House panel backs interim study of federal funding’s impact on Montana education

The House Education Committee voted to advance a resolution asking the Legislative Fiscal Division to monitor and study how changes in federal education funding could affect Montana’s K-12 and higher education agencies.

Representative Connie Keogh, sponsor of House Joint Resolution 67, told the committee the measure is designed to track shifts in federal funding and provide timely analysis to state budget writers. Keogh said the Office of Public Instruction (OPI) currently receives about 13.9% of its funding from federal sources while the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education (OCHE) receives about 5% from federal sources; she also cited roughly 71.9 FTEs in OPI and about 22.94 positions in OCHE that are fully or partly federally funded.

"If the money comes in any other form than the, like, categorical or block grants, then House Bill 2 will possibly not be the appropriate vehicle to transfer the funds where they need to go," Keogh said, adding that a special session might be necessary if federal funds change form in ways the current budget does not accommodate.

Committee members pressed for more detail. Representative Estman asked for dollar amounts rather than percentages; Keogh said she did not have exact figures available. Representative Deming asked whether recent university layoffs were related to federal funding changes; Keogh said she was not certain what those layoffs were tied to and emphasized the resolution is meant to collect the information needed to answer such questions.

Supporters on the committee said the measure is intended as a forward-looking tool to keep legislative committees and the state’s education agencies informed. Vice Chair Romano said monitoring federal changes is prudent, especially with a new superintendent at OPI; Representative Strand said keeping the issue on the legislature’s radar would allow faster responses if problems arise.

During executive action the committee held a voice vote and recorded proxies; the clerk announced a final tally of 11 in favor and 4 opposed. The committee sent HJR 67 to the House floor.

The resolution directs the Legislative Fiscal Division to review federal directives, estimate how reductions or alterations of federal revenue could affect agency operations and staffing, and report interim findings to education and budget committees. The committee did not provide dollar totals with the resolution; Keogh and members said those figures would be part of the follow-up analysis.

The committee closed the item and moved on to a separate interim-study resolution on early literacy and numeracy.