Education

died · Montana · House May 22, 2025

HB 663: Revise education laws related to diversity, equity, and inclusion

HB 663 prohibits Montana public universities and eligible educational institutions from considering race, color, ethnicity, or national origin in admissions, hiring, scholarships, financial aid, or program participation. The bill bans using applicant or student demographic data for decisions and requires institutions to withhold such information from admissions officers until decisions are final. It creates a private right to sue for violations, including a fixed $4,000 statutory penalty per violation, plus compensatory or punitive damages, and waives state immunity for such cases. The bill, which stalled in committee in May 2025, would have taken effect October 1, 2026, if enacted.

Topics ✗ EducationOpposes EducationProhibits DEI considerations in admissions/hiring, restricting diversity programs in higher education, directly opposing equity-focused educational policies.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✗ Opposes Education

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died · Montana · House May 20, 2025

HB 945: Create the early childhood education and child care infrastructure grant program

HB 945 aimed to establish the Early Childhood Education and Child Care Infrastructure Grant Program in Montana. This program would have provided up to $10 million in grants to licensed child care facilities and school districts across the state. The grants were intended to fund capital expenses, such as property acquisition, construction, renovation, and equipment purchases, to create new or expand existing child care programs. Recipients of grants $50,000 or more would have been required to provide matching funds or in-kind contributions. The bill also set limits on the maximum funding per county and per individual project.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationProvides $10M in grants for early childhood education infrastructure, expanding access and funding for child care programs in schools.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✗ Voted No ✗ Opposes Education

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died · Montana · House May 20, 2025

HB 457: Revise best beginnings eligibility

HB 457 aimed to modify the Best Beginnings Child Care Scholarship Program. It proposed changing the family income eligibility requirement from a minimum of 185% of the federal poverty level to 85% of the state median income for each family size. Additionally, the bill sought to appropriate $17 million annually from the general fund to the Department of Public Health and Human Services for the program for the biennium beginning July 1, 2025.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesBill appropriates $17M annually from general fund to expand child care program, directly funding a public service per appropriations subject.95% confidence ✓ EducationSupports EducationExpands early childhood education access by lowering income eligibility threshold and appropriating $17M annually for child care scholarships, directly increasing funding and accessibility for families.92% confidence | Rep's Stance ✗ Voted No ✗ Opposes Education

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died · Montana · House May 20, 2025

HB 382: Establish the specie legal tender act

The provided bill text, identified as Senate Bill 382, focuses on revising laws related to immunization exemptions, which differs from the title "Establish the specie legal tender act" for HB 382. Based on the provided text, this bill mandates that various entities, including state agencies, schools, child care facilities, and licensed health care providers, must accept religious or informed consent exemptions for required immunizations, injections, or medications for employment or attendance. It establishes that denying such an exemption is an unlawful discriminatory practice. Non-compliant entities could face a loss of state funding, and individuals denied an exemption may file complaints and seek compensatory damages. The bill also clarifies and strengthens the existing provisions for religious, medical, and informed consent exemptions for school attendance.

Topics ✗ EducationOpposes EducationBill mandates acceptance of immunization exemptions for school attendance, weakening health standards required for educational environments.85% confidence ✗ HealthcareOpposes HealthcareBill mandates exemptions for immunizations in healthcare settings, weakening mandatory vaccination requirements and public health initiatives.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✗ Opposes Education

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signed · Montana · House May 19, 2025

HB 168: Provide state funding for preschool children with disabilities

HB 168 revises state school funding laws to include 3- and 4-year-old children with disabilities in a school district's annual number belonging (ANB) calculations. This change enables school districts to receive state financial support for providing special education services to these preschool-aged children. Previously, these children were not included in ANB counts, meaning there was no state funding mechanism for their education, despite districts being obligated to provide these services. The bill amends Section 20-9-311, MCA, to allow their inclusion based on aggregate hours of pupil instruction.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationAdds state funding for preschool special education by including disabled children in ANB calculations, directly addressing school finance needs for K-12 education access.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✗ Voted No ✗ Opposes Education

signed · Montana · House May 19, 2025

HB 515: Generally revise laws relating to school facilities consolidating two existing state special revenue accounts

HB 515 revises state laws concerning funding for school facilities and technology, directly affecting school districts across the state. The bill consolidates two existing state special revenue accounts and increases the amount and multiplier in the state's major maintenance aid formula. These changes are intended to provide more funding to school districts for significant upkeep projects without impacting property taxpayers. Additionally, it revises statutes related to state school technology payments and allows natural resource development payments to support state major maintenance aid and debt service assistance.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesIncreases school maintenance funding via revised aid formula without raising property taxes, aligns with fiscal responsibility and public service funding.92% confidence ✓ EducationSupports EducationBill increases school facility funding via revised maintenance aid formula, directly supporting K-12 infrastructure improvements without taxpayer impact.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✗ Voted No ✗ Opposes Education

signed · Montana · House May 19, 2025

HB 151: Revise educational laws pertaining to recruitment and retention and MSDB

HB 151 revises education laws related to recruitment, retention, and the Montana School for the Deaf and Blind. The bill makes educational sign language interpreters eligible for the quality educator payment and loan assistance program. It also expands the types of educational entities that can receive incentives for meeting starting teacher pay benchmarks and participate in the teacher residency program. Finally, it allows the Montana School for the Deaf and Blind to transport resident students between their homes and the school using a school bus.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationMakes sign language interpreters eligible for educator payments, expands teacher pay incentives, and improves accessibility for deaf/blind students at MSDB.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✗ Voted No ✗ Opposes Education

signed · Montana · House May 19, 2025

HB 869: Provide for the sudden cardiac arrest prevention in youth sports

HB 869, titled "Provide for the sudden cardiac arrest prevention in youth sports," establishes measures to prevent sudden cardiac arrest in youth athletes. It requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to develop informational resources on cardiac arrest symptoms and risks. Beginning in the 2026-2027 school year, schools with athletic programs must implement cardiac emergency response plans, including accessible automated external defibrillators (AEDs) and staff training in CPR and AED use. Coaches will be required to be certified in CPR, first aid, and AED use, and hold informational meetings for parents and athletes. The bill also allows coaches or officials to remove athletes exhibiting cardiac arrest symptoms, who then require written medical clearance to return to play, and clarifies that AED purchases are an allowable expenditure for school safety.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationMandates school athletic safety protocols including AEDs and CPR training, enhancing student protection within educational settings per Schools and Education subject.85% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareRequires schools to implement cardiac emergency response plans with AEDs and CPR training, directly advancing public health safety measures for youth athletes.90% confidence | Rep's Stance ✗ Voted No ✗ Opposes Education

signed · Montana · Senate May 16, 2025

SB 350: Revise participation in extracurricular activities

SB 350 revises Montana's education laws concerning extracurricular participation for home school students. The bill allows school districts or athletic organizations to restrict a home school student's ability to participate in extracurricular activities if that student is not a United States citizen or not a resident of Montana. Previously, such restrictions were generally prohibited solely based on the student's home school enrollment. All other existing rules, such as home school students meeting the same participation standards as full-time students, remain in effect.

Topics ✗ EducationOpposes EducationRestricts homeschool students' extracurricular access based on citizenship/residency, limiting educational participation for a specific group.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✗ Opposes Education

signed · Montana · House May 15, 2025

HB 343: Require schools to provide religious instruction released time program

HB 343 requires school districts to establish a program allowing students to be released from regular school attendance for religious instruction, upon written request from a parent or guardian. This program must provide at least one hour of released time per week for religious instruction. The bill also mandates that school districts adopt a policy to award academic credit for completed religious instruction courses. Credit evaluation must be based on secular criteria, such as class hours and course materials, without regard to the religious content. Public school property or funds cannot be used for the religious instruction itself.

Topics ✗ EducationOpposes EducationMandates religious instruction program, restricting secular curriculum options in public schools.90% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✗ Opposes Education