[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6339212,"mediaKeyId","2263335-f78fecf13d6f3d410d3a5dabada6465a","parentId",2263335,"title","Committee executive actions: HB 56 and HB 182 advance; HB 148 fails and is tabled","audioSeconds",168,"startMs",6828000,"endMs",6996000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2263335-f78fecf13d6f3d410d3a5dabada6465a&start=6828&end=6996","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2263335-f78fecf13d6f3d410d3a5dabada6465a/thumbnail_6828000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6339212/Montana/Committee-executive-actions-HB-56-and-HB-182-advance-HB-148-fails-and-is-tabled","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6339212-519df856b55a5ab8e2cacdee7dede554/orig.mp4?Expires=1771030462&Signature=d21Z~YpDR-bfpUZCpijqLSXPtR9M6ImzNIr9elYGzfv3TupGTLfjawWuCHRVCaruIZLZjfNmTSQDBeB5pGEfZoEwyZ6PeoYSpTOEn4x1xWl7pG19KtB30dCTuT6CYdo05AWknmBs-k~~kwvruuXvLgiYKuh71mk9~lncvYsIJckhmYre90linAk-BEi4YhLTV3D-lCfy1U7whC~~lfmJB-DrokRnoq44eSyC3AHy1VA-XB9kP2UtCiAC7mDu2iFpFL0O6MQrXBBzWvxecLiMUy3p4kThDGlf4BigKfgbGHruNdauEJptl3RnnOmF-OWr0rmIEDFCeECgTF3uQdAbDw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Montana Legislature","date","2025-02-11T00:00:00Z","article","The committee took several executive actions at the close of the session.

HB 56: A motion for \"do pass as thrice amended\" on House Bill 56 carried. The committee reported a roll-call result of 19 yes and 4 no; the chair announced the bill passed as thrice amended.

HB 148: A roll-call vote on a motion related to House Bill 148 failed on a 8-15 vote (8 yes, 15 no). Following the failed motion, members moved to reverse and table the bill; the chair noted the bill was tabled.

HB 182: A motion for do-pass on House Bill 182 carried on a roll call of 15 yes and 8 no and the committee recorded that HB 182 passed.

The committee noted other items and adjourned; committee staff said additional reports and amendments on forthcoming unemployment insurance and other items would be circulated to members before further action.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","House Appropriations Committee - 02/11/2025","oneSentenceSummary","The committee recorded final executive actions on multiple bills: HB 56 passed as thrice amended, HB 148 failed on roll call and was tabled, and HB 182 passed on a do-pass motion.","taxTitle","2025 Legislature MT, Montana","taxId",77694,"location","Montana","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6339217,"House Bill 252 hearing: sponsors, agencies and districts back targeted teacher-pay and credentials investments",2316,4165000,6481000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2263335-f78fecf13d6f3d410d3a5dabada6465a&start=4165&end=6481","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2263335-f78fecf13d6f3d410d3a5dabada6465a/thumbnail_4165000.jpg","/articles/6339217/Montana/House-Bill-252-hearing-sponsors-agencies-and-districts-back-targeted-teacher-pay-and-credentials-investments","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6339217-c872c94b52184eb649c13cdca4b61207/orig.mp4?Expires=1771030462&Signature=WNGjs9WkceacMRj7pjyRj~DqQbPPHh~hj2eOtxw2RJjYhkFeRgAbSJY4VA9QS-py3pslUHR~RMX4YXl9wN-Zvar~d4ZQWyoKrcu2S682QVXQwaQkarjhwS9TeeTv4ayfFdD3FoBCDYfJWC~oZTDOD9sCGtW7y-XuQ~1oqtsEe3vaSRHhCyVjwOFaFx4DN-ihid617LLktCcbUNugmfzENtBPLOyKvyjHZD~yHRnNE3G8jOv7qPDdzQII4IMy40YVP20xIpuQvnVsSnaU63lFyhSNGoQ8RQjFytSA1p1AVp47Kt~Pe0l7G9jV2KgndAwWsKyxdrmUEZnZP8Qk0oLwfg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Representative Lou Jones, sponsor of House Bill 252, opened the committee hearing by summarizing the bill's main goals: compress teacher salary scales to increase beginning teacher pay, direct significant funding toward early-career teachers, and create incentives for students to graduate with dual-credit and stackable career-technical credentials.

Supporters described the bill's funding and implementation mechanics. Jones said the matrix attached to the bill shows roughly $50 million intended for the teacher portion of the program, with about $20 million expected to be required initially to begin scale compression. Lance Melton of the Montana School Boards Association endorsed the bill as a necessary response to long-term wage declines among educators, told the committee that closing that gap requires targeted funding and noted that roughly 85% of K-12 spending is labor-related.

State agencies explained operational roles. Sarah Swanson, commissioner of the Montana Department of Labor and Industry, said her agency has already produced a teacher-pay analysis using cross-matched OPI wage records and the state's unemployment wage database and is prepared to maintain the analysis and help implement the bill's teacher-pay calculations. Swanson also described a planned statewide credential engine to track credentials, stackable credentials and labor-market connections. The fiscal note lists roughly $14 million for upgrades to PowerSchool and related tracking systems to enable timely reporting and automated uploads from districts.

Other supporters included the Office of Public Instruction, which submitted written support and described the bill as a step to increase teacher salaries, reduce housing pressures in some districts and expand work-based learning and dual-credit opportunities. Dylan Klapmeier, education and workforce policy advisor to the governor, confirmed the governor's support and noted that the bill's items are reflected in the proposed executive budget.

Committee members asked detailed technical questions about how payments would be calculated, the proposed timeline for rolling out credential-tracking functions, and emergency authorizations for schools with high numbers of emergency-certified teachers. Witnesses said some elements were delayed in implementation timelines to allow the relevant data systems to come online (the committee discussed phasing certain incentives beginning in later fiscal years and a December reporting deadline for analytic work). Several members said they wanted clarity about how incentive payments would be calculated at the local level and how enrollment transfers and nested elementary/high-school relationships would be tracked.

Representative Jones closed by emphasizing the bill's aim to compress the salary scale and direct funds to the classroom; he asked the committee to consider a technical amendment to ensure small, rural districts receive timely startup funds so they can meet the bill's requirements. The committee did not take final action on HB 252 at the hearing.","Supporters said HB 252 would compress salary scales, boost starting teacher pay and fund incentives for dual credit and career-technical credentials; agencies described roles, timelines and IT needs to implement the plan.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6339222,"Committee hears arguments for and against HB 320 education tax-credit program",3942,170000,4112000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2263335-f78fecf13d6f3d410d3a5dabada6465a&start=170&end=4112","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2263335-f78fecf13d6f3d410d3a5dabada6465a/thumbnail_170000.jpg","/articles/6339222/Montana/Committee-hears-arguments-for-and-against-HB-320-education-tax-credit-program","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6339222-9039ae17688b32677e7c7b147f132443/orig.mp4?Expires=1771030462&Signature=l67wMlca-4kocMbpnOFYv0WsmHNVFI3Y-6x8ZNlQGkcumLPrGsb9kJRgnyyjprjWBnlgLNDSnlQndhhSE3gazIJGTA0sSH2DPS129ldnQfEUJJUzFWx8NKRFGtIfYH6Rp6dGhojA6FX9csTdV125llS3cnNxC59Gv8ooei2aw6hsbr9MBq-hw7jPQvJOaWwl7xOvBYw8Ivv35WSQ4ujFxfA8Lgn0KS76k6ESO5MS7RXeskzHMxC9htU4EdnCABb3jvrHUfUhqCnZFZ6ZDKQ8CzTqgxj-L26Qpezo73l9geCEERoQO8FT6sTstGPgxSPd3I36YVd-7t9c3Ar4ZVL-4g__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Representative Scott (Sponsor) opened the House committee hearing on House Bill 320, a proposal to create tax-credit funded accounts to cover qualified educational expenses, and framed the session around the bill's fiscal note and administration.

Supporters said the bill would provide families flexibility to use funds for tuition, curriculum, tutoring and career training. Kendall Cotton, president and CEO of the Frontier Institute, told the committee the program's aggregate $10 million cap would be a small fraction of the state budget and would not break the state's finances. Katie Bloodgood, legislative liaison for the Office of Public Instruction, read a statement from Superintendent Henley saying HB 320 recognizes differing student needs and that parents should have flexibility to choose educational paths.

Opponents raised several concerns about the bill's costs, administration and legal vulnerability. Lance Melton of the Montana School Boards Association, speaking also for the Coalition of Advocates for Montana's Public Schools, said the bill still risks large long-term growth in credits despite recent reductions in per-donor credit maximums. Melton and others cited the fiscal note's assumptions and warned of likely litigation under Espinosa and the Montana Constitution's Article X equality guarantee. Allen Lloyd, executive director of the Montana Society of CPAs, opposed tax credits generally as a budgeting practice and said the complexity of defining eligible expenditures and multi-year carryforwards will strain Department of Revenue workloads.

Private vendors and potential program managers also testified. A representative identified as Luther, appearing on behalf of Odyssey (a for-profit vendor that administers education savings accounts in other states), urged striking a provision that limits the program manager to charitable 501(c)(3) organizations, arguing that the restriction would prevent experienced for-profit vendors from competing and raise procurement and legal costs.

State agency staff described the administrative burden the program would create. Derek Bell, division administrator at the Montana Department of Revenue, said the department expects citizen inquiries and additional compliance work to validate projected tax liability for preapproval; he noted uncertainty about the department's audit role under the bill as drafted and the staffing/time required to administer the new credits. Misty Ann Giles and Director Giles (Department of Administration) said the department's internal fund structure and rate-based divisions mean it lacks an obvious appropriation to accept and expend donations without explicit legislative appropriation, and that some oversight and procurement activities included in the bill would drive additional costs beyond the single FTE listed in the fiscal note.

Committee members pressed proponents and agency staff on key numbers in the fiscal note: the bill currently proposes a per-donor cap of $200,000; an annual claim limit of $4 million (with an asserted $10 million hard cap on total program claims) and references in the fiscal note to $24 million as the three-year accumulation figure. Witnesses disputed some of the fiscal-note assumptions (one proponent suggested roughly 17,100 private and home-school students could be eligible, while opponents suggested the true eligible population might be higher). Proponents said the program contains no automatic trigger-release mechanisms and that any future cap changes would be a legislative decision.

Representative Deming, the bill sponsor, closed by saying the bill is constitutional and framed it as a targeted way to help students currently not well served by existing public systems; he noted that the MAPS council and the program manager would post qualified expenditures and administrative details on a program website to provide transparency.

The committee took no final action on HB 320 at the hearing; the bill was returned to the record for further review.","Proponents said HB 320 would give families tax-credit funded accounts to pay for qualified education expenses; opponents warned of fiscal, administrative and constitutional risks and called for procurement and oversight changes.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Committee executive actions: HB 56 and HB 182 advance; HB 148 fails and is tabled

House Bill 252 hearing: sponsors, agencies and districts back targeted teacher-pay and credentials investments

Committee hears arguments for and against HB 320 education tax-credit program