Montana Code 20-15-315. Funding for new community college district
20-15-315. Funding for new community college district. (1) The board of trustees of a newly created community college district shall, by August 1 immediately preceding the regular legislative session at which the district will first seek a state appropriation, submit to the board of regents enrollment projections for each year of the ensuing biennium and an annual budget pursuant to 20-15-312 for the first year of the ensuing biennium.
Terms Used In Montana Code 20-15-315
- 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
- BASE: means base amount for school equity. See Montana Code 20-9-306
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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.
- 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
- Legislative session: That part of a chamber's daily session in which it considers legislative business (bills, resolutions, and actions related thereto).
- 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
- Trustees: means the governing board of a district. See Montana Code 20-1-101
(2)The state general fund appropriation for the district must be determined as follows:
(a)For the first year of the ensuing biennium:
(i)divide the total adjusted base of all community colleges by the total FTE of all community colleges in the base year;
(ii)multiply the result of subsection (2)(a)(i) by the inflationary factor for the second year of the current biennium and then multiply by the inflationary factor for the first year of the ensuing biennium; and
(iii)multiply the result of subsection (2)(a)(ii) by the projected weighted resident FTE of the new community college for the first year of the ensuing biennium.
(b)For the second year of the ensuing biennium:
(i)multiply the number calculated in subsection (2)(a)(ii) by the inflationary factor for the second year of the ensuing biennium; and
(ii)multiply the result of subsection (2)(b)(i) by the projected weighted resident FTE of the new community college for the second year of the ensuing biennium.
(3)(a) After each fiscal year of the first biennium the new community college district receives a state appropriation, the commissioner of higher education shall determine the fiscal impacts that would have resulted had the actual FTE for that fiscal year been used to determine that fiscal year’s state appropriation and determine any overpayment or underpayment to the community college for that fiscal year.
(b)At the end of each odd fiscal year, the commissioner shall calculate the net underpayment or overpayment resulting from the underpayment or overpayment of the prior fiscal year and current fiscal year determined under subsection (2) and:
(i)the commissioner shall distribute any net underpayment determined under this subsection (3) to a community college from the community college FTE adjustment account by October 15 of the current calendar year; or
(ii)a community college receiving a net overpayment determined under this subsection (3) shall pay a fee equal to the overpayment to the commissioner by October 15 of the current calendar year for deposit in the community college FTE adjustment account.
(4)After the first biennium a new community college district receives a state appropriation, the state appropriation for the district in subsequent bienniums must be determined as described in 20-15-310.