referring organization as support for the calculation of the credit. The documentation must be retained as a tax record and provide the following information:

(a) name of the referring organization;

(b) a statement describing the reason for the lodging;

(c) number of individuals provided lodging;

(d) name and address of the establishment providing the lodging; and

(e) date(s) lodging was provided.

(8) An establishment that relies in good faith on information provided by a designated charitable organization is allowed the credit if it is subsequently determined that the reason for the referral was not valid.

(9) The owner or operator of an establishment may claim the credit even if they operated at a loss for the tax year during which the creditable lodging is provided and have no taxable income. The credit cannot be claimed by an organization that is not subject to tax, such as a nonprofit organization. A nonprofit organization can claim the credit if it is required to file a return and pay tax on unrelated business taxable income under the provisions of 15-31-102, MCA.