Education

died · Montana · House May 22, 2025

HB 451: Revise tax increment financing districts to exclude debt service and certain school levies

HB 451 revises how tax increment financing (TIF) is calculated for newly established targeted economic development districts and urban renewal areas. For districts created after the bill's effective date, it excludes several specific mill levies from the tax increment calculation. These exclusions include certain university system mills, a portion of elementary, high school, and state equalization mills, new voter-approved levies, and mills for general obligation bond debt service. This means that a larger share of the new property tax revenue generated in these areas would directly go to the affected taxing jurisdictions, rather than into the TIF fund.

Topics ✗ Budget & TaxesOpposes Budget & TaxesExcludes school levies and debt service from TIF calculations, reducing available revenue for economic development districts.95% confidence ✗ EducationOpposes EducationExcludes school levies from TIF calculations, reducing potential school funding streams by removing these revenues from tax increment calculations.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Business Taxes Debt & Bonds Tax Incentives

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introduced · Montana · Legislature Mar 30, 2025

LC 3297: Provide a general statewide sales tax to replace school property taxes

This bill proposes replacing school property taxes with a statewide sales tax. It would create a general sales tax across Montana, with all revenue directed to the School Equalization and Property Tax Reduction Account to fund public schools. The bill repeals existing property tax mill levies for schools and allows certain sales tax exemptions while requiring out-of-state retailers to collect the tax. Homeowners would no longer pay school property taxes, and schools would receive funding through this new sales tax system instead of local property levies.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesBill replaces property taxes with statewide sales tax to fund schools via dedicated account, directly advancing school finance through tax structure reform and revenue redirection.95% confidence ✓ EducationSupports EducationBill redirects all sales tax revenue to fund public schools via School Equalization Account, replacing property taxes without reducing school funding, directly supporting education finance.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Business Taxes Sales Tax State Budget School Funding

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died · Montana · House May 20, 2025

HB 382: Establish the specie legal tender act

The provided bill text, identified as Senate Bill 382, focuses on revising laws related to immunization exemptions, which differs from the title "Establish the specie legal tender act" for HB 382. Based on the provided text, this bill mandates that various entities, including state agencies, schools, child care facilities, and licensed health care providers, must accept religious or informed consent exemptions for required immunizations, injections, or medications for employment or attendance. It establishes that denying such an exemption is an unlawful discriminatory practice. Non-compliant entities could face a loss of state funding, and individuals denied an exemption may file complaints and seek compensatory damages. The bill also clarifies and strengthens the existing provisions for religious, medical, and informed consent exemptions for school attendance.

Topics ✗ EducationOpposes EducationBill mandates acceptance of immunization exemptions for school attendance, weakening health standards required for educational environments.85% confidence ✗ HealthcareOpposes HealthcareBill mandates exemptions for immunizations in healthcare settings, weakening mandatory vaccination requirements and public health initiatives.85% confidence

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died · Montana · House May 20, 2025

HB 771: Revise university system laws to remove barriers to freshmen living off campus

HB 771 aimed to revise university housing policies for the Montana University System. It would have prevented universities from requiring students to live on campus if they live with an immediate family member whose principal residence is within a one-hour drive of the campus. Students could be required to submit a form confirming their off-campus residence with a parent, guardian, grandparent, aunt/uncle, or adult sibling. Universities would have had two business days to approve or deny such requests, provided the student met the specified conditions.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationRemoves housing barrier for university students, expanding access to higher education within Montana University System.80% confidence

Sub-Topics Higher Education

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died · Montana · House May 20, 2025

HB 385: Establishing the school mental health promotion pilot program

HB 385 proposed establishing the School Mental Health Promotion Pilot Program, administered by the Office of Public Instruction. This program would have provided grants to Montana school districts to implement innovative, student-led, and locally determined initiatives aimed at improving student mental health. Districts applying for grants would have needed to demonstrate specific needs, broad community support in their application development, and plans for mental health promotion activities and program evaluation. The bill proposed annual grants ranging from $10,000 to $50,000 for a two-year period, with $250,000 appropriated annually from the general fund. The program was set to terminate on June 30, 2029.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesFunds school mental health pilot program through grants, directly addressing appropriations in state budget allocation.90% confidence ✓ EducationSupports EducationProvides grants for school mental health programs, enhancing student well-being and support services within K-12 education.95% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill allocates grants to school districts for student mental health promotion initiatives, directly advancing mental health services through funding and program implementation.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Student Health

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died · Montana · Senate May 23, 2025

SB 94: Generally revise public sector unions law

SB 94 prohibits Montana public employers from using public funds or resources for labor organization activities, directly affecting public sector workers like teachers and school staff. It bans contributions of public money to unions or paid leave for union work, but allows unpaid time off for such activities and permits using accrued personal leave under specific conditions. The bill requires unions to cover costs for paid leave used in union activities through annual invoices to public employers and mandates reporting on time spent on union-related work. These changes aim to limit public funding for union operations while establishing clear administrative procedures.

Topics ✗ EducationOpposes EducationRestricts public funding for teacher unions, limiting their ability to advocate for educator benefits and resources, directly impacting K-12 education support.85% confidence ✗ Labor & EmploymentOpposes Labor & EmploymentProhibits public funds for union activities, requiring unions to cover costs, weakening collective bargaining support for public sector workers.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Collective Bargaining Paid Leave

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introduced · Montana · Legislature Mar 26, 2025

LC 1975: Establish a behavioral health trust fund

This bill creates the Montana Behavioral Health Trust Fund to provide dedicated funding for mental health and substance use services. It establishes a seven-member board (appointed by the governor, legislative leaders, and tribal representatives) to manage the fund, which receives quarterly interest from a permanent endowment (preserving the principal). Funds will support specific services like school-based mental health programs, crisis care, counselors in homeless shelters, transitional housing, and facility expansions - directly benefiting community organizations and public health services. The bill mandates that funds cannot replace existing state funding and requires the board to develop a state plan and monitor program effectiveness.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesCreates dedicated funding via trust fund for mental health services, aligns with appropriations subject and supports public service funding.95% confidence ✓ EducationSupports EducationFunds school-based mental health programs, directly supporting student well-being and access to educational services within K-12 schools.95% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareCreates dedicated funding via trust fund for mental health/substance use services, supporting access through school programs, crisis care, and shelter counselors.95% confidence ✓ HousingSupports HousingFunds counselors in homeless shelters and transitional housing, directly supporting housing stability for vulnerable populations through mental health services.85% confidence

Sub-Topics Mental Health Public Health Homelessness

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introduced · Montana · Legislature Mar 25, 2025

LC 958: Authorize transfers and other necessary measure to implement HB 2 section E

This bill (LC 958) authorizes a specific transfer of funds between two state education accounts to prevent funding cuts for public schools. It directs the state treasurer to move excess money from the School Facility and Technology Account to the School Major Maintenance Aid Account if the first account has sufficient funds to cover debt service without proration (funding cuts) and transferring funds would avoid proration in the second account. This directly affects Montana public schools that rely on these state funding streams for facility maintenance and technology. The provision ensures schools receive full funding by strategically reallocating existing resources within the state budget structure.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesPrevents school funding cuts by transferring excess funds between education accounts, maintaining current appropriations without new taxes or defunding.95% confidence ✓ EducationSupports EducationPrevents funding cuts for public schools by transferring excess funds between education accounts to avoid proration, directly protecting school funding.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Debt & Bonds

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introduced · Montana · Legislature Apr 14, 2025

LC 2785: Request interim study on increasing impact of school counselors

This joint resolution (LC 2785) requests an interim study to examine how Montana can better utilize school counselors to improve student outcomes. It directs the Legislative Council to form a committee to investigate counselor shortages, current student-counselor ratios, and effective practices used in other states. The committee must collaborate with school counselors, the Board of Public Education, and advocacy groups, and report findings to the 70th Legislature by September 2026. The study focuses on strengthening school counseling programs without making immediate policy changes.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationRequests study to improve school counselor utilization and student outcomes, directly addressing educational support needs through enhanced counselor services and ratios.85% confidence

Sub-Topics Student Health

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died · Montana · Legislature May 20, 2025

LC 1288: Remove option for day-care providers to not enroll children with vaccine exemptions

This bill (LC 1288) removes the ability of family day-care, group day-care, and registered family/friend/neighbor (FFN) providers in Montana to refuse enrollment to children with medical or religious vaccine exemptions. It directly affects day-care providers and children whose families hold such exemptions. The bill amends state regulations (ARM 37.95.805) to require providers to enroll all children regardless of exemption status, eliminating their current option to decline enrollment. The change applies to all providers covered under the regulation, with a $500 appropriation to notify providers of the amendment.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationBill removes barrier to day-care enrollment for children with vaccine exemptions, expanding early educational access. Day-care is part of the broader educational access system covered under the topic.85% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill mandates day-care enrollment of all children regardless of vaccine exemptions, advancing public health initiatives by promoting community immunity and removing barriers to childcare access.95% confidence

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