Montana Title 30. Trade and Commerce § 30-14-211. Establishing cost survey

(1) The department shall, whenever application has been made by 10 or more persons within a particular trade or business, as soon as possible, fix a time for a public hearing upon the question of whether the cost survey should be established and, if so, upon the matter of establishing the cost survey. The hearing must be held at the office of the department and upon notice that the department may require by rule. However, notice of the hearing must be published for at least 2 successive weeks in the daily newspaper or newspapers designated by the department as the most commonly circulated in the counties affected by the cost survey. The notice must further state the locality or area in respect to which the cost survey is proposed to be established and the particular trade or business to be affected by it.

(2) At the time fixed in the notice any person may appear and be heard by the department upon all questions to be determined by the department as provided in this section. If the department determines that a cost survey should be established, it shall at the same hearing proceed to classify and define the particular trade or business, or parts of a particular trade or business, to be affected, determine the particular area within which the trade or business will be affected, and find and determine the probable cost of doing business or overhead expense, stated in percentage of invoice or replacement cost that would probably be incurred by the most efficient person in the trade or business within the area.

(3) If the department determines that the probable cost of doing business or overhead expense stated in percentage of invoice or replacement cost that would probably be incurred by the most efficient person in the trade or business is the same for the entire state, then the department may, upon proper notice given as provided in this section, create one trade area embracing the entire state.

(4) The percentage so determined must be presumed to be the actual cost of doing business and overhead expense of any person in the trade or business and within the area affected by the cost survey.