Revise laws relating to the adult basic education fund and its distribution.
Summary
HB 294 would transfer administration of Montana’s Adult Basic Education Fund from the Office of Public Instruction to the Department of Labor and Industry. The bill amends section 20-7-712, MCA, to replace references to the superintendent of public instruction with the Department of Labor and Industry for directing the distribution of adult basic education appropriations and for setting the financial administration, accounting, and reporting policies for those funds.
The bill also preserves the existing structure of adult basic education support, allowing legislative appropriations to be used for programs in school districts, community college districts, tribal colleges, public libraries, community-based organizations, and consortia of those entities. It includes a directive for the secretary of state to send a copy of the act to each federally recognized tribal government in Montana and sets an effective date of July 1, 2025.
Impact
HB 294 would shift statutory responsibility for adult basic education funding from the education agency to the labor agency, changing which state department administers and oversees the Adult Basic Education Fund. This would affect how grants or appropriated funds are distributed, managed, and reported, but it does not appear to change the eligible recipients or the basic purpose of the program. The bill amends MCA section 20-7-712 and would alter administrative references throughout that statute if enacted.
Sentiment
There is limited recorded discussion or voting history available for HB 294, and no committee transcript is provided. Based on the bill text, the measure appears administrative and noncontroversial on its face, focused on moving program oversight rather than changing eligibility or funding levels. However, the bill was ultimately withdrawn under House Rule H30-50(3)(b), indicating it did not advance to enactment in its introduced form.
Contention
No specific points of contention are documented in the available materials. The main policy question implied by the bill is whether adult basic education should be administered by the Office of Public Instruction or the Department of Labor and Industry, which could matter to stakeholders concerned with agency expertise, program coordination, and funding oversight. Potentially affected parties include school districts, tribal colleges, community colleges, libraries, community-based organizations, and adult learners, but no opposition or support from those groups is recorded here.