67th Legislature
HB 33.1
1 HOUSE BILL NO. 33
2 INTRODUCED BY S. VINTON
3 BY REQUEST OF THE EDUCATION INTERIM COMMITTEE
4
5 A BILL FOR AN ACT ENTITLED: “AN ACT REVISING SCHOOL FUNDING LAWS RELATED TO
6 ANTICIPATED ENROLLMENT INCREASES; AMENDING SECTION 20-9-314, MCA; AND PROVIDING AN
7 EFFECTIVE DATE AND AN APPLICABILITY DATE.”
8
9 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:
10
11 Section 1. Section 20-9-314, MCA, is amended to read:
12 "20-9-314. Procedures for determining eligibility and amount of increased average number
13 belonging due to unusual enrollment increase. A district that anticipates an unusual increase in enrollment
14 in the ensuing school fiscal year, as provided for in 20-9-313(1)(d), may increase its basic entitlement and total
15 per-ANB entitlement BASE aid and special education allowable cost payment for the ensuing school fiscal year
16 in accordance with the following provisions:
17 (1) Prior to June 1, the district shall estimate the elementary or high school enrollment to be realized
18 during the ensuing school fiscal year, based on as much factual information as may be available to the district.
19 (2) No later than June 1, the district shall submit its application for an anticipated unusual enrollment
20 increase by elementary or high school level to the superintendent of public instruction. The application must
21 include:
22 (a) the enrollment for the current school fiscal year;
23 (b) the average number belonging used to calculate the basic entitlement and total per-ANB
24 entitlement for the current school fiscal year;
25 (c) the average number belonging that will be used to calculate the basic entitlement and total per-
26 ANB entitlement for the ensuing school fiscal year;
27 (d) the anticipated enrollment, including the factual information on which the estimate is based, as
28 provided in subsection (1); and
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 67th Legislature
HB 33.1
1 (e) any other information or data that may be requested by the superintendent of public instruction.
2 (3) The superintendent of public instruction shall immediately review all the factors of the application
3 and shall approve or disapprove the application or adjust the enrollment used to calculate the budgeted
4 average number belonging for the ensuing school fiscal year. After approving an estimate, with or without
5 adjustment, the superintendent of public instruction shall:
6 (a) determine the percentage by which the adjusted enrollment exceeds the enrollment used for the
7 budgeted average number belonging; and
8 (b) approve an increase of the average number belonging used to establish the ensuing year's basic
9 entitlement and total per-ANB entitlement in accordance with subsection (5) if the increase in subsection (3)(a)
10 is at least 4% or 40 students, whichever is less.
11 (4) The superintendent of public instruction shall notify the district of the decision by the fourth
12 Monday in June.
13 (5) Whenever an unusual enrollment increase is approved by the superintendent of public instruction,
14 the maximum allowable increase to the average number belonging is equal to the adjusted enrollment as
15 determined by the superintendent of public instruction in subsection (3) minus the sum of:
16 (a) the enrollment used to calculate the budgeted average number belonging for the ensuing school
17 fiscal year; and
18 (b) the lesser of 40 students or 4% of the enrollment used to calculate the budgeted average number
19 belonging for the ensuing school fiscal year.
20 (6) (a) Any entitlement increases resulting from provisions of this section must be reviewed at the
21 end of the ensuing school fiscal year.
22 (b) If the actual enrollment is less than the enrollment used to determine the budgeted ANB, the
23 superintendent of public instruction shall recalculate the district's BASE budget and maximum budget
24 limitations, adopted budget, and BASE aid, and the special education allowable cost payment using the greater
25 of the district's unadjusted enrollment or the actual enrollment in place of the adjusted enrollment and:
26 (i) any BASE aid and special education allowable cost payment received by the district in excess of
27 the amount recalculated is an overpayment subject to the refund provisions of 20-9-344(4); and
28 (ii) any revenue received by the district from BASE budget and over-BASE budget levies increased by
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 67th Legislature
HB 33.1
1 the difference between the adjusted enrollment and the actual enrollment is an overpayment and must be used
2 to reduce the BASE budget levy calculated as provided in 20-9-141 to the extent of any BASE budget levy
3 revenue overpayment and to reduce the over-BASE budget levy to the extent of any over-BASE budget levy
4 revenue overpayment in the ensuing school fiscal year. In order to return the full amount of the overpayment to
5 local taxpayers, the amount of the reduction in the BASE budget mills levied as a result of any overpayment
6 must be calculated as a final step in computing the district's general fund net BASE levy requirement pursuant
7 to the procedure set forth in 20-9-141(2) and the district's guaranteed tax base aid must be calculated prior to
8 the reduction in BASE mills."
9
10 NEW SECTION. Section 2. Effective date. [This act] is effective July 1, 2021.
11
12 NEW SECTION. Section 3. Applicability. [This act] applies to school fiscal years beginning on or
13 after July 1, 2021.
14
15 - END -
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Statutes affected:
HB0033_1.pdf: 20-9-314
HB0033_X.pdf: 20-9-314
Introduced: 20-9-314