20-9-525. School major maintenance aid account — formula. (1) There is a school major maintenance aid account in the state special revenue fund provided for in 17-2-102.

Terms Used In Montana Code 20-9-525

  • 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
  • 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
  • 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
  • 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

  • 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
  • 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
  • System: means the Montana university system. See Montana Code 20-1-101
  • Trustees: means the governing board of a district. See Montana Code 20-1-101

(2)The purpose of the account is to provide, contingent on appropriation from the legislature, funding for school major maintenance aid as provided in subsection (3) for school facility projects, including the payment of principal and interest on obligations issued pursuant to 20-9-471 for school facility projects, that support a basic system of free quality public elementary and secondary schools under 20-9-309, including but not limited to:

(a)improvements to school and student safety and security as described in 20-9-236(1); and

(b)projects designed to produce operational efficiencies such as utility savings, reduced future maintenance costs, improved utilization of staff, and enhanced learning environments for students, including but not limited to projects addressing:

(i)roofing systems;

(ii)heating, air-conditioning, and ventilation systems;

(iii)energy-efficient window and door systems and insulation;

(iv)plumbing systems;

(v)electrical systems and lighting systems;

(vi)information technology infrastructure, including internet connectivity both within and to the school facility; and

(vii)other critical repairs to an existing school facility or facilities.

(3)(a) In any year in which the legislature has appropriated funds for distribution from the school major maintenance aid account, the superintendent of public instruction shall administer the distribution of school major maintenance aid from the school major maintenance aid account for deposit in the subfund of the building reserve fund provided for in 20-9-502(3)(e). Subject to proration under subsection (5) of this section, aid must be annually distributed no later than the last working day of May to a school district imposing a levy pursuant to 20-9-502(3) in the current school fiscal year, with the amount of state support per dollar of local effort of the applicable elementary and high school program of each district determined as follows:

(i)using the taxable valuation most recently determined by the department of revenue under 20-9-369:

(A)divide the total statewide taxable valuation by the statewide total of school major maintenance amounts and, subject to adjustment under 20-9-336, multiply the result by 187%;

(B)multiply the result determined under subsection (3)(a)(i)(A) by the district’s school major maintenance amount;

(C)subtract the district’s taxable valuation from the amount determined under subsection (3)(a)(i)(B); and

(D)divide the amount determined under subsection (3)(a)(i)(C) by 1,000;

(ii)determine the greater of the amount determined in subsection (3)(a)(i) or 18% of the district’s mill value;

(iii)multiply the result determined under subsection (3)(a)(ii) by the district’s school major maintenance amount, then divide the product by the sum of the result determined under subsection (3)(a)(ii) and the district’s mill value; and

(iv)divide the result determined under subsection (3)(a)(iii) by the difference resulting from subtracting the result determined under subsection (3)(a)(iii) from the district’s school major maintenance amount.

(b)For a district with an adopted general fund budget in the prior year greater than or equal to 97% of the district’s general fund maximum budget in the prior year, the amount determined in subsection (3)(a)(iv) rounded to the nearest cent is the amount of school major maintenance aid per dollar of local effort, not to exceed an amount that would result in the state aid composing more than 80% of the district’s school major maintenance amount.

(c)For a district with an adopted general fund budget in the prior year less than 97% of the district’s maximum budget in the prior year, multiply the amount determined in subsection (3)(a)(iv) by the ratio of the district’s adopted general fund budget in the prior year to the district’s maximum general fund budget in the prior year. The result, rounded to the nearest cent, is the amount of state school major maintenance aid per dollar of local effort, not to exceed an amount that would result in the state aid composing more than 80% of the district’s school major maintenance amount.

(4)Using the taxable valuation most recently determined by the department of revenue under 20-9-369, the superintendent shall provide school districts with a preliminary estimated amount of state school major maintenance aid per dollar of local effort for the ensuing school year no later than March 1 and a final amount for the current school year no later than July 31.

(5)If the appropriation from or the available funds in the school major maintenance aid account in any school fiscal year are less than the amount for which school districts would otherwise qualify, the superintendent of public instruction shall proportionally prorate the aid distributed to ensure that the distributions do not exceed the appropriated or available funds.

(6)If in any fiscal year the amount of revenue in the school major maintenance aid account is sufficient to fund school major maintenance aid without a proration reduction pursuant to subsection (5) and if in that same fiscal year the amount of revenue available in the school facility and technology account established in 20-9-516 will result in a proration reduction in debt service assistance pursuant to 20-9-346(2)(b) for that fiscal year, the state treasurer shall transfer any excess funds in the school major maintenance aid account to the school facility and technology account, not to exceed the amount required to avoid a proration reduction.

(7)For the purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:

(a)”Local effort” means an amount of money raised by levying no more than 10 mills pursuant to 20-9-502(3) and, provided that 10 mills have been levied, any additional amount of money deposited or transferred by trustees to the subfund pursuant to 20-9-502(3).

(b)”School major maintenance amount” means the sum of $15,000 and the product of $110 multiplied by the district’s budgeted ANB for the prior fiscal year.