Montana Legislature

Governor Calls Special Session on School Funding

By Kirk Siegler, 12-05-05

Governor Brian Schweitzer has called the Montana Legislature into a special session to deal with the state's school funding crisis - starting December 14th. Schweitzer simultaneously announced today his own plan to reform schools. It's a roughly $227 million dollar package, the bulk of which is one-time money to help schools better recruit and retain teachers, and help them shore up ailing retirement funds for existing teachers and all public employees in the state. The Democrat's proposal comes on the heels of two additional proposals, one from Representative Monica Lindeen (D-Huntley) and Representative Bill Glaser (R-Huntley), both outlined today in the Billings Gazette.

The move is no big surprise, as Schweitzer had hinted recently he was planning on calling one, especially as a bi-partisan interim panel on school funding reform continues to deadlock on proposals, mostly on party lines.

There are four days left over from this year's regular legislative session - and every indication is the special session next week won't last very long. Democrats control the Senate, and share control of the House, but hold the powerful house speaker position there. Whether any decision made on school funding reform will pass the muster of the courts, however, remains to be seen. Late last year the Montana Supreme Court upheld a lower court ruling that the state of Montana is shirking its constitutional obligation of funding a quality educational system.

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