20-9-303. Nonisolated school BASE budget funding — special education funds. (1) An elementary school that has an ANB of nine or fewer pupils for 2 consecutive years and that is not approved as an isolated school under the provisions of 20-9-302 may budget and spend the BASE budget amount, but the county and state shall provide one-half of the direct state aid, and the district shall finance the remaining one-half of the direct state aid by a tax levied on the property of the district. When a school of nine or fewer pupils is approved as isolated under the provisions of 20-9-302, the county and state shall participate in the financing of the total amount of the direct state aid.

Terms Used In Montana Code 20-9-303

  • 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
  • BASE: means base amount for school equity. 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
  • Direct state aid: means 44. See Montana Code 20-9-306
  • 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
  • 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
  • Property: means real and personal property. See Montana Code 1-1-205
  • 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
  • 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
  • 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

(2)Funds provided to support the special education program may be expended only for special education purposes as approved by the superintendent of public instruction in accordance with the special education budgeting provisions of this title. Expenditures for special education must be accounted for separately from and in addition to the balance of the school district general fund budgeting requirements provided in 20-9-308. The amount of the special education allowable cost payments that is not matched with district funds, as required in 20-9-321, will reduce by a like amount the district’s ensuing year’s allowable cost payment for special education.