(1) Organization of the Department of Transportation.

(a) History. The Department of Transportation was created by Chapter 512 of the Montana Session Laws of 1991 and implemented by executive order no. 11-91 of the Governor on July 1, 1991.

(b) Director. The Director of the Department of Transportation, appointed by the Governor, heads the department. The director's duties are specified in 2-15-112, MCA. The Public Information Officer reports directly to the director as service staff.

(c) Deputy Director. The Deputy Director heads the following divisions: Administration; Aeronautics; Human Resources and Occupational Safety; Information Services; Motor Carrier Services; and Professional Services. The Deputy Director assists the Director of Transportation.

(d) Chief Operating Officer. The Chief Operating Officer heads the following divisions: Highways and Engineering; Maintenance; Rail, Planning and Transit; and the following districts: Billings; Butte; Glendive; Great Falls, and Missoula. The Chief Operating Officer assists the Director of Transportation.

(e) Transportation Commission. The Transportation Commission consists of five members appointed by the Governor for terms specified in 2-15-124, MCA. The powers of the Transportation Commission generally relate to awarding construction contracts and designation of highway routes. The Transportation Commission meets once a month, unless otherwise scheduled. The Transportation Commission exercises some oversight over the Highways and Engineering Division. The Transportation Commission also exercises quasi-judicial powers over outdoor advertising.

(f) Board of Aeronautics. The Board of Aeronautics consists of nine members appointed by the Governor for terms specified in 2-15-124, MCA. Further descriptions of the functions of the board are found in Title 67, MCA. The Aeronautics Board exercises oversight over the Title 67, MCA aeronautical loan and grant program.

(g) Divisions. The department consists of 14 divisions, each headed by an administrator.

(i) Administration Division;

(ii) Aeronautics Division;

(iii) Highways and Engineering Division;

(iv) Human Resources and Occupational Safety Division;

(v) Information Services Division;

(vi) Maintenance Division;

(vii) Motor Carrier Services Division;

(viii) Professional Services Division;

(ix) Rail, Transit and Planning Division;

(x) Billings District;

(xi) Butte District;

(xii) Glendive District;

(xiii) Great Falls District; and

(xiv) Missoula District.

(2) Functions of Department Divisions.

(a) Administration Division. The Administration Division provides administrative support services essential to the operation of the department. The division provides accounting, motor fuel and aviation fuel tax collection, payroll, fiscal programming, purchasing, budgeting, cash management, and inventory control for the department.

(b) Aeronautics Division. The division is responsible for providing for the protection and promotion of safety in aeronautics. The division facilitates the maintenance of airports and the various components of airport infrastructure, including visual and electronic navigational facilities and flying aids. Efforts to foster, promote, and supervise aviation and aviation safety are coordinated through educational efforts and programs, registering aircraft and pilots in accordance with Montana laws and regulations; and coordination and supervision of aerial search and rescue operations. In accordance with the maintenance and safety aspects of the division's overall mission, it administers a loan and grant program to municipal governments to fund airport development and improvement projects.

(c) Highways and Engineering Division. The Highways and Engineering Division is responsible for the design, construction, and preservation of Montana's highway system. The division is responsible for all phases of designing roads and bridges, contract plans, traffic, photogrammetry and survey, materials, hydraulic services, right-of-way appraisal and negotiation, and construction. Under the authority of the Chief Engineer, a district administrator may also exercise authority in these areas if a particular matter is better suited to local control, and the district administrator holds proper licensure for decisions requiring professional engineer expertise.

(d) Human Resources and Occupational Safety Division. The primary goals of the Human Resources and Occupational Safety Division are to attract and retain a talented and diverse group of employees with career advancement potential; to create an organizational culture that encourages growth and continuous learning opportunities; and to promote a high level of professionalism, innovation, and productivity.

(e) Information Services Division. The Information Services Division plans and sets policy, and coordinates, designs, installs, and maintains the department's information technology infrastructure.

(f) Maintenance Division. The Maintenance Division facilitates, coordinates, advises, and provides technical assistance to the districts, other divisions, and bureaus. The district administrators have the authority and responsibility for the maintenance and equipment functions for field operations within the districts. The division works to establish a statewide annual work program, plan and allocate budgets, administer the long-range building program, develop a statewide operational plan for a mobile radio communication system, purchase and allocate equipment, provide road condition information, manage the motor pool and headquarters shop, provide training and a maintenance manual, and coordinate the department's disaster and emergency activities.

(g) Motor Carrier Services Division. The Motor Carrier Services Division protects the federal government's and Montana's investment in Montana's highway system and ensures the safety of the traveling public through regulation of the commercial motor carrier industry and enforcement of state and federal commercial motor carrier laws, rules, and regulations. The division's responsibilities include commercial vehicle size and weight enforcement, commercial vehicle and commercial vehicle driver safety enforcement, enforcement of Montana's dyed fuel laws, oversize/overweight permitting, commercial motor carrier licensing, interstate commercial vehicle registration, administration of the International Registration Plan (IRP) for Montana, administration of the PrePass weigh station bypass program for Montana, administration of Montana Commercial Vehicle Information System Network (CVISN) program, and administration of the Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program (MCSAP).

(h) Professional Services Division. The Professional Services Division includes the Office of Civil Rights, Audit Services, and Legal Services. The division provides: legal advice and counsel and represents the department in administrative and judicial proceedings; provides internal, motor fuels and external audit services; and provides civil rights, Americans With Disabilities Act, Disadvantaged Business Enterprises, Equal Employment Opportunity and affirmative action services for the department's federal-aid construction program. Each of the three professional services units functionally reports to the director to exercise its civil rights, audit and legal functions independently and objectively. The division administratively reports to the Deputy Director.

(i) Rail, Transit and Planning Division. The Rail, Transit and Planning Division is responsible for planning highway improvement programs, local transit programs, and environmental impacts. Its activities include: federal funding initiatives and congressional support; asset management coordination; collecting, processing, analyzing, and reporting general transportation data; GIS mapping and analysis; collection and analysis of information on the condition and use of all state highways; multimodal planning; maintenance of records on various sources of highway funding; analysis of projects entering the federal-aid construction program; coordination of the agency response to access requests for major developments; management of nonmetro federal transit programs; management of federal highway traffic safety programs; management of environmental stewardship and compliance; and providing planning assistance to units of local government.

(j) Districts. The department is geographically divided into five districts, with each district equivalent to a division. The following cities each contain a district office and each district is a separate division:

(i) Billings;

(ii) Butte;

(iii) Glendive;

(iv) Great Falls; and

(v) Missoula.

The administrative head of each district is the district administrator (DA). The DA has authority over certain contractual, budgetary, and personnel matters within the district; however, such authority must be exercised in compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and policies. Each DA is responsible for administration of the Department of Transportation District, including: preconstruction design, construction, maintenance on all interstate, primary, and some secondary and urban roads in the district. The DA has the overall responsibility for equipment, materials, right-of-way, administrative services, personnel management, budgets, and public relations within the district. The DA, under the authority of the Chief Engineer, may assume some of the authority over areas listed in (2)(c) above under the Highways and Engineering Division. The district office is also the initial contact with the public, in most cases, for encroachment permits, utility occupancy, approaches, and outdoor advertising.

(3) Information or Submissions. General inquiries regarding the department may be addressed to the director. Specific inquiries regarding functions of each division or other area may be addressed to the administrator of that division. All requests for hearings, declaratory rulings, and for participation in rulemaking, may be addressed to the director unless the notice in the Montana Administrative Register makes specific provisions for submissions.

(4) Personnel Roster. Addresses of the director and each division are as follows:

Director, Montana Department of Transportation, Room 201, 2701 Prospect Avenue, P.O. Box 201001, Helena, Montana 59620-1001

Administration Division, Room D101, 2701 Prospect Avenue, P.O. Box 201001, Helena, Montana 59620-1001

Aeronautics Division, 2630 Airport Road, P.O. Box 200507, Helena, Montana 59620-0507

Highways and Engineering Division, Room 217, 2701 Prospect Avenue, P.O. Box 201001, Helena, Montana 59620-1001

Human Resources and Occupational Safety Division, Room 106, 2701 Prospect Avenue, P.O. Box 201001, Helena, Montana 59620-1001

Information Services Division, Room 009, 2701 Prospect Avenue, P.O. Box 201001, Helena, Montana 59620-1001

Maintenance Division, Room 217, 2701 Prospect Avenue, P.O. Box 201001, Helena, Montana 59620-1001

Motor Carrier Services Division, Room 123, 2701 Prospect Avenue, P.O. Box 4639, Helena, Montana 59604-4639

Professional Services Division, 2701 Prospect Avenue, P.O. Box 201001, Helena, Montana 59620-1001

Rail, Transit and Planning Division, 2960 Prospect Avenue, P.O. Box 201001, Helena, Montana 59620-1001

Billings District, 424 Morey Street, P.O. Box 20437, Billings, Montana 59104-0437

Butte District, 3751 Wynne Street, P.O. Box 3068, Butte, Montana 59702-3068

Glendive District, 503 North River Avenue, P.O. Box 890, Glendive, Montana 59330-0890

Great Falls District, 200 Smelter Avenue NE, P.O. Box 1359, Great Falls, Montana 59403-1359

Missoula District, 2100 West Broadway Street, P.O. Box 7039, Missoula, Montana 59807-7039

(5) Charts of Agency Organization. The organizational chart of the Department of Transportation is attached on the following page and is incorporated into this rule.