Burden of funding school facilities increasingly falls to Montana taxpayers

School districts across the state are trying to update their aging buildings and find room for rising enrollments – and worrying that almost all of the money they need to do so comes from local property taxes.

Since the Montana Legislature declined to appropriate money to the Quality Schools Grant Program in its 2015 session, the state’s sole source of assistance with school buildings comes in the form of a program that attempts to help poorer districts that have passed bonds for capital expenditure projects.

DILLON KATO [email protected]

Full Story: http://missoulian.com/news/state-and-regional/burden-of-funding-school-facilities-increasingly-falls-to-montana-taxpayers/article_93167ccc-4130-5055-8150-cfe82253c68a.html

Average age of Montana school buildings: 53 years – Montana Schools – A Building Crisis http://www.matr.net/article-70240.html

Lack of state funding leaves many Montana schools in disrepair http://www.matr.net/article-70224.html

Levies fund learning – Billings taxpayers foot the bill for schools’ technology upgrades http://www.matr.net/article-70258.html