Montana Code 20-6-209. Elementary district abandonment
20-6-209. Elementary district abandonment. (1) The county superintendent shall declare an elementary district to be abandoned and order the attachment of the territory of the district to a contiguous district or districts of the county or, with the consent of the county superintendent of an adjacent county, to a contiguous district or districts in the adjacent county when:
Terms Used In Montana Code 20-6-209
- 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
- Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
- County superintendent: means the county government official who is the school officer of the county. See Montana Code 20-1-101
- 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.
- Minimum aggregate hours: means the minimum hours of pupil instruction that must be conducted during the school fiscal year in accordance with 20-1-301 and includes passing time between classes and includes time spent logging on and off when receiving remote instruction. See Montana Code 20-1-101
- 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
- Trustees: means the governing board of a district. See Montana Code 20-1-101
(a)a school has not been operated by a district for at least the minimum aggregate hours under the provisions of 20-1-301 for each of 3 consecutive school fiscal years or a lesser number of aggregate hours as approved by the board of trustees under the provisions of 20-9-806; or
(b)there is an insufficient number of residents who are qualified electors of the district that can serve as the trustees and clerk of the district so that a legal board of trustees can be organized.
(2)The county superintendent shall notify the elementary district that has not operated a school for 2 consecutive years before the first day of the third year that the failure to operate a school for the minimum aggregate hours or a lesser number of aggregate hours than approved by the board of trustees under the provisions of 20-9-806 during the ensuing school fiscal year constitutes grounds for abandonment of the district at the conclusion of the succeeding school fiscal year. Failure by the county superintendent to provide the notification does not constitute a waiver of the abandonment requirement prescribed in subsection (1)(a).
(3)Any abandonment under subsection (1)(a) becomes effective on July 1. Any abandonment of an elementary district under subsection (1)(b) becomes effective immediately on the date of the abandonment order.