2023 Montana Code Annotated › Title 20. Education › Chapter 6. School Districts › Part 7. K-12 School Districts › 20-6-704. Dissolution of K-12 school district

20-6-704. Dissolution of K-12 school district.
(1) Except as provided in subsection (2), in order to dissolve a K-12 district under the provisions of this section, the trustees of a district shall submit for approval to the electors of the K-12 district a proposition dissolving the K-12 district for the purpose of annexing or consolidating the K-12 district's elementary or high school program with a contiguous school district or districts in an ensuing school fiscal year under the provisions of 20-6-422 or 20-6-423.
(2) If the trustees of the school district determine that the creation or continuation of the K-12 district has resulted in or will result in the loss of federal funding for the elementary or high school programs and that it is in the best interest of the district to dissolve into the original elementary district and high school district that existed prior to the formation of the K-12 district, the trustees may dissolve the district under the following procedure:
(a) The trustees of the district shall pass a resolution requesting the county superintendent to order a dissolution of the district.
(b) When the county superintendent receives the resolution from the district, the county superintendent shall, within 10 days, order the dissolution of the K-12 district into the original elementary district and high school district, to take effect on July 1 of the ensuing school fiscal year. Within 30 days of the order, the county superintendent shall send a copy of the order to the board of county commissioners, the trustees of the district, and the superintendent of public instruction.
(3) If the entire territory of the dissolving K-12 district will be annexed to or consolidated with a contiguous district or districts, the resolution or petition required in subsection (1) or (2) must contain a description of the manner in which the real and personal property and funds of the district are to be apportioned in the dissolution of the district and the subsequent annexation to or consolidation with one or more other districts. If a portion of the dissolving K-12 district will not be annexed or consolidated with another district or districts, the resolution or petition must contain a description of the manner in which the property, funds, and financial obligations, including bonded indebtedness, of the K-12 district are to be apportioned to the district or districts whose territory is not annexed to or consolidated with another district.
(4) After the county superintendent receives the certificate of election provided for in 20-20-416 from the trustees of the K-12 district and from each district included in a consolidation proposition, the county superintendent shall determine whether the dissolution and annexation or consolidation proposition or propositions have been approved. If the K-12 district has approved the dissolution proposition and each district involved in a consolidation has approved the consolidation proposition, the county superintendent shall, within 10 days after the receipt of the election certificate, order the dissolution of the K-12 district into the original elementary district and high school district, to take effect on July 1 of the ensuing school fiscal year. Within 30 days of the order, the county superintendent shall send a copy of the dissolution order to the board of county commissioners, the trustees of the district included in the dissolution order, and the superintendent of public instruction.
(5) Whenever a K-12 district is dissolved, the following provisions apply:
(a) The trustees of the district whose territory is not annexed or consolidated upon dissolution of the K-12 district are responsible for the execution of remaining financial obligations of the K-12 district and for the apportionment between the elementary and high school programs of any obligations not identified in the resolution required under subsection (3).
(b) The provisions of 20-6-410 apply for tenure teachers in the dissolution of a K-12 district.
(c) For purposes of applying the budget limitation provisions of 20-9-308, the budget of a K-12 district during its last year of operations as a K-12 district will be prorated based on rules promulgated by the superintendent of public instruction.
History: En. Sec. 1, Ch. 285, L. 1995; amd. Sec. 2, Ch. 95, L. 1997; amd. Sec. 10, Ch. 510, L. 2005; amd. Sec. 5, Ch. 60, L. 2009.