Extension Economics

Updated 09/20

All Montanas should plan for the future. For those who are concerned about memory loss, completing financial, estate and health care documents is even more important.

Anyone could develop some form of dementia or experience a debilitating brain injury from a stroke or accident. These events have the potential to affect one's ability to remember, to reason, and to make decisions about finances, legacies, and health care treatments.

The Montana Legislature has passed laws allowing for the creation of appropriate legal documents, which will assist a person who develops some form of dementia or experiences a brain injury. What specific financial, estate, and health care documents should be implemented and under what circumstances depends upon the situation.

The purpose of this MontGuide is to explore the situations of three Montana couple who face memory loss. The context examines financial, estate/legacy and health care documents recommended to each couple by legal professionals.

Married Couple Situations

Legal Capacity

Once concern about the validity of legal documents, such as a will or power of attourney is, "What was the individual's legal capacity when he/she signed the document?" In general, a person must have sufficient legal capacity to understand the benefits and risks of signing a document concerning the management or administration of his/her affairs.

Financial Power of Attorney (POA)

A Financial POA is a document in which one person gives another person the power to conduct certain financial actions on his/her behalf, such as signing checks, cashing a certificate of deposit, paying bills, or selling a house. The person gives the power is the principal. The person authorized to make decisions on behalf of the principal is the agent.

Health Care Power of Attorney (HCPOA)

Montana provides a formal, legal way to make health care and end-of-life wishes known to family members and to health care providers. Montana provides a formal, legal way to make health care and end-of-life wishes known to family members and to health care providers.  The primary documents are a Health Care Power of Attourney (HCPOA) and a Living Will.

Written Will

A will is a written document describing how its maker (called testator is Montana) wants property distributed after death.

When is a will effective?

A will has no effect during a person's lifetime. It only becomes effective after death of the testator, if probate is necessary, the will along with an application to probate, is filed by the nominated personal representative. The application is filed with the clerk of the district court in the county where the deceased was a resident. After receiving a letter of appointment from the clerk of the district court, the personal representative can begin administering the estate.

Read Full MontGuide on Planning Documents with Montanans Concerned About Memory Loss (PDF)

According to a Montana State University Extension educator, it is important for individuals to plan ahead for their death and to make what comes easier for their survivors. MSU Extension has a MontGuide: Letter of Last Instructions providing information on how to write a letter of last instruction.

"By writing a letter of last instruction, we can provide essential information needed to reliever our survivors of needless hours of frustration and anguish as they search for the needed important documents during a time of sadness and grief," said Marsha Goetting, MSU Extension family economics specialist.

When listing the location of important documents, Goetting says to be specific - a safety deposit box at a certain bank, in the bottom of the left-hand drawer of a desk, or in a cardboard box on the top-right side of the bedroom closet.

The letter will help those who are sorting through an individual's papers to find facts for a death certificate. Other information, such as how your assests are titled will be necassary to determine which ones must go through probate, Goetting added.

"Once you have signed and date your completed letter, you can decide what parts, if any, you want to copy and share with family members or friends." Goetting said. "Then make several additional copies and place in an easily accessible place. Give one to your attorney and another to your personal representative, who is named in your will to carry out the settlement of your estate."

If a personal representative is not named in a will or an individual dies before writing one, a district judge will appoint one based on the priority list provided in Montana statutes. Goetting noted that individuals should review letters of last instruction annually or when there has been a change in a family situation, such as marriage, divorce, or birth.

Alongside the MontGuide, MSU Extension also has an example worksheet to fill in the necessary information needed for the letter. The worksheet can be found at montana.edu/estateplanning/eppublications.html under No. 21, "Letters of Last Instruction." It can be downloaded as a PDF or a Word document. For the MontGuide and more information, visit https://apps.msuextension.org/montguide/guide.html?sku=MT198904HR.

Montana: Living Life Well

• A program created to teach self-management skills for those living with chronic disease conditions.
• Covers general life coping skills and uses action plans to help participants set goals.
• Family and caregivers of people with chronic disease are encouraged to attend.
• Meetings last for 2.5 hours once per week for six weeks.
• View a map of program locations (you will need to click the tab "chronic disease conditions" above the map image when the page opens.)
• For Employers - Worksite based Living Life Well programming may also be available. Visit the DPHHS Chronic Disease Management website page for more information.

Available Programs and Information Specific to each disease

**All information below was obtained from the Chronic Disease page on the MSU Extension Website.

Updated 12/20

Misunderstandings can develop about what happens to a brand and livestock marked with the brand after the death of an owner.

This MontGuide explains Montana brand ownership laws as they pertain to estate planning.

Read This Scenario First!

The Rocking R brand as been in John's family for more than 50 years. In 2014, after his marriage to his second wife, Kathy, John decided to add her name as a co-onwer of the Rocking R brand with the Montana Department of Livestock. On the "Assignment of Brand" form he checked the "joint tenancy" box and listed "John Jones, Kathy Jones" as owners.

Rob, John's child from his previous marriage, is actively engaged in the operation of the ranch. For this reason John wants the Rocking R brand to continue to be owned by Rob and his descendants. In 2015, John prepared a will in which he stated "I give teh Rocking R brand to my son, Rob."

During the probate of John's estate, a dispute arose between Kathy and Rob. Kathy declared she is teh owner of the brand and livestock bearing the brand because John indicated "joint tenancy" as the type of ownership when he added Kathy as a co-owner on the Assignment of Brand form. On the other hand, Rob believes he is the owner of the brand and the livestock bearing the brand because John's written will contained a provision specifically giving the brand to him.

What do you think? After John's death, is the Rocking R brand and livestock bearing the brand owned by Kathy, his wife? Or by Rob, his son?

Results at the end of this MontGuide (PDF).

History of Brands in Montana

While brand were first recorded in Montana in 1873, laws regulating brands were not passed until 1885. The Montana Department of Livestock is the agency responsible for recording over 53,000 brands in the state. The Brands Enforcement Division was established to assist with the enforcement of laws governing brands.

Recording a Brand in Montana

Under Montana law, a person may NOT brand his/her livestock unless the brand has been recorded with the Brands Enforcement Division. The recording process begins by obtaining an Application for Brand Recording. 

More information in this MontGuide

Transferring brands

Multiple ownership of a brand

Joint ownership with right of survivorship recording of a brand

Tenants in common recording of a brand

Business entity recording of a brand

Changes to Over-the-Counter Service

Read full MontGuide on Livestock Brands in Montana (PDF)

The dramatic rise in health care expenses in recent years has been prompted some individuals to combine a high deductible health insurance policy with a federal Health Savings Account (HSA) to control these costs.

HSA's are special savings accounts that were established by federal law to allow eligible individuals to make deposits that can be used to pay for future qualifying medical expenses. Deposits to HSAs reduce an individual's state and federal taxes. Any funds remaining in the HSA at the end of the year may be used to pay for qualifying medical expenses in future years for the individual, his or her spouse dependents.

Qualifying medical expenses include health insurance deductibles and co-payments, long-term care costs, presciptions, dental expenses, eyeglasses and contact lenses, and many other medical expenses.

Special rules apply to medical insurance premiums.

Read full MontGuide on Health Savings Accounts (PDF)

MontGuide outlines the legal and tax ramifications, as well as impacts on emotional and physical health, of financing long-term care.

One major worry for older adults is that costs for long-term care will exhaust their life savings. Some fear that if their assests are depleted by a long-term illness the dignity, security and independence they worked a lifetime to attain will also dissipate.

According to one study among persons age 65 and over, 43 precent are expected to spend some time in a nursing home. Among this population, 55 percent are expected to have total lifetime nursing home care of at least one year and 21 percent will have a total lifetime nursing home care for five or more years.

This MontGuide explores:

• options for covering long-term care costs
• eligibility requirements (federal and state) for the Medicaid application process
• rules about transferring property
• role of trusts in the protection of assets
• potential emotional and tax consequences of giving away assests
• Montana Medicaid lien and estate recovery program

Read Full MontGuide on Medicaid and Long-Term Care Costs (PDF)

MontGuide describes the three main forms of property ownership and provides real-life examples of estate settlement for each.

Title is the manner in which both real and personal property is owned. Title may be proven by certificate, deed, bill of sale, contract, or other document.

A title is more than a piece of paper conveying ownership of a tractor, 100 acres of land, an automobile, a house or safe deposit box. It isn't something to be stuck in a drawer and forgotten. Rather, a title is an important part of a total estate plan. In fact, a title is an important part of a total estate plan. In fact, a will cannot be constructed separate from the titles involved and the information on them.

Titles can affect how property is tranfserred, who will receive it (with or without a will), and the eventual costs of estate settlement and taxes. All of those results depend on the way the property is owned. This MontGuide describes in general three basic forms of property ownership typical to Montana families: sole ownership, joint tenancy, and tenancy in common.

Types of Property

There are two basic types of property - real and personal.

• Real property is land and whatever is erected, growing on or affixed to it.
  • Examples orf real property include fences, buildings, water systems, mineral deposits, and standing uncut timber.
• Personal property refers to assests whose ownership arises either out of physical possession of the property, or as the results of a document showing ownership.

Read full MontGuide on Property Ownership: Estate Planning (PDF)