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Montana - The Missoula Police Department's list of must-haves for the Hells Angels visit does include some pepper spray, according to the department's budget for the rally.

But Police Chief Mark Muir said Thursday that's not because law enforcement officers are stocking up on it, or planning to blast anyone during the summer motorcycle rally.

"If we were forced into using chemical munitions, I would be very disappointed," Muir said. * Also, officers regularly carry pepper spray, he said. At the same time, Muir said the department learned a few things in 2000.

That summer, the motorcycle gang came to town, but law enforcement officers ended up tangling with citizens instead, and they used pepper spray. Muir said if they have to spray again, officers likely will stay away from painful pepper spray and use tear gas instead.

"It's not getting on your skin, and if you just turn around and walk out of it, your symptoms are completely gone," Muir said.

The police requested $139,371 to manage the club's USA Run in Missoula from July 30 to Aug. 3, according to a department budget request form. Projected expenses include personnel time, operating equipment, travel and other expenses.

Muir said keeping the community safe comes at a cost when a group with a reputation for violence is visiting. But he said it's also important to note that eight years after the first visit, police are actually budgeting to spend less money. They spent $142,220 in 2000, according to the budget.

This year, the bulk of the money is going toward overtime, according to the request form. That's roughly $63,000 and it goes to pay both Missoula officers and those coming in from elsewhere in Montana.

Muir said the department is staffing up some, but it won't use law enforcement from Utah as it did eight years ago. People screamed and cussed at them, calling them "Mormon Nazis," and created tension on the streets, he said.

Also, many people complained about having officers from out of state patrolling Missoula. So Muir said the department is getting help from other Montanans instead. It's simpler, and other Montana officers have an interest in keeping Big Sky communities safe.

"We want them to have the same stake in it that we do," he said.

The other departments pay their employees' regular hours, and Missoula pays their overtime in addition its own.

Missoula also pays for travel and food for visiting authorities, and that's the second biggest chunk of change. It's $35,000.

The next most costly item is "professional services," and that's budgeted at $17,000. It includes things such as rural fire overtime, extra trash pickup and vehicle lettering.

Then, fourth on the list of top expenditures, is operating supplies. That's $15,000.

While it includes pepper spray, Muir said the list of supplies carried over from 2000, and he isn't sure if they even need to buy more. At any rate, he said they're not stockpiling chemical munitions.

Other operating supplies include barricade tape, beanbag rounds and batons, safety goggles, office supplies, ink cartridges, one-time cameras, power supplies, face shields, batteries, T-shirts, tarps, trash bags and water.

The other costs amount to roughly $10,000 altogether and include things such as extra fuel, phone charges and rental fees for vans.

Muir said the overall lower budget means the department is improving efficiency, but he'd also like to spend some of the money another way.

"If we could just pay them to go somewhere else, that would be great," Muir said.

He knows a payoff wouldn't work, though. The group would just threaten another visit next year, and plus, the department isn't in the business of controlling who rallies in Missoula anyway, he said.

A 1996 Hells Angels gathering in Colorado turned violent, but last time the outlaws rolled into Missoula, they did so peacefully, according to Missoulian archives. Some received citations for traffic violations.

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