Terms Used In Montana Code > Title 2 > Chapter 15 - Executive Branch Officers and Agencies

• Access: means the ability to receive, use, and manipulate data and operate controls included in information technology. See Montana Code 18-5-602
• account: means an account within the trust established in 20-7-1710 in which a payment under 20-7-1709 is deposited on behalf of a qualified student for the purpose of reimbursement for the purchase of allowable educational resources pursuant to 20-7-1704 for qualified students. See Montana Code 20-7-1703
• account balance: means the sum of all the amounts deducted from the compensation of a member or paid by a member and credited to the member's individual account in the annuity savings account, together with interest, minus any amount deducted for correction of errors and the aggregate amount of all retirement benefit payments and refunds of accumulated contributions paid to or on behalf of the member. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Accredited: means a school that is accredited by the board of public education pursuant to 20-7-102. See Montana Code 20-26-603
• Adjourn: A motion to adjourn a legislative chamber or a committee, if passed, ends that day's session.
• Adult basic education: means instruction in basic skills, such as reading, writing, arithmetic, and other skills required to function in society, offered to persons 16 years of age or older who are not regularly enrolled, full-time pupils for the purposes of ANB computation. See Montana Code 20-7-701
• Adult education: means the instruction of persons 16 years of age or older who are not regularly enrolled, full-time pupils for the purposes of ANB computation and the provision of advanced opportunities to qualified pupils pursuant to Title 20, chapter 7, part 15. See Montana Code 20-7-701
• Advanced opportunity: means any course, exam, or experiential, online, or other learning opportunity that is incorporated in a district's advanced opportunity plan and that is designed to advance each qualifying pupil's opportunity for postsecondary career and educational success. See Montana Code 20-7-1503
• Advanced opportunity aid: means , for each fiscal year:

  (a)for an elementary district, 4. See Montana Code 20-7-1503

• Advanced opportunity plan: means a plan adopted by a board of trustees of a district that provides advanced opportunities for the pupils of the district. See Montana Code 20-7-1503
• Advice and consent: Under the Constitution, presidential nominations for executive and judicial posts take effect only when confirmed by the Senate, and international treaties become effective only when the Senate approves them by a two-thirds vote.
• Advisory capacity: means furnishing advice, gathering information, making recommendations, and performing other activities that may be necessary to comply with federal funding requirements and does not mean administering a program or function or setting policy. See Montana Code 2-15-102
• Advisory committee: means the Montana university system interunit benefits advisory committee established in 2-15-1530. See Montana Code 20-25-1302
• Affected property owner: means a person or entity whose real property will be physically affected by the activity of an applicant or whose real property is proposed for incorporation into a historic district proposed as eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. See Montana Code 22-3-421
• Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
• Affidavit: means a sworn written declaration made before an officer authorized to administer oaths or an unsworn written declaration made under penalty of perjury as provided in 1-6-105. See Montana Code 1-1-203
• Affirmed: In the practice of the appellate courts, the decree or order is declared valid and will stand as rendered in the lower court.
• Agency: means the entity designated by the board to administer student loans. See Montana Code 20-26-1101
• Agency: means any department, bureau, commission, board, council, or political subdivision of the state of Montana, except an entity that is a cemetery board or has authority over a cemetery. See Montana Code 22-3-903
• Agency: means any board, bureau, commission, department, authority, or officer of the state or local government authorized by law to make rules, determine contested cases, or enter into contracts except:

  (a)the legislature and any branch, committee, or officer thereof;

  (b)the judicial branches and any committee or officer thereof;

  (c)the governor, except that an agency is not exempt because the governor has been designated as a member thereof; or

  (d)the state military establishment and agencies concerned with civil defense and recovery from hostile attack. See Montana Code 2-3-102

• Agency: means any board, bureau, commission, department, authority, or officer of the executive branch of state government authorized or required by law to make rules. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• Agency: means each state office, department, board, commission, council, committee, unit of the university system, or other entity or instrumentality of the executive branch, office of the legislative branch, or office of the judicial branch of state government. See Montana Code 18-7-302
• Agency: means an office, position, commission, committee, board, department, council, division, bureau, section, or any other entity or instrumentality of the executive branch of state government. See Montana Code 2-15-102
• Agency action: means the whole or a part of the adoption of an agency rule, the issuance of a license or order, the award of a contract, or the equivalent or denial thereof. See Montana Code 2-3-102
• Aggregate gross income: means the sum total of the gross income of all video gambling machines owned by a licensed machine owner. See Montana Code 23-5-602
• Aggregate hours: means the hours of pupil instruction for which a school course or program is offered or for which a pupil is enrolled. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Agricultural experiment station: means the agricultural experiment station established at Montana state university-Bozeman. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Allegation: something that someone says happened.
• Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
• Amortization: Paying off a loan by regular installments.
• ANB: means the average number of regularly enrolled, full-time pupils physically attending a school of the district or an offsite instructional setting or receiving remote instruction from the public schools of a district. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Annuity: A periodic (usually annual) payment of a fixed sum of money for either the life of the recipient or for a fixed number of years. A series of payments under a contract from an insurance company, a trust company, or an individual. Annuity payments are made at regular intervals over a period of more than one full year.
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• Antiquities permit: means the permit granted for excavation, removal, or restoration of heritage properties or paleontological remains provided for in 22-3-432. See Montana Code 22-3-421
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Appellate: About appeals; an appellate court has the power to review the judgement of another lower court or tribunal.
• Applicant: means a person who applies to a governmental entity, including a federal, state, or local governmental entity, for a permit, license, or lease on property owned by the governmental entity. See Montana Code 22-3-421
• Applicant: means a group of residents of the located school district or county of the located school district or the local school board of the located school district that submits a proposal for a public charter school to the board of public education. See Montana Code 20-6-803
• Applicant: means a person or group that submits a proposal for a community choice school to an authorizer. See Montana Code 20-11-103
• Appraisal: A determination of property value.
• Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
• Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
• Art dealer: means a person engaged in the business of selling works of fine art, other than a person exclusively engaged in the business of selling goods at public auction. See Montana Code 22-2-501
• Artist: means a practitioner in the visual arts generally recognized by the practitioner's peers or critics as a professional who produces works of art. See Montana Code 22-2-403
• Artist: means a person who creates a work of fine art or, if the person is deceased, the person's heir, devisee, or personal representative. See Montana Code 22-2-501
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• Associated equipment: means all proprietary devices, machines, or parts used in the manufacture or maintenance of a video gambling machine, including but not limited to integrated circuit chips, printed wired assembly, printed wired boards, printing mechanisms, video display monitors, metering devices, and cabinetry. See Montana Code 23-5-602
• At-risk student: means any student who is affected by environmental conditions that negatively impact the student's educational performance or threaten a student's likelihood of promotion or graduation. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
• Attorney-in-fact: A person who, acting as an agent, is given written authorization by another person to transact business for him (her) out of court.
• Authorizer: means the commission or a local school board approved as an authorizer by the commission. See Montana Code 20-11-103
• Automated accounting and reporting system: means a system that, at a minimum, is used to electronically report video gambling machine accounting data to the state. See Montana Code 23-5-602
• Bail: Security given for the release of a criminal defendant or witness from legal custody (usually in the form of money) to secure his/her appearance on the day and time appointed.
• Bankruptcy: Refers to statutes and judicial proceedings involving persons or businesses that cannot pay their debts and seek the assistance of the court in getting a fresh start. Under the protection of the bankruptcy court, debtors may discharge their debts, perhaps by paying a portion of each debt. Bankruptcy judges preside over these proceedings.
• BASE: means base amount for school equity. See Montana Code 20-9-306
• BASE aid: means :

  (a)direct state aid for 44. See Montana Code 20-9-306

• BASE budget: means the minimum general fund budget of a district, which includes 80% of the basic entitlement, 80% of the total per-ANB entitlement, 100% of the total quality educator payment, 100% of the total at-risk student payment, 100% of the total Indian education for all payment, 100% of the total American Indian achievement gap payment, 100% of the total data-for-achievement payment, and 140% of the special education allowable cost payment. See Montana Code 20-9-306
• BASE budget levy: means the district levy in support of the BASE budget of a district, which may be supplemented by guaranteed tax base aid if the district is eligible under the provisions of 20-9-366 through 20-9-369. See Montana Code 20-9-306
• BASE funding program: means the state program for the equitable distribution of the state's share of the cost of Montana's basic system of public elementary schools and high schools, through county equalization aid as provided in 20-9-331 and 20-9-333 and state equalization aid as provided in 20-9-343, in support of the BASE budgets of districts and special education allowable cost payments as provided in 20-9-321. See Montana Code 20-9-306
• Baseline: Projection of the receipts, outlays, and other budget amounts that would ensue in the future without any change in existing policy. Baseline projections are used to gauge the extent to which proposed legislation, if enacted into law, would alter current spending and revenue levels.
• Basic entitlement: means :

  (a)for each high school district:

  (i)$343,483 for fiscal year 2024 and $353,787 for each succeeding fiscal year for school districts with an ANB of 800 or fewer; and

  (ii)$343,483 for fiscal year 2024 and $353,787 for each succeeding fiscal year for school districts with an ANB of more than 800, plus $17,175 for fiscal year 2024 and $17,690 for each succeeding fiscal year for each additional 80 ANB over 800;

  (b)for each elementary school district or K-12 district elementary program without an approved and accredited junior high school, 7th and 8th grade program, or middle school:

  (i)$57,246 for fiscal year 2024 and $58,963 for each succeeding fiscal year for school districts or K-12 district elementary programs with an ANB of 250 or fewer; and

  (ii)$57,246 for fiscal year 2024 and $58,963 for each succeeding fiscal year for school districts or K-12 district elementary programs with an ANB of more than 250, plus $2,863 for fiscal year 2024 and $2,949 for each succeeding fiscal year for each additional 25 ANB over 250;

  (c)for each elementary school district or K-12 district elementary program with an approved and accredited junior high school, 7th and 8th grade program, or middle school:

  (i)for the district's kindergarten through grade 6 elementary program:

  (A)$57,246 for fiscal year 2024 and $58,963 for each succeeding fiscal year for school districts or K-12 district elementary programs with an ANB of 250 or fewer; and

  (B)$57,246 for fiscal year 2024 and $58,963 for each succeeding fiscal year for school districts or K-12 district elementary programs with an ANB of more than 250, plus $2,863 for fiscal year 2024 and $2,949 for each succeeding fiscal year for each additional 25 ANB over 250; and

  (ii)for the district's approved and accredited junior high school, 7th and 8th grade programs, or middle school:

  (A)$114,493 for fiscal year 2024 and $117,928 for each succeeding fiscal year for school districts or K-12 district elementary programs with combined grades 7 and 8 with an ANB of 450 or fewer; and

  (B)$114,493 for fiscal year 2024 and $117,928 for each succeeding fiscal year for school districts or K-12 district elementary programs with combined grades 7 and 8 with an ANB of more than 450, plus $5,724 for fiscal year 2024 and $5,896 for each succeeding fiscal year for each additional 45 ANB over 450. See Montana Code 20-9-306

• Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. ^{Source: OCC}
• Beneficiary designation: means the process that the retirement system prescribes pursuant to this chapter by which a person authorized by law designates one or more beneficiaries. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Benefit recipient: means a retired member, a joint annuitant, or a beneficiary who is receiving a retirement allowance. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Bequest: Property gifted by will.
• bet: means the staking or risking by a person of something of value upon an agreement or understanding that the person or another person will receive something of value in the event of a certain outcome. See Montana Code 23-7-103
• Blind or visually impaired: means an individual who has:

  (a)a visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye with correcting lenses or has a limited field of vision so that the widest diameter of the visual field subtends an angle no greater than 20 degrees;

  (b)a medically indicated expectation of visual deterioration; or

  (c)a medically diagnosed limitation in visual functioning that restricts the individual's ability to read and write standard print at levels expected of individuals of comparable ability. See Montana Code 18-5-602

• Blind person: means a person whose central visual acuity does not exceed 20/200 in the better eye with correcting lenses or whose visual acuity is greater than 20/200 but is accompanied by a limitation in the field of vision in the better eye to such a degree that the widest diameter of the visual field subtends an angle that is not greater than 20 degrees as determined by an ophthalmologist or a physician skilled in diseases of the eye. See Montana Code 18-5-402
• Blind vendor: means a person certified as a blind person for the purpose of this part and who is operating a vending facility administered by the department. See Montana Code 18-5-402
• Board: means the board of regents of higher education. See Montana Code 20-26-1101
• Board: means the burial preservation board established in 22-3-804. See Montana Code 22-3-803
• Board: means the burial preservation board established in 22-3-804. See Montana Code 22-3-903
• Board: means the state parks and recreation board established in 2-15-3406. See Montana Code 23-2-403
• board: means the retirement system's governing board provided for in 2-15-1010. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Board: means the education and workforce data governing board established in 20-7-138. See Montana Code 20-7-137
• Board: means the board of regents of higher education created by Article X, section 9(2), of the Montana constitution. See Montana Code 20-26-603
• Board of public education: means the board created by Article X, section 9, subsection (3), of the Montana constitution and 2-15-1507. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Board of public education: means the board created by Article X, section 9(3), of the Montana constitution and 2-15-1507. See Montana Code 20-6-803
• Board of regents: means the board of regents of higher education created by Article X, section 9, subsection (2), of the Montana constitution and 2-15-1505. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Bonus game: means a game other than a bingo, poker, keno, or video line game that is offered as a prize for playing and achieving a defined outcome by playing a bingo, poker, keno, or video line game. See Montana Code 23-5-602
• Budget authority: Authority provided by law to enter into obligations that will result in outlays of Federal funds. Budget authority may be classified by the period of availability (one-year, multiyear, no-year), by the timing of congressional action (current or permanent), or by the manner of determining the amount available (definite or indefinite).
• Budget unit: means the unit for which the ANB of a district is calculated separately pursuant to 20-9-311. See Montana Code 20-9-306
• budgeted fund: means any fund for which a budget must be adopted in order to expend money from the fund. See Montana Code 20-9-201
• Burial material: means any item found at the burial site or with the human skeletal remains and directly associated with the burial or burial site. See Montana Code 22-3-803
• Burial site: means , except for cemeteries and graveyards protected under existing state law, any natural or prepared physical location, whether originally below, on, or above the surface of the earth, into which human remains were intentionally deposited as a part of the death rites or ceremonies of a culture. See Montana Code 22-3-803
• Burial site: has the meaning provided in 22-3-803. See Montana Code 22-3-903
• Bus route: means a route approved by the board of trustees of a school district and by the county transportation committee. See Montana Code 20-10-101
• Calcutta pool: means a form of auction pool conducted by an organization authorized by the department. See Montana Code 23-5-221
• Career coach: means a person who, pursuant to 20-7-335, provides career technical education or K-12 career and vocational/technical education postsecondary options to pupils in a district. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Case law: The law as laid down in cases that have been decided in the decisions of the courts.
• Cave: means any geologically formed void or cavity beneath the surface of the earth or within a cliff or ledge, including but not limited to natural subsurface water and drainage systems, whether or not a natural entrance is present. See Montana Code 23-2-902
• Cave life: means any life form that occurs in, uses, visits, or inhabits a cave. See Montana Code 23-2-902
• Certificate of number: means the certificate issued by the department of justice, an authorized agent, as defined in 61-1-101, or a county treasurer to the owner of a motorboat or sailboat, assigning the motorboat or sailboat an identifying number and containing other information as required by the department of justice. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Certificate of title: means the document issued by the department of justice as prima facie evidence of ownership. See Montana Code 23-2-601
• Chambers: A judge's office.
• Charter contract: means a fixed-term, renewable contract between a governing board of a public charter school and the board of public education that outlines the roles, powers, responsibilities, and performance expectations for each party to the contract. See Montana Code 20-6-803
• Charter contract: means a fixed-term, renewable contract between a community choice school and an authorizer that outlines the roles, powers, responsibilities, and performance expectations for each party to the contract. See Montana Code 20-11-103
• choice school: means a public school that:

  (a)has autonomy over decisions, including but not limited to matters concerning finance, board governance, personnel, scheduling, curriculum, and instruction;

  (b)is governed by a governing board;

  (c)is established and operated under the terms of a charter contract between the school's governing board and its authorizer;

  (d)is a school in which parents choose to enroll their children;

  (e)is a school that admits students based on capacity and then on the basis of a lottery if more students apply for admission than can be accommodated;

  (f)provides a program of education that may include any or all grades from kindergarten through grade 12 and vocational education programs;

  (g)operates in pursuit of a specific set of educational objectives as defined in its charter contract;

  (h)operates under the oversight of its authorizer in accordance with its charter contract; and

  (i)establishes graduation requirements and has authority to award degrees and issue diplomas. See Montana Code 20-11-103

• Claimant: means a claimant for repatriation under 22-3-912 and includes a tribal group, lineal descendant, or next of kin. See Montana Code 22-3-903
• Clerk of court: An officer appointed by the court to work with the chief judge in overseeing the court's administration, especially to assist in managing the flow of cases through the court and to maintain court records.
• Commission: means the fish and wildlife commission established in 2-15-3402. See Montana Code 23-2-403
• Commission: means the state lottery and sports wagering commission created by 23-7-201. See Montana Code 23-7-103
• Commission: means the community choice school commission provided for in 20-11-106. See Montana Code 20-11-103
• Commissioner: means the commissioner of higher education created by Article X, section 9, subsection (2), of the Montana constitution and 2-15-1506. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Committee: means the executive committee of the board of trustees of the Montana historical society. See Montana Code 22-3-102
• committee: means an advisory committee established under 2-5-106 and authorized under 2-4-304 to consider and discuss issues for the purpose of reaching a consensus in the development of a proposed rule. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• Committee membership: Legislators are assigned to specific committees by their party. Seniority, regional balance, and political philosophy are the most prominent factors in the committee assignment process.
• Committee on committees: Committees formed in each party conference and responsible for nominating the party's Senators to committee membership and committee leadership positions. Nominations are subject to approval by the full party conference and to a formal vote of the Senate.
• Common law: The legal system that originated in England and is now in use in the United States. It is based on judicial decisions rather than legislative action.
• community college district: means a body corporate and a subdivision of the state of Montana organized under a single board of trustees for the purpose of providing community college instruction open to all people, subject to uniform regulations as determined by the trustees. See Montana Code 20-15-101
• Compensation: means remuneration paid out of funds controlled by an employer in payment for the member's services or for time during which the member is excused from work because of a holiday or because the member has taken compensatory leave, sick leave, annual leave, banked holiday time, or a leave of absence before any pretax deductions allowed by state or federal law are made. See Montana Code 19-3-108
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Consensus: means unanimous concurrence among the interests represented on a negotiated rulemaking committee established under 2-5-106 unless the committee agrees upon another specified definition. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• Consignment: means that no title to, estate in, or right to possession of fine art superior to that of the consignor vests in the consignee, notwithstanding the consignee's power or authority to transfer and convey to a third person all of the right, title, and interest of the consignor in and to such fine art. See Montana Code 22-2-501
• Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Contracting employer: means any political subdivision or governmental entity that has contracted to come into the system under this chapter. See Montana Code 19-3-108
• Contributing agencies: means the following state agencies that gather and maintain education and workforce data, serve on the board, and are subject to the policies developed by the board pursuant to 20-7-138:

  (a)the office of public instruction;

  (b)the office of the commissioner of higher education; and

  (c)the department of labor and industry. See Montana Code 20-7-137

• Control: means having a legal interest in human skeletal remains or funerary objects sufficient to lawfully permit an agency or museum to treat the object as part of its collection for purposes of this part whether or not the human skeletal remains or funerary objects are in the physical custody of the agency or museum. See Montana Code 22-3-903
• Convener: means a person who impartially assists an agency in determining whether establishment of a negotiated rulemaking committee is feasible and appropriate for a particular rulemaking procedure. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• Counterclaim: A claim that a defendant makes against a plaintiff.
• County superintendent: means the county government official who is the school officer of the county. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Court reporter: A person who makes a word-for-word record of what is said in court and produces a transcript of the proceedings upon request.
• Cultural affiliation: means the existence of a shared group identity that can reasonably be traced historically or anthropologically between a tribal group and an identifiable earlier tribe. See Montana Code 22-3-903
• Customary: means according to usage. See Montana Code 1-1-206
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Data: means any information stored on information technology resources. See Montana Code 2-15-102
• dbA: means sound pressure level measured on the "A" weight scale in decibels. See Montana Code 23-2-601
• Decedent: A deceased person.
• Declaration of emergency: means a declaration by a board of trustees that an unforeseen emergency has occurred in the district. See Montana Code 20-9-802
• Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Defined benefit plan: means the plan within the public employees' retirement system established in 19-3-103 that is not the defined contribution plan. See Montana Code 19-3-108
• Department: means the department of fish, wildlife, and parks provided for in 2-15-3401. See Montana Code 23-2-403
• Department: means the department of fish, wildlife, and parks of the state of Montana. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Department: means the department of fish, wildlife, and parks of the state of Montana. See Montana Code 23-2-601
• Department: means the department of public health and human services. See Montana Code 18-5-402
• Department: means the department of administration provided for in Title 2, chapter 15, part 10. See Montana Code 18-7-302
• Department: means a principal functional and administrative entity that:

  (a)is created by this chapter within the executive branch of state government;

  (b)is one of the 20 principal departments permitted under the constitution; and

  (c)includes its units. See Montana Code 2-15-102

• Department head: means a director, commission, board, commissioner, or constitutional officer in charge of a department created by this chapter. See Montana Code 2-15-102
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• Deposition: An oral statement made before an officer authorized by law to administer oaths. Such statements are often taken to examine potential witnesses, to obtain discovery, or to be used later in trial.
• Deposition: means a written declaration under oath or affirmation, made upon notice to the adverse party for the purpose of enabling the adverse party to attend and cross-examine. See Montana Code 1-1-202
• Depository library: means a library contracted by the state library under 22-1-212(2) to provide the general public access to state publications. See Montana Code 22-1-211
• Designated beneficiary: means one or more primary beneficiaries or contingent beneficiaries designated pursuant to 19-20-1006. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Devise: To gift property by will.
• Direct state aid: means 44. See Montana Code 20-9-306
• Director: means a department head specifically referred to as a director in this chapter and does not mean a commission, board, commissioner, or constitutional officer. See Montana Code 2-15-102
• Director: means the director appointed by the governor under 23-7-210 to administer and manage the state lottery. See Montana Code 23-7-103
• Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
• Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. ^Source:
• district: means the territory, regardless of county boundaries, organized under the provisions of this title to provide public educational services under the jurisdiction of the trustees prescribed by this title. See Montana Code 20-6-101
• District: means a school district as defined in 20-6-101. See Montana Code 20-7-1503
• District superintendent: means a person who holds a valid class 3 Montana teacher certificate with a superintendent's endorsement that has been issued by the superintendent of public instruction under the provisions of this title and the policies adopted by the board of public education and who has been employed by a district as a district superintendent. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
• Domicile: means a person's true, fixed, and permanent home and place of habitation. See Montana Code 20-25-501
• Donor: The person who makes a gift.
• Dower: A widow
• DROP: means the deferred retirement option plan established pursuant to this part. See Montana Code 19-6-1002
• DROP: means the deferred retirement option plan established pursuant to this part. See Montana Code 19-9-1202
• DROP account: means the member's accumulated monthly DROP accruals, plus interest. See Montana Code 19-6-1002
• DROP account: means the member's accumulated monthly DROP accruals, including any postretirement adjustments, plus interest. See Montana Code 19-9-1202
• DROP benefit: means the lump-sum benefit calculated and distributed as provided in this part. See Montana Code 19-6-1002
• DROP benefit: means the lump-sum benefit calculated and distributed as provided in this part. See Montana Code 19-9-1202
• DROP period: means the period of time that a member irrevocably elects to participate in the DROP subject to the provisions of 19-6-1004. See Montana Code 19-6-1002
• DROP period: means the period of time that a member irrevocably elects to participate in the DROP pursuant to 19-9-1204. See Montana Code 19-9-1202
• Earned compensation: means , except as limited by subsections (12)(b) and (12)(c) or by 19-20-715, remuneration paid for the service of a member out of funds controlled by an employer before any pretax deductions allowed under the Internal Revenue Code are deducted. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Education data: means data collected or reported at the student level that is included in a student's educational record, including but not limited to:

  (a)career and college readiness indicators;

  (b)state and national assessment data;

  (c)course-taking and completion data in elementary, secondary, and postsecondary education;

  (d)elementary, secondary, and postsecondary grade point average data;

  (e)4-year, 5-year, and 6-year high school graduation rate data;

  (f)first to second year retainment data;

  (g)certificate, diploma, and degree attainment data;

  (h)college enrollment course-taking, credit, and contact hour accumulation data;

  (i)attendance and transferability data;

  (j)special education data;

  (k)remediation data; and

  (l)demographics data. See Montana Code 20-7-137

• Education service provider: means a for-profit education management organization, nonprofit education management organization, school design provider, or other partner entity with which a community choice school intends to contract for educational design, implementation, or comprehensive management. See Montana Code 20-11-103
• Educational program: means a set of educational offerings designed to meet the program area standards contained in the accreditation standards. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Electronic funds transfer: The transfer of money between accounts by consumer electronic systems-such as automated teller machines (ATMs) and electronic payment of bills-rather than by check or cash. (Wire transfers, checks, drafts, and paper instruments do not fall into this category.) ^{Source: OCC}
• Electronically captured data: means video gambling machine accounting information and records of video gambling machine events, in electronic form, that are automatically recorded and communicated to the department through an approved automated accounting and reporting system. See Montana Code 23-5-602
• Eligible child: means a child who is determined through the evaluation methodology selected by the board of public education pursuant to 20-7-1803 to be below a trajectory leading to reading proficiency at the end of 3rd grade. See Montana Code 20-7-1802
• Eligible district: means a school district encompassing or adjacent to an Indian reservation or a school district that includes one or more schools with an Indian population of 10% or greater. See Montana Code 20-7-1403
• Eligible educational institution: means any institution approved by the United States secretary of education as eligible to participate in the student loan program pursuant to Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended. See Montana Code 20-26-1101
• Eligible postsecondary institution: means an accredited postsecondary institution located in Montana. See Montana Code 20-7-1703
• Eligible transportee: means a public school pupil who:

  (a)is 5 years of age or older and has not reached the age of 21 on or before September 10 of the current school year or who is a preschool child with a disability between the ages of 3 and 6;

  (b)is a resident of the state of Montana;

  (c)regardless of district and county boundaries:

  (i)resides at least 3 miles, over the shortest practical route, from the nearest operating public elementary school or public high school, whichever the case may be; or

  (ii)has transportation identified as a related service in an individualized education program as developed and implemented in accordance with the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, 20 U. See Montana Code 20-10-101

• Employer: means the state of Montana, its university system or any of the colleges, schools, components, or units of the university system for the purposes of this chapter, or any contracting employer. See Montana Code 19-3-108
• Employer: means :

  (a)the state of Montana;

  (b)a public school district, as provided in 20-6-101 and 20-6-701;

  (c)the office of public instruction;

  (d)the board of public education;

  (e)an education cooperative;

  (f)the Montana school for the deaf and blind, as described in 20-8-101;

  (g)the Montana youth challenge program, as defined in 10-1-101;

  (h)a correctional facility, as defined in 41-5-103;

  (i)the Montana university system;

  (j)a community college; or

  (k)any other agency, political subdivision, or instrumentality of the state that employs a person who is designated a member of the retirement system pursuant to 19-20-302. See Montana Code 19-20-101

• Employer contributions: means payments to a pension trust fund pursuant to 19-3-316 from appropriations of the state of Montana and from contracting employers. See Montana Code 19-3-108
• Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
• Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• ESA student amount: means the sum of:

  (a)the data-for-achievement payment rate under 20-9-306;

  (b)the Indian education for all payment rate under 20-9-306;

  (c)the per-ANB amounts of the instructional block grant and related services block grant under 20-9-321; and

  (d)the applicable per-ANB maximum rate established in 20-9-306 for the student multiplied by the ratio of adopted general fund budget to maximum general fund budget in the prior year, rounded to the nearest one hundredth and not to exceed 1. See Montana Code 20-7-1703

• Escheat: Reversion of real or personal property to the state when 1) a person dies without leaving a will and has no heirs, or 2) when the property (such as a bank account) has been inactive for a certain period of time. ^{Source: OCC}
• Escrow: Money given to a third party to be held for payment until certain conditions are met.
• Evaluation methodology: means a research-based methodology, instrument, or assessment selected by the board of public education to determine, based on a child's age or grade level, whether the child is above, at, or below a developmental trajectory leading to reading proficiency on completion of 3rd grade. See Montana Code 20-7-1802
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Ex officio: Literally, by virtue of one's office.
• Executive branch: means the executive branch of state government referred to in Article III, section 1, and Article VI of the Montana constitution. See Montana Code 2-15-102
• Executor: A male person named in a will to carry out the decedent
• Extra duty service: means service in an educational services capacity that is not compensated as part of the normally assigned duties and functions of a school district teacher, administrator, or other employee but is regularly assigned to one or more school district teachers, administrators, or other employees as part of the regular operation of the school district's curricular and extracurricular programs. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Extradition: The formal process of delivering an accused or convicted person from authorities in one state to authorities in another state.
• Facilitator: means a person who impartially aids in the discussions and negotiations among the members of a negotiated rulemaking committee to develop a proposed rule. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• Fair market value: The price at which an asset would change hands in a transaction between a willing, informed buyer and a willing, informed seller.
• fantasy sports league: means a gambling activity conducted in the following manner:

  (1)A fantasy sports league consists of a limited number of persons or groups of persons who pay an entrance fee for membership in the league. See Montana Code 23-5-801

• federal impact aid basic support payment: means the annual impact aid revenue received by a district under 20 U. See Montana Code 20-9-406
• Federal property: means buildings or portions of buildings or other real property owned or leased by the federal government upon which the department may administer vending facilities by an agreement entered into under the authority of the federal Randolph-Sheppard Act, as amended. See Montana Code 18-5-402
• Federal Reserve System: The central bank of the United States. The Fed, as it is commonly called, regulates the U.S. monetary and financial system. The Federal Reserve System is composed of a central governmental agency in Washington, D.C. (the Board of Governors) and twelve regional Federal Reserve Banks in major cities throughout the United States. ^{Source: OCC}
• Female: means a member of the human species who, under normal development, has XX chromosomes and produces or would produce relatively large, relatively immobile gametes, or eggs, during her life cycle and has a reproductive and endocrine system oriented around the production of those gametes. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
• Fine art: means a painting, sculpture, drawing, work of graphic art (including an etching, lithograph, signed limited edition offset print, silk screen, or a work of graphic art of like nature), a work of calligraphy, photographs, original works in ceramics, wood, metals, glass, plastic, wax, stone, or leather, or a work in mixed media (including a collage, assemblage, or any combination of the art media mentioned in this subsection). See Montana Code 22-2-501
• Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
• Foreclosure: A legal process in which property that is collateral or security for a loan may be sold to help repay the loan when the loan is in default. ^{Source: OCC}
• Foreign country: means a government other than:

  (a)the United States;

  (b)a state, district, commonwealth, territory, or insular possession of the United States; or

  (c)any other government with regard to which the decision in this state as to whether to recognize a judgment of that government's courts is initially subject to determination under the full faith and credit clause of the United States constitution. See Montana Code 25-9-602

• Foreign-country judgment: means any judgment of a foreign country. See Montana Code 25-9-602
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Freestyle terrain: means terrain parks and terrain features, including but not limited to jumps, rails, fun boxes, half-pipes, quarter-pipes, and freestyle bump terrain, and any other constructed features. See Montana Code 23-2-702
• Full-time service: means service that is:

  (a)at least 180 days in a fiscal year;

  (b)at least 140 hours a month during at least 9 months in a fiscal year; or

  (c)at least 1,080 hours in a fiscal year under an alternative school calendar adopted by a school board and reported to the office of public instruction as required by 20-1-302. See Montana Code 19-20-101

• Function: means a duty, power, or program, exercised by or assigned to an agency, whether or not specifically provided for by law. See Montana Code 2-15-102
• fund: means a separate detailed account of receipts and expenditures for a specific purpose as authorized by law or by the superintendent of public instruction under the provisions of subsection (2). See Montana Code 20-9-201
• Funerary objects: means objects that, as part of a death rite or ceremony, are reasonably believed to have been placed with human skeletal remains at a specific burial site either at the time of death or later and which human skeletal remains are currently in the possession or control of an agency, museum, or person, either along with the human skeletal remains or that can be identified by a preponderance of the evidence to be related to specific known human skeletal remains not currently in the possession or control of the agency, museum, or person. See Montana Code 22-3-903
• Garnishment: Generally, garnishment is a court proceeding in which a creditor asks a court to order a third party who owes money to the debtor or otherwise holds assets belonging to the debtor to turn over to the creditor any of the debtor
• Gate: means a structure or device located to limit or prohibit access or entry to a cave. See Montana Code 23-2-902
• General obligation bonds: means bonds that pledge the full faith and credit and the taxing power of a school district. See Montana Code 20-9-408
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Gifted and talented children: means children of outstanding abilities who are capable of high performance and require differentiated educational programs beyond those normally offered in public schools in order to fully achieve their potential contribution to self and society. See Montana Code 20-7-901
• Governing board: means the elected board of trustees of a public charter school district exercising supervision and control over a charter school or the local school board that is a party to the charter contract with the board of public education and that exercises supervision and control over a charter school pursuant to the charter contract. See Montana Code 20-6-803
• Governing board: means an independent volunteer board of trustees of a community choice school that is a party to the charter contract with the authorizer. See Montana Code 20-11-103
• Gross income: means money put into a video gambling machine minus credits paid out in cash. See Montana Code 23-5-602
• Group benefits: means group hospitalization, health, medical, surgical, disability, life, and other related group benefits provided to employees and dependents of the Montana university system. See Montana Code 20-25-1302
• Guarantor: A party who agrees to be responsible for the payment of another party's debts should that party default. ^{Source: OCC}
• Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
• Habeas corpus: A writ that is usually used to bring a prisoner before the court to determine the legality of his imprisonment. It may also be used to bring a person in custody before the court to give testimony, or to be prosecuted.
• Hearsay: Statements by a witness who did not see or hear the incident in question but heard about it from someone else. Hearsay is usually not admissible as evidence in court.
• Heritage property: means any district, site, building, structure, or object located upon or beneath the earth or under water that is significant in American history, architecture, archaeology, or culture. See Montana Code 22-3-421
• Highest average compensation: means :

  (i)for a member hired prior to July 1, 2011, the highest average monthly compensation during any 36 consecutive months of membership service;

  (ii)for a member hired on or after July 1, 2011, the highest average monthly compensation during any 60 consecutive months of membership service; or

  (iii)in the event a member has not served the minimum specified period of service, the total compensation earned divided by the months of membership service. See Montana Code 19-3-108

• Historic preservation office: means the office within the Montana historical society provided for in 2-15-1512. See Montana Code 22-3-421
• Historic preservation officer: means the officer provided for in 2-15-1512. See Montana Code 22-3-421
• Historic records: means manuscripts, papers, maps, charts, journals, diaries, photographs, business records, voice recordings, films, video tapes, or other records illustrative of the history of Montana in particular and generally of the region. See Montana Code 22-3-102
• Human skeletal remains: means any part of the human body in any state of decomposition taken from a burial site. See Montana Code 22-3-803
• Human skeletal remains: has the meaning provided in 22-3-803. See Montana Code 22-3-903
• Identifying number: means the boat number set forth in the certificate of number and properly displayed on the motorboat or sailboat. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Immersion program: means a program of an eligible district in which:

  (a)all participating students receive content area instruction in an Indian language at least 50% of the day;

  (b)teachers are fully proficient in the languages they use for instruction; and

  (c)the goal of the program is perpetuating cultural integrity and promoting bilingualism and biliteracy. See Montana Code 20-7-1403

• Impact aid revenue bonds: means bonds that pledge and are payable solely from federal impact aid basic support payments received and deposited to the credit of the fund established in 20-9-514. See Montana Code 20-9-408
• Impeachment: (1) The process of calling something into question, as in "impeaching the testimony of a witness." (2) The constitutional process whereby the House of Representatives may "impeach" (accuse of misconduct) high officers of the federal government for trial in the Senate.
• In forma pauperis: In the manner of a pauper. Permission given to a person to sue without payment of court fees on claim of indigence or poverty.
• Indian language: means any of the languages of a federally recognized Indian tribe in Montana. See Montana Code 20-7-1403
• Indictment: The formal charge issued by a grand jury stating that there is enough evidence that the defendant committed the crime to justify having a trial; it is used primarily for felonies.
• Individual: means a human being. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Individual transportation: means transportation by which a district is relieved of actually conveying a pupil. See Montana Code 20-10-101
• Information technology: means all electronic information processing hardware and software, including telecommunications. See Montana Code 18-5-602
• Information technology resources: means hardware, software, and associated services and infrastructure used to store or transmit information in any form, including voice, video, and electronic data. See Montana Code 2-15-102
• Inherent dangers and risks of skiing: means those dangers or conditions that are part of the sport of skiing, including:

  (a)changing weather conditions;

  (b)snow conditions as they exist or as they may change, including ice, hardpack, powder, packed powder, wind pack, corn snow, crust, slush, cut-up snow, and machine-made snow of any depth or accumulation, including but not limited to any depth or accumulation around or near trees or snowmaking equipment;

  (c)avalanches, except on open, machine-groomed ski trails;

  (d)collisions with natural surface or subsurface conditions, such as bare spots, forest growth, rocks, stumps, streambeds, cliffs, trees, and other natural objects;

  (e)collisions with lift towers, signs, posts, fences, enclosures, hydrants, water pipes, or other artificial structures and their components;

  (f)variations in steepness or terrain, whether natural or the result of slope design, snowmaking, or snow grooming operations, including but not limited to roads, freestyle terrain, ski jumps, catwalks, and other terrain modifications;

  (g)collisions with clearly visible or plainly marked equipment, including but not limited to lift equipment, snowmaking equipment, snow grooming equipment, trail maintenance equipment, and snowmobiles, whether or not the equipment is moving;

  (h)collisions with other skiers;

  (i)the failure of a skier to ski within that skier's ability;

  (j)skiing in a closed area or skiing outside the ski area boundary as designated on the ski area trail map; and

  (k)restricted visibility caused by snow, wind, fog, sun, or darkness. See Montana Code 23-2-702

• Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
• Institution: means any public institution of postsecondary education governed, supervised, or coordinated by the board of regents of higher education. See Montana Code 20-25-701
• Instructor of motorcycle safety training: means an instructor approved by the board of regents to instruct motorcycle safety training. See Montana Code 20-25-1001
• Interest: means , with respect to an issue or matter, multiple parties that have a similar point of view or that are likely to be affected in a similar manner. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• interest and income money: means the total of the following revenue, as provided for by Article X, section 5, of the 1972 Montana constitution:

  (a)95% of the interest received from the investment of the public school fund;

  (b)95% of the interest received from the investment of any other school funds held in trust by the state board of land commissioners;

  (c)95% of the income received from the leasing of or sale of timber from state school lands; and

  (d)95% of any other income derived from any other covenant affecting the use of state school lands. See Montana Code 20-9-341

• Interest rate: The amount paid by a borrower to a lender in exchange for the use of the lender's money for a certain period of time. Interest is paid on loans or on debt instruments, such as notes or bonds, either at regular intervals or as part of a lump sum payment when the issue matures. ^{Source: OCC}
• Internal Revenue Code: has the meaning provided in 15-30-2101. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Interrogatories: Written questions asked by one party of an opposing party, who must answer them in writing under oath; a discovery device in a lawsuit.
• intervention: means , as further described in 20-7-1803, any of the following:

  (a)a classroom-based program;

  (b)a home-based program; or

  (c)a jumpstart program. See Montana Code 20-7-1802

• Inventory: means an itemized list that summarizes the collection of human skeletal remains and funerary objects in the possession or control of an agency or museum. See Montana Code 22-3-903
• Joint annuitant: means the one person that a retired member who has elected an optional allowance under 19-20-702(2), (4), or (5) has designated to receive a retirement allowance upon the death of the retired member. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Joint resolution: A legislative measure which requires the approval of both chambers.
• Judgement: The official decision of a court finally determining the respective rights and claims of the parties to a suit.
• Judicial officers: means justices of the supreme court, judges of the district courts, justices of the peace, municipal judges, and city judges. See Montana Code 1-1-202
• Judicial record: means the record of official entry of the proceedings in a court of justice or of the official act of a judicial officer in an action or special proceeding. See Montana Code 1-1-202
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Juror: A person who is on the jury.
• Jury instructions: A judge's directions to the jury before it begins deliberations regarding the factual questions it must answer and the legal rules that it must apply. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• Knowingly: means only a knowledge that the facts exist which bring the act or omission within the provisions of this code. See Montana Code 1-1-204
• Lawsuit: A legal action started by a plaintiff against a defendant based on a complaint that the defendant failed to perform a legal duty, resulting in harm to the plaintiff.
• Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). ^{Source: OCC}
• Legacy: A gift of property made by will.
• Legislative session: That part of a chamber's daily session in which it considers legislative business (bills, resolutions, and actions related thereto).
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• Licensed machine owner: means a licensed operator or route operator who owns a video gambling machine for which a permit has been issued by the department. See Montana Code 23-5-602
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Lienholder: means a person holding a security interest. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Life estate: A property interest limited in duration to the life of the individual holding the interest (life tenant).
• Lineal descendant: Direct descendant of the same ancestors.
• Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
• Loan: means a deposit of property not accompanied by a transfer of title to the property. See Montana Code 22-3-503
• Local school board: means a preexisting board of trustees exercising supervision and control of the schools and programs of a local school district pursuant to Article X, section 8, of the Montana constitution and the laws of the state of Montana. See Montana Code 20-6-803
• Local school board: means a traditional school district board of trustees exercising management and control over a traditional local school district pursuant to the laws of the state. See Montana Code 20-11-103
• Located school district: means the school district in which a proposed, preoperational, or operational public charter school is located and from which the separate boundaries of the charter school district are proposed to be formed. See Montana Code 20-6-803
• Lottery game: means any procedure, including any online or other procedure using a machine or electronic device, by which one or more prizes are distributed among persons who have paid for a chance to win a prize and includes but is not limited to weekly (or other, longer time period) winner games, instant winner games, daily numbers games, sports pool games, and sports wagering. See Montana Code 23-7-103
• Lottery license: means a license issued by the state lottery that authorizes a sales agent to sell lottery tickets at a fixed place of business. See Montana Code 23-7-103
• Majority leader: see Floor Leaders
• Majority leader: means the leader of the majority party, elected by the caucus as provided in 5-2-221. See Montana Code 1-1-208
• Majority party: means the party with the most members in a house of the legislature, subject to subsection (2). See Montana Code 1-1-208
• Majority whip: See Whips.
• Male: means a member of the human species who, under normal development, has XY chromosomes and produces or would produce small, mobile gametes, or sperm, during his life cycle and has a reproductive and endocrine system oriented around the production of those gametes. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• Manufacturer: means a person engaged in the business of manufacturing or importing new and unused vessels or new and unused outboard motors for the purpose of sale or trade. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Material: means all or part of any archaeological, cultural, paleontological, biological, or historical item or artifact found in a cave, including but not limited to any petroglyph, pictograph, pottery, basketwork, fossil, human remains, or animal remains. See Montana Code 23-2-902
• Materially and substantially disrupt: means conduct by a person who acts purposely or knowingly to:

  (i)significantly hinder the expressive activity of another person or group;

  (ii)prevent the communication of an expressive activity; or

  (iii)prevent the transaction of business at a lawful meeting, gathering, or procession by:

  (A)engaging in fighting or other violent or unlawful behavior; or

  (B)physically blocking or using threats of violence to prevent another person from attending, listening to, viewing, or otherwise participating in an expressive activity. See Montana Code 20-25-1501

• Maximum general fund budget: means a district's general fund budget amount calculated from the basic entitlement for the district, the total per-ANB entitlement for the district, the total quality educator payment, the total at-risk student payment, the total Indian education for all payment, the total American Indian achievement gap payment, the total data-for-achievement payment, and the greater of the district's special education allowable cost payment multiplied by:

  (a)175%; or

  (b)the ratio, expressed as a percentage, of the district's special education allowable cost expenditures to the district's special education allowable cost payment for the fiscal year that is 2 years previous, with a maximum allowable ratio of 200%. See Montana Code 20-9-306

• Mechanical transport: means any contrivance for moving a person over land that has moving parts and provides a mechanical advantage to the user. See Montana Code 23-2-601
• meeting: means the convening of a quorum of the constituent membership of a public agency or association described in 2-3-203, whether corporal or by means of electronic equipment, to hear, discuss, or act upon a matter over which the agency has supervision, control, jurisdiction, or advisory power. See Montana Code 2-3-202
• Member: means a person who has an individual account in the annuity savings account. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Minor: means a male or female, as defined in 1-1-201, person who has not obtained the age of 18 years. See Montana Code 20-25-501
• Minority leader: See Floor Leaders
• Minority leader: means the leader of the minority party, elected by the caucus as provided in 5-2-221. See Montana Code 1-1-208
• Minority party: means the party with the second most members in a house of the legislature, subject to subsection (2). See Montana Code 1-1-208
• Mistrial: An invalid trial, caused by fundamental error. When a mistrial is declared, the trial must start again from the selection of the jury.
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• Motorboat: means a vessel, including a personal watercraft or pontoon, propelled by any machinery, motor, or engine of any description, whether or not the machinery, motor, or engine is the principal source of propulsion. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Multigame: means a combination of at least two or more approved types of games, including bingo, poker, keno, or video line games, within the same video gambling machine cabinet if the video gambling machine cabinet has been approved by the department. See Montana Code 23-5-602
• Multiple competitor sports pool: means a sports pool in which three or more competitors simultaneously compete in a college or professional sports event or series of sports events. See Montana Code 23-5-501
• Museum: means an institution located in Montana and operated by a nonprofit corporation or a public agency primarily for educational, scientific, or aesthetic purposes, and that owns, borrows, or cares for and exhibits, studies, or catalogs property. See Montana Code 22-3-503
• Museum: means an entity or state or local government agency, including an educational institution, that receives state funding. See Montana Code 22-3-903
• National Bank: A bank that is subject to the supervision of the Comptroller of the Currency. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is a bureau of the U.S. Treasury Department. A national bank can be recognized because it must have "national" or "national association" in its name. ^{Source: OCC}
• National Credit Union Administration: The federal regulatory agency that charters and supervises federal credit unions. (NCUA also administers the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund, which insures the deposits of federal credit unions.) ^{Source: OCC}
• Negotiated rulemaking: means rulemaking through the use of a negotiated rulemaking committee. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• New snowmobile: means a snowmobile that has not been previously sold to an owner. See Montana Code 23-2-601
• New state building: means any structure to be built, remodeled, or renovated with money appropriated by the legislature that is, in the opinion of the architecture and engineering division of the department of administration, appropriate for the inclusion of works of art. See Montana Code 22-2-403
• Nolo contendere: No contest-has the same effect as a plea of guilty, as far as the criminal sentence is concerned, but may not be considered as an admission of guilt for any other purpose.
• nonbudgeted fund: means any fund for which a budget is not required in order to expend money on deposit in the fund. See Montana Code 20-9-201
• Nonvisual: means synthesized speech, Braille, and other output methods not requiring sight. See Montana Code 18-5-602
• Oath: includes an affirmation or declaration. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• Oath: A promise to tell the truth.
• Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
• Offsite instructional setting: means an instructional setting that is an extension of a school of the district, located apart from the school, but within the boundaries of the district, where a school district provides in-person pupil instruction to a student who is enrolled in the district. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Oil and natural gas revenue bonds: means bonds that pledge and are payable from a first lien on oil and natural gas production taxes received by a school district pursuant to 20-9-310. See Montana Code 20-9-408
• Operate: means to navigate or otherwise use a motorboat or a vessel. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Operator: means the person who navigates, drives, or is otherwise in immediate control of a motorboat or vessel. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Operator: includes each person who operates or is in actual physical control of the operation of a snowmobile. See Montana Code 23-2-601
• operator: means a person, firm, or corporation and its agents and employees having operational and administrative responsibility for ski slopes and trails and improvements. See Montana Code 23-2-702
• Oral argument: An opportunity for lawyers to summarize their position before the court and also to answer the judges' questions.
• Oral examination: means an examination in the presence of the jury or tribunal that is to decide the fact or act upon it or the spoken testimony of the witness being heard by the jury or tribunal. See Montana Code 1-1-202
• Other property: means all real property other than state or federal property as defined in this part. See Montana Code 18-5-402
• Outdoor area of campus: means a generally accessible outside area of campus, such as grassy areas, walkways, or other similar common areas. See Montana Code 20-25-1501
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• Owner: means a person, other than a lienholder, having the property in or title to a motorboat or vessel. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Owner: includes each person, other than a lienholder or person having a security interest in a snowmobile, that holds a certificate of title to a snowmobile and is entitled to the use or possession of the snowmobile. See Montana Code 23-2-601
• Owner: means any person or public or private agency that has the right to possession of a cave. See Montana Code 23-2-902
• Paleontological remains: means fossilized plants and animals of a geological nature found upon or beneath the earth or under water which are rare and critical to scientific research. See Montana Code 22-3-421
• Parent: means a parent, guardian, or other person or entity having legal custody of a child. See Montana Code 20-6-803
• Parent: means a biological parent, adoptive parent, legal guardian, custodian, or other person with legal authority to act on behalf of a qualified student, and whose parental rights have not been terminated. See Montana Code 20-7-1703
• Parent: means a parent, guardian, or other person or entity having legal custody of a child. See Montana Code 20-11-103
• Part-time service: means service that is not full-time service. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Participant: means a member of the retirement system who has elected to participate in the DROP pursuant to this part. See Montana Code 19-6-1002
• Participant: means a member of the retirement system who has elected to participate in the DROP pursuant to this part. See Montana Code 19-9-1202
• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• Passenger: means any person who is being transported or conveyed by a passenger ropeway. See Montana Code 23-2-702
• Passenger ropeway: means a device used to transport passengers by means of an aerial tramway or lift, surface lift, surface conveyor, or surface tow. See Montana Code 23-2-702
• Peace officer: has the meaning as defined in 46-1-202. See Montana Code 1-1-207
• Permitholder: means a licensed operator on whose premises is located one or more video gambling machines for which a permit has been issued by the department. See Montana Code 23-5-602
• Person: means an individual, partnership, corporation, association, or other group, however organized. See Montana Code 22-2-501
• Person: includes a corporation, partnership, joint venture, estate, and any other legal entity, as well as a natural person. See Montana Code 22-3-903
• Person: means an individual, partnership, firm, corporation, association, or other entity. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Person: means an individual, partnership, association, corporation, and any other body or group of persons, regardless of the degree of formal organization. See Montana Code 23-2-601
• Person: means an individual, partnership, corporation, association, governmental subdivision, agency, or public or private organization of any character. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• Person: means an individual, partnership, firm, association, trust, corporation, or other legal entity. See Montana Code 23-2-902
• person: includes any individual, partnership, joint venture, unincorporated association, private or municipal corporation, the state and its political subdivisions. See Montana Code 26-1-702
• Person: includes a corporation or other entity as well as a natural person. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• Personal property: means money, goods, chattels, things in action, and evidences of debt. See Montana Code 1-1-205
• Personal watercraft: means a vessel that uses an outboard motor or an inboard engine powering a water jet pump as its primary source of propulsion and that is designed to be operated by a person sitting, standing, or kneeling on the vessel rather than by the conventional method of sitting or standing in the vessel. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
• plan: means the teachers' retirement system of the state of Montana provided for in 19-20-102. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Player rewards system: means a system that rewards player loyalty, including but not limited to employing player rankings, awarding player points, or other promotions based on player engagement at an individual licensed premises as determined by using video gambling machine data, which may come from an automated accounting and reporting system, and other information gathered at an individual licensed premises. See Montana Code 23-5-602
• Plea: In a criminal case, the defendant's statement pleading "guilty" or "not guilty" in answer to the charges, a declaration made in open court.
• Pleadings: Written statements of the parties in a civil case of their positions. In the federal courts, the principal pleadings are the complaint and the answer.
• Position reportable to the retirement system: means a position in which an individual performs duties that would entitle the person to active membership in the retirement system under the provisions of 19-20-302. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Possessing entity: means an agency, museum, or person from whom repatriation is requested. See Montana Code 22-3-903
• Possession: means having physical custody of human skeletal remains or funerary objects with a sufficient legal interest to lawfully treat the human skeletal remains or funerary objects as part of a collection. See Montana Code 22-3-903
• Postsecondary institution: means :

  (a)a unit of the Montana university system, as defined in 20-25-201;

  (b)a Montana community college, defined and organized as provided in 20-15-101; or

  (c)an accredited tribal college located in the state of Montana. See Montana Code 20-26-603

• Precedent: A court decision in an earlier case with facts and law similar to a dispute currently before a court. Precedent will ordinarily govern the decision of a later similar case, unless a party can show that it was wrongly decided or that it differed in some significant way.
• Preservation review board: means the board provided for in 2-15-1512. See Montana Code 22-3-421
• President pro tempore: A constitutionally recognized officer of the Senate who presides over the chamber in the absence of the Vice President. The President Pro Tempore (or, "president for a time") is elected by the Senate and is, by custom, the Senator of the majority party with the longest record of continuous service.
• Presiding officer: A majority-party Senator who presides over the Senate and is charged with maintaining order and decorum, recognizing Members to speak, and interpreting the Senate's rules, practices and precedents.
• Pretrial conference: A meeting of the judge and lawyers to discuss which matters should be presented to the jury, to review evidence and witnesses, to set a timetable, and to discuss the settlement of the case.
• Primary beneficiary: means a designated beneficiary with a first right to receive any benefit or refund of accumulated contributions payable upon the death of the individual authorized by law to make the designation. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Principal: means a person who holds a valid class 3 Montana teacher certificate with an applicable principal's endorsement that has been issued by the superintendent of public instruction under the provisions of this title and the policies adopted by the board of public education and who has been employed by a district as a principal. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Printing: means the act of reproducing a design on a surface by any process. See Montana Code 1-1-203
• Prizes: means any winning tickets, chances, wagers, or bets validated by the state lottery central gaming system and sold by any sales agent. See Montana Code 23-7-103
• Pro se: A Latin term meaning "on one's own behalf"; in courts, it refers to persons who present their own cases without lawyers.
• Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
• Probate: Proving a will
• Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
• Process: means a writ or summons issued in the course of judicial proceedings. See Montana Code 1-1-202
• Proficiency: means a measure of competence that is demonstrated through application in a performance assessment. See Montana Code 20-7-1601
• Proficiency-based learning: means an education system in which student progress is based on a student's demonstration of competence rather than on the basis of seat time or the age or grade level of the student. See Montana Code 20-7-1601
• Program: means the Montana special needs equal opportunity education savings account program established in 20-7-1702. See Montana Code 20-7-1703
• Property: includes any tangible object, animate or inanimate, that has intrinsic historic, artistic, scientific, or cultural value. See Montana Code 22-3-503
• Property: means real and personal property. See Montana Code 1-1-205
• Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
• Public agency: means any political subdivision, including municipalities, counties, school districts, and any agency or department of the state of Montana. See Montana Code 18-11-102
• Public charter school: means a public school that:

  (a)has autonomy over decisions including but not limited to matters concerning finance, personnel, scheduling, curriculum, and instruction as defined in a charter contract;

  (b)is governed by a local school board or, in the case of a governing board other than a local school board, by the governing board of the charter school district of which the charter school is a part;

  (c)is established and operated under the terms of a charter contract;

  (d)allows parents choose to enroll their children;

  (e)admits students on the basis of a lottery if more students apply for admission than can be accommodated;

  (f)provides a program of education that may include any or all grades from kindergarten through grade 12 and vocational education programs;

  (g)operates in pursuit of a specific set of educational objectives as defined in its charter contract;

  (h)operates under the general supervision of the board of public education in accordance with its charter contract; and

  (i)if the school is a high school, establishes graduation requirements and has authority to award degrees and issue diplomas. See Montana Code 20-6-803

• Public defender: Represent defendants who can't afford an attorney in criminal matters.
• Public document: means any publication of an agency that is meant for dissemination to the public, but does not include educational materials published by a unit of the university system or the superintendent of public instruction, reports of the legislative auditor, travel promotion materials, standard forms, bid specifications, opinions of the attorney general, opinions of the supreme court, session laws, the Administrative Rules of Montana, the Montana Code Annotated, or regular periodical publications sold to the general public solely through subscription and newsstand sale. See Montana Code 18-7-302
• Public law: A public bill or joint resolution that has passed both chambers and been enacted into law. Public laws have general applicability nationwide.
• Public postsecondary institution: means :

  (a)a unit of the Montana university system as defined in 20-25-201; or

  (b)a Montana community college, defined and organized as provided in 20-15-101. See Montana Code 20-25-1501

• Pupil: means an individual who is admitted by the board of trustees pursuant to 20-5-101 and who is enrolled in a school established and maintained under the laws of the state at public expense. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Pupil instruction: means the conduct of organized learning opportunities for pupils enrolled in public schools while under the supervision of a teacher. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Qualified person: means a person legally qualified to determine the person's own domicile. See Montana Code 20-25-501
• Qualified school: means a nonpublic school serving any combination of grades kindergarten through 12 that:

  (a)is in compliance with applicable local health and safety regulations;

  (b)holds a valid occupancy permit, if required by the municipality;

  (c)does not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, religion, sex, marital status, color, age, physical disability, or national origin or because of mental disability, unless based on reasonable grounds, pursuant to 49-2-307;

  (d)requires that any employee who may have unsupervised access to children be subject to a criminal history background check prior to employment pursuant to and in support of 42 U. See Montana Code 20-7-1703

• Qualified student: means a resident of the state who:

  (a)in the current school year:

  (i)is identified as a "child with a disability" under the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, 20 U. See Montana Code 20-7-1703

• Qualifying pupil: means a pupil, as defined in 20-1-101, that is enrolled and admitted by a district qualified for advanced opportunity aid under 20-7-1506(3) who is in grades 6 through 12. See Montana Code 20-7-1503
• Quasi-judicial function: means an adjudicatory function exercised by an agency, involving the exercise of judgment and discretion in making determinations in controversies. See Montana Code 2-15-102
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• Readily adaptable: means that all critical components of information may be rendered by the information technology in equivalent nonvisual formats and that the installation or operation of software or hardware adaptations for speech, Braille, or other nonvisual formats do not require extraordinary alterations to the information technology. See Montana Code 18-5-602
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Real property: means lands, tenements, hereditaments, and possessory title to public lands. See Montana Code 1-1-205
• Reasonable effort: means the rescheduling or extension of the school district's instructional calendar to make up at least 75% of the hours of pupil instruction lost due to an unforeseen emergency through any combination of the following:

  (a)extending the school year beyond the last scheduled day;

  (b)the use of scheduled vacation days in the district's adopted school calendar pursuant to 20-1-302;

  (c)the conduct of pupil instruction on Saturdays as provided in 20-1-303; or

  (d)extending instructional hours during the school day as provided in 20-1-302. See Montana Code 20-9-802

• Recess: A temporary interruption of the legislative business.
• Regents: means the board of regents of higher education. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Register: means the National Register of Historic Places, the official list of the nation's heritage properties worthy of preservation because of national, state, or local significance. See Montana Code 22-3-421
• Registration decal: means an adhesive sticker produced by the department of justice and issued by the department of justice, an authorized agent as defined in 61-1-101, or a county treasurer to the owner of a motorboat, sailboat, or personal watercraft as proof of payment of fees imposed on the motorboat, sailboat, or personal watercraft for the registration period indicated on the decal as recorded by the department of justice under 61-3-101. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Registration decal: means an adhesive sticker produced and issued by the department of justice, its authorized agent, or a county treasurer to the owner of a snowmobile as proof of payment of all fees imposed for the registration period indicated on the sticker as recorded by the department of justice under 61-3-101. See Montana Code 23-2-601
• Regular interest: means interest at a rate set by the retirement board in accordance with 19-20-501(2). See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
• Remand: When an appellate court sends a case back to a lower court for further proceedings.
• Remote instruction: means pupil instruction that occurs through virtual learning processes incorporating distance and online learning methods that best prepare pupils to meet desired learning outcomes as authorized in 20-7-118. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Reporter: Makes a record of court proceedings and prepares a transcript, and also publishes the court's opinions or decisions (in the courts of appeals).
• Rescission: The cancellation of budget authority previously provided by Congress. The Impoundment Control Act of 1974 specifies that the President may propose to Congress that funds be rescinded. If both Houses have not approved a rescission proposal (by passing legislation) within 45 days of continuous session, any funds being withheld must be made available for obligation.
• Resident school district: means the school district in which a student resides. See Montana Code 20-7-1703
• Resident school district: means the public school district in which a student resides. See Montana Code 20-11-103
• Resident student: means :

  (i)a student who has been domiciled in Montana for 1 year immediately preceding registration at any unit for any term or session for which resident classification is claimed. See Montana Code 20-25-501

• Restitution: The court-ordered payment of money by the defendant to the victim for damages caused by the criminal action.
• retiree: means a person who is considered in retired member status under the provisions of 19-20-810. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• retirement benefit: means a monthly payment due to a retired member who has qualified for service or disability retirement or due to a joint annuitant or beneficiary. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• retirement system: means the public employees' retirement system established in 19-3-103. See Montana Code 19-3-108
• Right of offset: Banks' legal right to seize funds that a guarantor or debtor may have on deposit to cover a loan in default. It is also known as the right of set-off. ^{Source: OCC}
• Right of possession: means :

  (a)possession obtained of nonculturally affiliated human skeletal remains or funerary objects; or

  (b)possession obtained with the voluntary consent of a group or individual that had authority of alienation over the human skeletal remains or funerary object. See Montana Code 22-3-903

• Roadway: means only those portions of a highway, road, or street improved, designed, or ordinarily used for travel or parking of motor vehicles. See Montana Code 23-2-601
• Rule: means any agency regulation, standard, or statement of general applicability that implements, interprets, or prescribes law or policy or describes the organization, procedures, or practice requirements of any agency. See Montana Code 2-3-102
• Rule: means an agency regulation, standard, or statement of general applicability that implements, interprets, or prescribes law or policy or describes the organization, procedures, or practice requirements of an agency. See Montana Code 2-5-103
• Sailboat: means a vessel that uses a sail and wind as its primary source of propulsion. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Sales agent: means an entity that holds a lottery license or sports wagering license as provided in this chapter. See Montana Code 23-7-103
• Scholarship: means a payment toward the cost of attendance at a qualifying postsecondary institution, rounded up to the nearest dollar. See Montana Code 20-26-603
• school: means an institution for the teaching of children that is established and maintained under the laws of the state of Montana at public expense. See Montana Code 20-6-501
• School bus: means , except as provided in subsection (5)(b), any motor vehicle that complies with the bus standards established by the board of public education as verified by the department of justice's semiannual inspection of school buses and the superintendent of public instruction and:

  (i)is owned by a district or other public agency and operated for the transportation of pupils to or from school or owned by a carrier under contract with a district or public agency to provide transportation of pupils to or from school; or

  (ii)is district-owned, is designed to carry 10 or fewer passengers, has an overall safety rating of five stars from the national highway traffic safety administration at the time of purchase, and is insured in accordance with minimum coverage requirements set forth in 20-10-109. See Montana Code 20-10-101

• School day: means the school day set by the trustees as provided in 20-1-302. See Montana Code 20-9-802
• School election: means a regular school election or any election conducted by a district or community college district for authorizing taxation, authorizing the issuance of bonds by an elementary, high school, or K-12 district, or accepting or rejecting any proposition that may be presented to the electorate for decision in accordance with the provisions of this title. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• School facility entitlement: means :

  (a)$300 per ANB for an elementary school district;

  (b)$450 per ANB for a high school district; or

  (c)$370 per ANB for an approved and accredited junior high school or middle school. See Montana Code 20-9-370

• School food services: means a service of providing food for the pupils of a district on a nonprofit basis and includes any food service financially assisted through funds or commodities provided by the United States government. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• school in the district: means an accredited school operated by the district that is located within the boundaries of the district operating the school. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Scientifically justifiable: means that the human skeletal remains or burial material has a potential to address specific research questions in the science of anthropology, history, or biology. See Montana Code 22-3-803
• Security interest: means an interest that is reserved or created by an agreement that secures payment or performance of an obligation and is valid against third parties generally. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Sequester: To separate. Sometimes juries are sequestered from outside influences during their deliberations.
• Serial bonds: means a bond issue payable in annual installments of principal commencing not more than 2 years from the date of issue, any one installment consisting of one or more bonds, with the principal amount of bonds maturing or subject to mandatory sinking fund redemption in each installment, commencing with the installment payable in the fourth year after the date of issue, not exceeding three times the principal amount of the bonds payable in the immediately preceding installment. See Montana Code 20-9-408
• Service: means the performance of duties that would entitle the person to active membership in the retirement system under the provisions of 19-20-302. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
• Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
• Several: means two or more. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• Sex: means the organization of the body parts and gametes for reproduction in human beings and other organisms. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• Ski slopes and trails: means those areas designated by the ski area operator to be used by skiers for skiing. See Montana Code 23-2-702
• Skier: means a person who is using any ski area facility for the purpose of skiing, including but not limited to ski slopes and trails. See Montana Code 23-2-702
• Skiing: means any activity, including participation in or practice or training for competitions or special events, that involves sliding or jumping on snow or ice while using skis, a snowboard, or any other sliding device. See Montana Code 23-2-702
• Snowmobile: means a self-propelled vehicle of an overall width of 48 inches or less, excluding accessories, designed for travel on snow or ice, that may be steered by skis or runners and that is not otherwise registered or licensed under the laws of the state of Montana. See Montana Code 23-2-601
• Snowmobile area: means those areas designated as snowmobile trails or areas open to the operation of snowmobiles. See Montana Code 23-2-601
• Snowmobiler: means any person operating or riding a snowmobile. See Montana Code 23-2-601
• Society: means the Montana historical society and includes:

  (a)the historical library and its contents;

  (b)any museums and art galleries and their contents acquired by the trustees;

  (c)any historical places, sites, or monuments acquired or developed by the society;

  (d)any divisions, departments, and activities operated in conjunction with the historical library as are established by the trustees; and

  (e)any books, papers, maps, charts, manuscripts, photographs, writings, records, objects of history and art, paintings, engravings, relics, collections of artifacts and minerals, furniture, or fixtures acquired by the trustees. See Montana Code 22-3-102

• Sole ownership: The type of property ownership in which one individual holds legal title to the property and has full control of it.
• Speleogen: means the surrounding natural earth or bedrock in which a cave is formed, including but not limited to clastic sediments, walls, floors, ceiling, and other related structural and geological features. See Montana Code 23-2-902
• Speleothem: means a natural mineral formation or deposit occurring in a cave, including but not limited to formations known as stalagmite, stalactite, helectite, shield, anthodite, gypsum flower and needle, angel's hair, soda straw, drapery, bacon, cave pearl, popcorn, rimstone dam, column, palette, and flowstone. See Montana Code 23-2-902
• Sports pool: means a gambling activity, other than an activity governed under chapter 4 or chapter 5, part 2, of this title, in which a person wagers money for each chance to win money or other items of value based on the outcome of a sports event or series of sports events wherein the competitors in the sports event or series of sports events are natural persons or animals. See Montana Code 23-5-501
• Sports tab: means a folded or banded ticket with a face covered to conceal a combination of two numbers, with each number ranging from zero through nine. See Montana Code 23-5-501
• Sports tab game: means a gambling enterprise conducted on a card to which 100 sports tabs are attached that have 100 different combinations for which consideration in money is paid by the person purchasing each tab. See Montana Code 23-5-501
• Sports wagering: means accepting wagers on sporting events or portions of sporting events, or on the individual performance statistics of athletes in a sporting event or combination of sporting events, by any system or method of wagering, including but not limited to in-person or over the internet through websites and on mobile devices. See Montana Code 23-7-103
• Sports wagering equipment: means a mechanical, electronic, or other device, mechanism, or other gaming equipment and related supplies that is connected to the state lottery central gaming system and used or consumed in the operation of sports wagering at the licensed sports wagering facility including a self-service terminal installed to accept sports wagers. See Montana Code 23-7-103
• Sports wagering facility: means a lottery location approved under a sports wagering license and licensed under Title 23, chapter 5, as a gambling operator. See Montana Code 23-7-103
• Sports wagering license: means a license issued by the state lottery that authorizes the operation of sports wagering through sports wagering equipment, including sports wagering conducted through mobile application or other digital platforms that is initiated and received or otherwise made exclusively within the physical confines using location-based services of the single approved sports wagering facility. See Montana Code 23-7-103
• State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• State agency: means any entity established or authorized by law to govern operations of the state, such as a state office, officer, department, division, section, bureau, board, commission, council, and agency of the state and all subdivisions of each. See Montana Code 22-1-211
• State agency: means any executive agency of the state of Montana. See Montana Code 22-3-421
• State agency: means a department, board, commission, office, bureau, institution, university system entity, or unit of state government recognized in the state budget. See Montana Code 18-5-602
• state equalization aid: means revenue as required in this section for distribution to the public schools for guaranteed tax base aid, BASE aid, and state debt service assistance. See Montana Code 20-9-343
• State lottery: means the Montana state lottery and sports wagering agency created and operated pursuant to this chapter. See Montana Code 23-7-103
• State property: means those buildings or portions of buildings or other real property owned or leased under a lease-purchase agreement or, in the case of a building, leased in its entirety by the state or agencies of the state and used in the conduct of state matters and occupied principally by state employees. See Montana Code 18-5-402
• State reimbursement for school facilities: means the amount of state equalization aid distributed to a district that:

  (a)has a district mill value per ANB that is less than the corresponding facility guaranteed mill value per ANB; and

  (b)has a debt service obligation in the ensuing school year on bonds. See Montana Code 20-9-370

• State university: means Montana state university-Bozeman. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Statute of limitations: A law that sets the time within which parties must take action to enforce their rights.
• STEM or health care major: means a major that is related to science, technology, engineering, mathematics, or health care. See Montana Code 20-26-603
• Student: means a child who is eligible for attendance in a public school in the state. See Montana Code 20-6-803
• Student: means a child who is eligible for attendance in a public school in the state. See Montana Code 20-11-103
• Student: means any Montana resident, as established by the board of regents of higher education, who has met the qualifications for enrollment as a full-time student at an institution or who is presently enrolled as a full-time student in good standing, as determined by the institution. See Montana Code 20-25-701
• Student: means a person who is enrolled full-time or part-time at a public postsecondary institution. See Montana Code 20-25-1501
• Student loan program: means the program established by the board pursuant to this part. See Montana Code 20-26-1101
• Student organization: means an officially recognized group or a group seeking official recognition at a public postsecondary institution that is composed of students who receive or are seeking to receive a benefit through the public postsecondary institution. See Montana Code 20-25-1501
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• Subscribing witness: means a person who sees a writing executed or hears it acknowledged and at the request of the party signs the person's name as a witness. See Montana Code 1-1-203
• subscription: includes the mark of a person who cannot write if the person's name is written near the mark by another person who also signs that person's own name as a witness. See Montana Code 1-1-203
• Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
• Superintendent of public instruction: means that state government official designated as a member of the executive branch by the Montana constitution. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• System: means the Montana university system. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Teacher: means a person, except a district superintendent, who holds a valid Montana teacher certificate that has been issued by the superintendent of public instruction under the provisions of this title and the policies adopted by the board of public education and who is employed by a district as a member of its instructional, supervisory, or administrative staff. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Teacher of traffic education: means an instructor approved by the superintendent of public instruction to teach traffic education. See Montana Code 20-7-501
• Telecommunications: means the transmission of information, images, pictures, voice, or data by radio, video, or other electronic or impulse means. See Montana Code 18-5-602
• Temporary restraining order: Prohibits a person from an action that is likely to cause irreparable harm. This differs from an injunction in that it may be granted immediately, without notice to the opposing party, and without a hearing. It is intended to last only until a hearing can be held.
• terminate: means that the employment relationship between the member and the member's employer has been terminated as required in 19-20-810. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Testator: A male person who leaves a will at death.
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• Testify: means every mode of oral statement under oath or affirmation. See Montana Code 1-1-202
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Textbook: means a book, digital resource, or manual used as a principal source of study material for a given class or group of students. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Textbook dealer: means a party, company, corporation, or other organization selling, offering to sell, or offering for adoption textbooks to districts in the state. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Third persons: means all persons who are not parties to the obligation or transaction concerning which the phrase is used. See Montana Code 1-1-206
• Tier one member: means a person who became a member before July 1, 2013, and who has not withdrawn the member's account balance. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Tier two member: means a person who became a member on or after July 1, 2013, or who, after withdrawing the member's account balance, became a member again after July 1, 2013. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Title IV: refers to Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended. See Montana Code 20-26-603
• Tort: A civil wrong or breach of a duty to another person, as outlined by law. A very common tort is negligent operation of a motor vehicle that results in property damage and personal injury in an automobile accident.
• Total at-risk student payment: means the payment resulting from the distribution of any funds appropriated for the purposes of 20-9-328. See Montana Code 20-9-306
• Total data-for-achievement payment: means the payment provided in 20-9-325 resulting from multiplying $22. See Montana Code 20-9-306
• Total quality educator payment: means the payment resulting from multiplying $3,566 for fiscal year 2024 and $3,673 for each succeeding fiscal year by the sum of:

  (a)the number of full-time equivalent educators as provided in 20-9-327; and

  (b)as provided in 20-9-324, for a school district meeting the legislative goal for competitive base pay of teachers, the number of full-time equivalent teachers that were in the first 3 years of the teacher's teaching career in the previous year. See Montana Code 20-9-306

• Total school facility entitlement: means the school facility entitlement times the total ANB for the district. See Montana Code 20-9-370
• Total special education allocation: means the state payment distributed pursuant to 20-9-321 that is the greater of the amount resulting from multiplying $293. See Montana Code 20-9-306
• Traditional public school: means a traditional public school that is under the direct management, governance, and control of a local school board or the state. See Montana Code 20-11-103
• Traffic education: means instruction in motor vehicle, bicycle, pedestrian, and school bus traffic laws or motorcycle laws, in the acceptance of personal responsibility on the public highways, in the causes and consequences of traffic accidents, and in the skills necessary for the safe operation of bicycles and motor vehicles or motorcycles. See Montana Code 20-7-501
• Traffic education account: means the state treasury account in the state special revenue fund for the deposit and disbursement of state traffic education revenue. See Montana Code 20-7-501
• Traffic education course: means a course of traffic education that has been approved by the superintendent of public instruction. See Montana Code 20-7-501
• Transcript: A written, word-for-word record of what was said, either in a proceeding such as a trial or during some other conversation, as in a transcript of a hearing or oral deposition.
• Transportation: means :

  (a)a district's conveyance of a pupil by a school bus between the pupil's legal residence or an officially designated bus stop and the school designated by the trustees for the pupil's attendance; or

  (b)individual transportation. See Montana Code 20-10-101

• Transportation service area: means the geographic area of responsibility for school bus transportation for each district that operates a school bus transportation program. See Montana Code 20-10-101
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• Trial jury: A group of citizens who hear the evidence presented by both sides at trial and determine the facts in dispute. Federal criminal juries consist of 12 persons. Federal civil juries consist of six persons.
• Tribal government: means the officially recognized government of any Indian tribe, nation, or other organized group or community located in Montana exercising self-government powers and recognized as eligible for services provided by the United States to Indians because of their status as Indians. See Montana Code 18-11-102
• Tribal group: has the meaning provided in 22-3-803. See Montana Code 22-3-903
• Trust account: A general term that covers all types of accounts in a trust department, such as estates, guardianships, and agencies. ^{Source: OCC}
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
• Trustees: means the board of trustees of the Montana historical society. See Montana Code 22-3-102
• Trustees: means the governing board of a district. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Trustees: means the board of trustees of an elementary or K-12 school district. See Montana Code 20-7-1802
• Undue burden: means compliance may be accomplished only by incurring an undue financial or administrative burden or by fundamentally altering a program or activity. See Montana Code 18-5-602
• Unforeseen emergency: means a fire, flood, explosion, storm, earthquake, riot, insurrection, community disaster, or act of God or a combination of the foregoing that acts as a principal cause for a school district's inability to conduct a portion of the minimum aggregate hours of instruction required by 20-1-301. See Montana Code 20-9-802
• Uniform Commercial Code: A set of statutes enacted by the various states to provide consistency among the states' commercial laws. It includes negotiable instruments, sales, stock transfers, trust and warehouse receipts, and bills of lading. ^{Source: OCC}
• Uniform state waterway marking system: means one of two categories:

  (a)a system of aids to navigation to supplement the federal system of marking in state waters;

  (b)a system of regulatory markers to warn a vessel operator of dangers or to provide general information and directions. See Montana Code 23-2-502

• Unit: means an internal subdivision of an agency, created by law or by administrative action, including a division, bureau, section, or department, and an agency allocated to a department for administrative purposes only by this chapter. See Montana Code 2-15-102
• United States: includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• University: means the university of Montana-Missoula. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Uphold: The decision of an appellate court not to reverse a lower court decision.
• Usage: means a reasonable and lawful public custom concerning transactions of the same nature as those which are to be affected thereby, existing at the place where the obligation is to be performed, and either known to the parties or so well established, general, and uniform that the parties must be presumed to have acted with reference thereto. See Montana Code 1-1-206
• User fees: Fees charged to users of goods or services provided by the government. In levying or authorizing these fees, the legislature determines whether the revenue should go into the treasury or should be available to the agency providing the goods or services.
• Usual: means according to usage. See Montana Code 1-1-206
• Validation decal: means an adhesive sticker produced by the department and issued by the department or a county treasurer to the owner of a motorboat, sailboat, or personal watercraft verifying the identifying number assigned to the motorboat, sailboat, or personal watercraft and the name and address of the owner to meet requirements of the federal standard numbering system. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Variable Rate: Having a "variable" rate means that the APR changes from time to time based on fluctuations in an external rate, normally the Prime Rate. This external rate is known as the "index." If the index changes, the variable rate normally changes. Also see Fixed Rate.
• Vending facility: means an area and equipment inclusive of vending machines on state property that is or may be used in providing a food, beverage, or other service to employees and other persons present on the property. See Montana Code 18-5-402
• Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
• Verdict: The decision of a petit jury or a judge.
• Vessel: means every description of watercraft, unless otherwise defined by the department, other than a seaplane on the water, used or capable of being used as a means of transportation on water. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Vessel: when used in reference to shipping, includes ships of all kinds, steamboats and steamships, canal boats, and every structure adapted to be navigated from place to place. See Montana Code 1-1-207
• Vested: means that a member has been credited with at least 5 full years of membership service upon which contributions have been made and has a right to a future retirement benefit. See Montana Code 19-20-101
• Video line game: means a video line game as defined by rules of the department and approved by the department. See Montana Code 23-5-602
• Virtual community choice school: means a community choice school headquartered in Montana that offers educational services predominantly through an online program. See Montana Code 20-11-103
• Vocational rehabilitation programs: means those programs provided for under the federal Randolph-Sheppard Act, as amended, and Title 53, chapter 7, part 3. See Montana Code 18-5-402
• Vocational-technical education: means vocational-technical education of vocational-technical students that is conducted by a unit of the Montana university system, a community college, or a tribally controlled community college, as designated by the board of regents. See Montana Code 20-1-101
• Voir dire: The process by which judges and lawyers select a petit jury from among those eligible to serve, by questioning them to determine knowledge of the facts of the case and a willingness to decide the case only on the evidence presented in court. "Voir dire" is a phrase meaning "to speak the truth."
• Waters of this state: means any waters within the territorial limits of this state. See Montana Code 23-2-502
• Willfully: when applied to the intent with which an act is done or omitted, means a purpose or willingness to commit the act or make the omission referred to. See Montana Code 1-1-204
• Work of art: means any work of visual art, including but not limited to a drawing, painting, mural, fresco, sculpture, mosaic, photograph, work of calligraphy, work of graphic art (including an etching, lithograph, offset print, or silk screen), craft (including crafts in clay, textile, fiber, wood, metal, plastic, or glass), or mixed media (including a collage, assemblage, or any combination of art media). See Montana Code 22-2-403
• Workforce data: means data related to an individual's workforce outcomes, including but not limited to, an individual's:

  (a)labor and workforce training program participation and completion information data;

  (b)wage information;

  (c)unemployment claim eligibility information;

  (d)employer information; and

  (e)demographics data. See Montana Code 20-7-137

• Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.
• Writ: means an order in writing issued in the name of the state or of a court or judicial officer. See Montana Code 1-1-202
• Writing: includes printing. See Montana Code 1-1-203
• written election: means a written instrument, required by statute or the rules of the board, properly signed and filed with the board, that contains all the required information, including documentation that the board considers necessary. See Montana Code 19-20-101