20-5-323. Tuition and transportation rates. (1) Except as provided in subsections (3) through (5), whenever a child has approval to attend a school outside of the child's district of residence under the provisions of 20-5-320 or 20-5-321, the basis of the rate of tuition is a flat rate for each of the 15 district-size groupings determined by rule by the superintendent of public instruction by March 15 of each year, using statewide district expenditure and revenue data for the general fund, debt service fund, and retirement fund to determine the average district contribution.
     (2) The tuition for children with disabilities must be determined under rules adopted by the superintendent of public instruction for the calculation of tuition for special education pupils.
     (3) The tuition rate for out-of-district placement pursuant to 20-5-321(1)(d) and (1)(e) for a student without disabilities who requires a program with costs that exceed the average district costs must be determined as the actual individual costs of providing that program according to the following:
     (a) the district of attendance and the district, person, or entity responsible for the tuition payments shall approve an agreement with the district of attendance for the tuition cost; and
     (b) for a Montana resident student, the average district per-ANB foundation payment amount received in the year for which the tuition charges are calculated must be subtracted from the per-student program costs for a Montana resident student.
     (4) When a child attends a public school of another state or province, the amount of daily tuition may not be greater than the average annual cost per student in the child's district of residence. This calculation for tuition purposes is determined by totaling all of the expenditures for all of the district budgeted funds for the preceding school fiscal year and dividing that amount by the October 1 enrollment in the preceding school fiscal year. For the purposes of this subsection, the following do not apply:
     (a) placement of a child with disabilities pursuant to Title 20, chapter 7, part 4;
     (b) placement made in a state or province with a reciprocal tuition agreement pursuant to 20-5-314;
     (c) an order issued under Title 40, chapter 4, part 2; or
     (d) out-of-state placement by a state agency.
     (5) When a child is placed by a state agency in an out-of-state residential facility, the state agency making the placement is responsible for the education costs resulting from the placement.
     (6) The amount, if any, charged for transportation may not exceed the lesser of the average transportation cost per student in the child's district of residence or 21.25 cents per mile. The average expenditures for the district transportation fund for the preceding school fiscal year must be calculated by dividing the transportation fund expenditures by the October 1 enrollment for the preceding fiscal year.

     History: En. Sec. 4, Ch. 563, L. 1993; amd. Sec. 60, Ch. 633, L. 1993; amd. Sec. 2, Ch. 529, L. 1997.