_____________ bill NO. _____________

INTRODUCED BY _________________________________________________

By Request of the ****

A BILL FOR AN ACT ENTITLED: "AN ACT ESTABLISHING THE DRIVING THE FUTURE GRANT PROGRAM TO SUPPORT THE RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION OF NEW SCHOOL BUS DRIVERS; PROVIDING AN APPROPRIATION; and PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE."

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:

NEW SECTION. Section 1. Driving the future grant program -- administration. (1) There is a driving the future grant program administered by the superintendent of public instruction. The purpose of the grant program is to support the recruitment and retention of new school bus drivers in rural school districts.

(2) To be eligible for a grant, a school district must:

(a) have at least one impacted school as defined in 20-4-502; and

(b) provide financial support for the training or licensing of new school bus drivers of at least $1,000 in 1 or more years during the first 3 years of the driver's employment in the form of a stipend or training reimbursement in addition to the driver's regular wages.

(3) The superintendent of public instruction shall, by June 15, provide a $500 grant from money appropriated for this purpose to an eligible school district that provides, between the first and the last business day of May, documentation as determined by the superintendent of public instruction establishing that the district has met the requirement under subsection (2)(b) for that year on behalf of a driver currently employed by the district.

(4) A school district receiving a grant under this section shall deposit the money in the fund from which the district provided the financial support under subsection (2)(b).

(5) If the money appropriated for the grants is not enough to provide the full amount for each eligible district, the superintendent of public instruction shall ask the state budget director to submit a request for a supplemental appropriation in the second year of the biennium that is sufficient to complete the funding of the grants.

NEW SECTION. Section 2. Appropriation. There is appropriated $180,000 from the state general fund to the office of public instruction for each fiscal year of the biennium beginning July 1, 2021, for the grants provided under [section 1]. The legislature intends that the appropriation be considered as part of the ongoing base for the next legislative session.

NEW SECTION. Section 3. Codification instruction. [Section 1] is intended to be codified as an integral part of Title 20, chapter 10, part 1, and the provisions of Title 20, chapter 10, part 1, apply to [section 1].

NEW SECTION. Section 4. Effective date. [This act] is effective July 1, 2021.