For Immediate Release: August 13, 2026
(Lyn Hellegaard) – Raising a child in Missoula now costs families $32,400 a year.
I didn't need a study to tell me that. I hear it from parents at the grocery store, at church, and at the door when I'm out talking to voters.
But now there's a number behind what everyone already feels.
That figure comes from the MIT Living Wage Calculator, the same public data source behind a national study on the cost of raising kids in America's largest cities.
Missoula wasn't part of the original city-by-city breakdown, but the same public data lets us calculate the exact same number for our town.
When you add Missoula into that list, it ranks 13th highest out of 49 cities nationwide, and it lands inside the top 25 most expensive cities in the country for raising a child.
Thirteenth. Higher than New York City. Higher than Los Angeles. Higher than Chicago. Higher than Washington, D.C.
A city of roughly 75,000 people costs more to raise a child in than some of the largest metros in America.
That matters, because a recent analysis found that 24 of those top 25 cities are run by Democrats. The lone exception, Riverside, California, isn't run by a Republican either. Its mayor is formally nonpartisan.
Missoula fits the same profile as the other 24.
That's not a coincidence. It's a pattern, and Missoula families are living inside it at position 13, ahead of cities like New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Washington, D.C.
So where does the $32,400 actually go?
- Childcare is the single biggest driver, adding $13,737 a year for a Missoula family with one child.
- Housing adds another $3,087.
- Transportation costs $2,683 more.
- Medical expenses climb by $2,650.
- Food costs an extra $1,976.
Those five categories alone account for roughly $24,100 of the increase. The rest, about $8,300, comes from two places people often overlook.
Roughly $5,100 of it is higher taxes families owe on the additional income they need just to keep up.
The remainder comes from added civic and miscellaneous costs, the kind of fees and assessments that pile up quietly until you add them together.
That tax piece matters, because it's not an accident either. It's a choice legislators make, one vote at a time.
My opponent, Mark Thane, has voted to raise taxes 13 times in the legislature.
HB 212. HB 337. HB 231. HB 848. HB 405. HB 451. HB 512. HB 696. SB 117. SB 121. SB 542. SB 143. HJ 17.
Every one of those votes made it a little harder for a Missoula family to hold onto what they earn.
I've signed the Taxpayer Protection Pledge. Mark Thane won't.
That's not a talking point. It's a direct answer to the question every family raising a kid in this city should be asking right now: Will the person representing me in Helena make this easier, or harder?
Because here's what's really happening.
City hall sets the tone with permitting costs, housing policy, and local fees. The legislature sets the tone with tax policy that either eases the burden or piles onto it.
When both layers of government keep pulling in the same direction, families are the ones who pay for it, year after year, budget after budget.
Missoula families are already absorbing costs that rival some of the priciest cities in the country. They're doing it while working full-time, both parents, just to cover the basics of raising one child.
They don't need another legislator who adds to that load. They need one who'll push back against it.
That's the choice in House District 89 this November.
I'm running because I believe Missoula families deserve a legislator who makes this city more affordable, not less.
Mark Thane's record speaks for itself. So does mine.
Lyn Hellegaard is the Republican candidate for Montana House District 89. The opinions expressed by contributors are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Nevada News & Views. Digital technology may have been used in the research, writing, or production of this article. Please verify information and consult additional sources as needed.
