Montana Title 7. Local Government § 7-3-1204. Petition for city-county consolidated government--election required

(1) The question of the abandonment and termination of the separate corporate existence and government of a county and of each city and town within the county and the consolidation and merging of the existence and government of the county and each of the cities and towns within the county into one municipal corporation and government under the provisions of this part and part 13 must be submitted to the registered electors of the county if a petition is filed in the office of the election administrator of the county, signed by at least 20% of the electors of the county whose names appear on the official register of voters of the county on the date of the filing of the petition, requesting that the question be submitted to the registered electors of the county.

(2) The petition must be substantially in the form and must be signed, verified, and filed in the manner prescribed in 7-5-137 and Title 13, chapter 28, for initiative and referendum petitions and must designate within the petition the name by which the consolidated government is to be known, which must be either that of the county or of some one of the cities or towns within the county.