Senate hearing on SB 215 spotlights school-funding transparency and opposition from education groups

Sen. Becky Beard, sponsor of Senate Bill 215, told the Senate Education Committee that the bill would “promote the identification of educationally relevant factors while establishing funding formulae and budgets” and would require greater transparency so taxpayers can understand how K‑12 funding is allocated.

The bill drew unanimous testimony in opposition from school-district and education organizations at the Jan. 1 hearing before the Montana Senate Education Committee, which heard detailed objections about legality, measurement and costs. No proponents appeared in person or online.

The opposition’s nut graf: Several state education groups argued SB 215 would disrupt long‑standing state funding law, restate issues already scheduled for the statutorily required decennial study of school funding, and raise significant fiscal and practical concerns about tying inflationary adjustments to measures of student achievement.

Deborah Silk, associate executive director and general counsel for the Montana School Boards Association, told the committee that Title 20’s current statutory framework — including 20‑9‑309 and related provisions developed after the Columbia Falls litigation — has governed Montana…