WASHINGTON, D.C. Mont. (NMB) – After a push from Montana’s Congressional delegation, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has announced the abandonment of a proposal to change the criteria for cities to be considered a Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA).
The proposed change would have increased the population threshold from 50,000 to 100,000, impacting the Montana municipalities of Great Falls, Missoula and Bozeman.
The MSA designation is used by federal agencies and programs to determine funding allocations for numerous federal programs, such as housing and health care initiatives.
