School Finance Compass November 2025

Upcoming Due Dates

State School Payments

The FY2025 October State School payments are posted at the following link: State School Payments. 

The FY2025 November State School Payments are scheduled for distribution on November 25, 2025.

The October payments will include Direct State Aid, Quality Educator Component, At Risk Component, Indian Education for All, Student Achievement GAP, Data for Achievement and Special Education.

For more information, please contact Cori Opie at (406) 444-3533.

State School Entitlements

The State School Funding Entitlement Reports for FY2026 are posted at the following link:

State School Payments-Entitlements

For more information, please contact: Cori Opie at (406) 444-3533.

Compensation Expenditure Reporting and Terms of Employment – Due December 10, 2025

Districts are required to submit Compensation Expenditure reports by December 10th each year, in compliance with ARM 10.10.504. These reports include data from the previous fiscal year. Data entry may begin as soon as the MAEFAIRS system opens, and it is often beneficial to complete Compensation Expenditure Reporting alongside Infinite Campus reporting in October.

The Compensation Expenditure Reporting process gathers essential information to determine payment details for each district, specifically regarding salaries paid to district employees during the fiscal year. Several steps are required to complete the report:

1. Entering and certifying employee data in Infinite Campus.
2. Submitting the certified data in the MAEFAIRS system.

The process is designed to help schools fulfill their responsibility for transparency in the use of public funds, as required by section 20-7-104, MCA.

End of Year Personnel Collection: Infinite Campus Reporting – Due June 30^th

The End of Year Personnel (Compensation Expenditure) Collection replaces the Compensation Expenditure Terms of Employment (TOE) in AIM. All district staff employed from July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025, must be included in this collection of data and be certified through entry into Infinite Campus. Only employees certified through Infinite Campus will be available for selection in the MAEFAIRS Compensation Expenditure Report submission. Districts are required to enter all staff employed in the 2024-2025 school year into Infinite Campus by June 30, 2025, to finalize the 2025 fiscal year end process. If you do not have access to Infinite Campus or are having troubles logging in, please contact opiaimhelp@mt.gov. 

Fall Terms of Employment (TOE): Infinite Campus Certification – Due October 31^st

Infinite Campus Certification replaces the Compensation Expenditure TOE formerly in TEAMS.

All personnel information for all staff members/contractors employed during the 2024-2025 school year must be entered into the Infinite Campus system. Employee Certification is necessary for the completion of the Compensation Expenditure reporting in the MAEFAIRS system.  All employed individuals must be certified through the Infinite Campus system.

For more information, please contact Andrea Mohammadi at (406) 444-1960 or Alivia Skeslien-Jenkins at (406) 444-1964.

Requests for Changes to the TFS - Due Dec 10^th

The following steps must be completed.

Step 1: On a photocopy of the originally submitted TFS printout:

• Cross out the amount to be revised.
• Legibly write or type in the revised amount above or beside the original amount or submit a detailed excel worksheet. • In MAEFAIRS run the ESSA School Code Allocation Report. Access that by Views-> ESSA -> ESSA School Code Allocation. If the fund that you are wanting to change is split by school code, please attach a copy of the adjustments made there as well.
• Requestor must sign and date EACH page.
• Send the request and form for changes to:

Montana Office of Public Instruction Attn: Amanda Zigan PO Box 202501 Helena, MT 59620-2501 or Email: OPISchoolFinance@mt.gov 

Requests for changes can be mailed or scanned and emailed. All completed requests must be received by the OPI no later than December 10. (ARM 10.10.504).

Step 2: Email a copy of the corrected TFS to the county superintendent with an explanation of the changes requested.

Step 3: After changes have been completed by the OPI, verify that changes have been made accurately and send confirmation to the OPI.

For more information, please contact Alivia Skeslien-Jenkins at (406) 444-1964.

Active Expenditure String Tool

A spreadsheet of active expenditure strings is available on the School Finance website. All open MAEFAIRS expenditure strings that have been used since 2017 are available for review. Expenditure strings can be filtered or enter your string to determine if the coding string is valid.

For more information, please contact School Finance at OPISchoolFinance@mt.gov.

Tuition Forms for All Students and Foster-Group Home Students Completed and Entered to MAEFAIRS

Student Attendance Agreements must be completed at the time of a student’s enrollment in a school, as outlined in Section 20-5-322, MCA. For students placed in foster or group homes outside their resident district, it is essential that they are entered into the MAEFAIRS system promptly following approval by the attending district. This process ensures that resident districts can review their financial obligations or confirm their status as the resident district.

Payments for out of district students and students in foster or group homes are due in the following school year. To facilitate timely processing, please make sure to enter these agreements without delay and regularly run the relevant MAEFAIRS reports for resident districts. Forms required for this process are available on the Tuition and Attendance page of the School Finance website.

For more information, please contact Andrea Mohammadi at (406) 444-1960 or email Andrea.Mohammadi@mt.gov.

In-State Facility Tuition Claims

In accordance with Section 20-9-435, MCA, resident districts will be responsible for a portion of the education costs for students attending in-state treatment facilities contracted with the OPI. The currently contracted facilities are AWARE, Intermountain, New Day, Shodair, and Yellowstone Boys and Girls Ranch. The state facility must invoice the resident district of any obligation for tuition by August 15^th. Resident districts may access the MAEFAIRS system to run a report at any tie to see claims that have been submitted. MAEFAIRS reports should not be viewed as actual bills from the facility, but rather an opportunity to review submitted claims. The report may be found in MAEFAIRS under Views>Tuition>State Facilities District of Residence.

For more information, please contact Enly Kovis at (406) 444-1960.

QEC Planning for Superintendents and Principals

Principals and Superintendents please follow up with your teachers to ensure that their licensing is up to date. There are deadlines for licensing and verification that must be completed by December 1^st as pursuant to ARM 10.21.201. This impacts the distribution of the Quality Education Component Payment.

For more information, please contact Alivia Skeslien-Jenkins at (406)444-1964 or email Alivia.Skeslien-Jenkins@mt.gov or email us at OPISchoolFinance@mt.gov.

Bus Driver Background Checks

Per HB 745, all current and new school bus drivers who will have contact with students are required to complete a fingerprint-based background check. This applies to any transportation staff who may be alone with, or responsible for, students during routes and activity trips. This requirement is intended to help protect students and reduce potential liability for districts.

For more information, please contact Elsie Workman at (406) 444-2463.

Annual Driving Records

Annual driving records must be performed on all drivers to ensure compliance with School Bus Driver Qualifications in 20-10-103, MCA and ARM 10.64.201. Driving Records information can be requested through the Montana Department of Justice.

For more information, please contact Elsie Workman at (406) 444-2463.

Bus Routes (TR-1) Forms

By November 1 school districts must submit a TR-1 for each bus route electronically to the Superintendent of Public Instruction and provide a copy signed by the Board Chair to the County Superintendent.

By November 10 the County Superintendent must verify and electronically approve each TR-1 submitted by school districts.

For more information, please contact Elsie Workman at (406) 444-2463.

Passenger Vehicles-Vans

A district may use an 8-15 passenger vehicle/van only for school-sponsored functions or activities.

A district may not use a passenger vehicle for purposes of transporting students to or from school on a regular bus route. 20-10-129, MCA.

Passenger vehicles owned by the district is not eligible to be included in the calculations for the Bus Depreciation Reserve fund under 20-10-147, MCA. In addition, these vehicle types are not an allowable purchase from the Transportation Fund.

A “School Bus” pursuant to 20-10-101(5), MCA,  are the only allowable form of transportation that may be used when transporting students to and from school.    Other vehicles that do not meet the definition of a “School Bus” will not be reimbursed by the state or county.

For more information, please contact Elsie Workman at (406) 444-2463.

Bus Driver Certificate TR-35

All school bus drivers (including a Superintendent) must hold a valid Montana School Bus Driver Certificate (TR35) for a district to receive state reimbursement.

Qualifications for bus drivers are prescribed by 20-10-103, MCA, and by the Board of Public Education in ARM 10.64.201. The bus driver certificate forms are provided and must be maintained electronically in the Pupil Transportation System.

The Chair of the board of trustees must sign the certificate which is issued to a driver who is authorized and qualified to drive a school bus pursuant to all applicable rules, regulations, and laws. The district must retain a current copy of each bus driver’s certificate, provide a copy to the bus service contract, if applicable, and file a copy with the county superintendent. The bus driver is required to always carry a current and valid hard copy of the certificate while driving a school bus.

For more information, please contact Elsie Workman at (406) 444-2463.

Type E School Bus Requirements

Before a type E school bus is purchased, the school is required to complete a cost analysis of a traditional type A – D school bus versus the type E school bus before acquiring this bus type. This cost analysis must be on file for review. MCA 20-10-148

The analysis must detail the costs associated with purchase and operation of the school bus compared to the costs associated with purchase or contract and operation of a school bus designed to carry more than 10 passengers.  The overall purpose of the cost analysis is to demonstrate that the purchase and operation of a school bus as defined in 20-10-101(4)(a)(ii) is the most cost-effective means of transporting eligible transportees on the bus route(s).  Type E buses are required to have an overall safety rating of 5 Stars as per NHTSA.   These results must also be on file for review.

For more information, please contact Elsie Workman at (406) 444-2463

In District Special Education Permissive Tuition Levy

The Special Education Permissive Tuition Levy spreadsheet for FY2026 has been updated and posted to the OPI Webpage at the following location: Tuition and Attendance (mt.gov).

For more information, please contact Andrea Mohammadi at (406) 444-1960 desk or email opischoolfinance@mt.gov.

Upcoming Election Webinars

As the election season approaches, it is important to begin preparations to ensure a smooth and successful process. The Office of Public Instruction (OPI), in partnership with the Montana Association of School Business Officials (MASBO), will be offering an election webinar to provide valuable guidance and support.

The first webinar is scheduled for November 6, 2025, and will run from 8:30 AM to 3:30 PM. This session is designed to cover essential topics related to upcoming school district elections.

To participate in this event, please register in advance by clicking the following link: MASBO Election Webinar Registration.

2026 OPI Election Calendar Availability

The OPI has updated the election calendar for the 2026 fiscal year. The most recent version is now available on the OPI website, providing important dates and deadlines for school district elections. Calendars can be accessed through the Elections section of the website.

If your district is planning to conduct a special election, personalized assistance is available. Please reach out to Andrea Mohammadi, who can help you develop a custom election calendar tailored to your specific needs.

For more information, please contact Andrea Mohammadi at (406) 444-1960 desk or email opischoolfinance@mt.gov.

Audit Letter for FY-2025

The annual letter to auditors can be found on the OPI website by clicking this link. The letter provides general information for the fiscal year 2025 regarding issues affecting Montana school district audits and special items the OPI would like auditors to review for compliance with statute and administrative rule.

For more information, please contact Amanda Zigan (406) 444-3583 or email us at OPIAuditReports@mt.gov.

Emergency School Closures

School Closures are a local decision based on the needs of the community. Information on Emergency School Closures can be found on the School Finance Webpage. The document is titled “School District Closures – Unforeseen Emergencies.”

It is important to be familiar with the laws, but a couple of important reminders are as follows:

• Trustees should notify the County Superintendent of Schools and the OPI as soon as a school district closure has been declared.
• Trustees may close school for one school day each year for unforeseen emergencies that is not subject to a state funding reduction 20-9-806(2), MCA.
• If a school has an emergency closure for longer than the one-day exception, the Trustees may later adopt a resolution that a reasonable effort has been made to reschedule the pupil-instruction time lost. Not taking this action could result in a reduction to the school district’s BASE aid.

Adherence to the statutes is necessary to prevent reduction of state entitlement funding for the district.

Please sent notice to the OPI at OPISchoolFinance@mt.gov or call Amanda Zigan at (406) 444-3096 or contact Alivia Skeslien-Jenkins at (406) 444-1964.

Updating School Contact Information with OPI

District Clerks are responsible for keeping their district’s contact information up to date. According to § 20-3-307, MCA, Trustee Contact information is required to be updated within 14 days following the qualification and oathtaking of a newly elected trustee or for the filling of vacancy on the board (the county superintendent is responsible for providing information to the district clerk for the purpose of updating the Trustee Repository). Contact information also affects the Budget and TFS reports as well as how the AR for OPI and E-Grants updates. The instructions on how to update your schools’ information can be found at the following link: Instructions.

PERSONNEL CHANGES:  All school districts please go to the OPI website - Directory of Montana Schools - to verify your schools’ information.

Changes must be made by the Clerk in OPI Contacts for:

• Trustees (required by HB 811).
• Board chair.
• Clerk/business manager.
• Superintendent.
• Principal/Supervising Teacher.

For more information, please contact us by email at CentralUpdates@mt.gov.

OPI Application Access Guides for NEW Clerks and Superintendents

The OPI has information for new:

• District Clerks
• District Superintendents
• County Superintendents

To assist in getting set up with their new roles, please see the documents located on the School Finance webpage.

For more information, please contact us by email at opischoolfinance@mt.gov.

Sending Confidential Information

When sending confidential information to the OPI, the best method is to use the Montana File Transfer Service (FTS).  You can find the link to the Montana FTS on the School Finance home page, however, there are two requirements for the use of the Montana FTS:

• The recipient must be a state employee.
• The file must be sent to an individual (not a group email).

Regular email is not a safe or recommended communication method when sending confidential or personally identifiable information.

For more information, please email us at OPISchoolFinance@mt.gov.

OPI Compass Webpage

The OPI is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to people with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation, require an alternate format, or have questions concerning accessibility, contact the OPI ADA Coordinator, 406-444-3161, opiada@mt.gov, Relay Service: 711.