State of Montana Newsroom
Superintendent Arntzen Accepts $48.6 Million From Trust Land Revenue for Common Schools Fund
An Additional $9 Million was Accepted for the School Facility and Technology Fund
HELENA - As one of five members of the Montana Land Board, State Superintendent Elsie Arntzen accepted $57.7 million on behalf of public schools from the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) at today’s Land Board meeting. Two separate checks were presented, $48,654,303 from the Common Schools Fund for public schools and $9,034,905 from the School Facility and Technology Fund.
“This check contributes the first dollars that fund our public schools,” said Superintendent Elsie Arntzen. “I appreciate all of the work that DNRC’s Trust Lands Management team and my fellow Land Board commissioners have done over the last year to put our Montana students first. Today’s check is the largest I have had the pleasure of accepting during my tenure as State Superintendent.”
This year’s $48.6 million equates to about $323 per student in our public schools. Agriculture leases, timber sales, wheat, barley, and hay, grazing, oil and gas, coal, and mineral revenues contribute to the Common School Fund. More details can be found in DNRC’s Trust Lands Management Review. The OPI also received $9 million associated with a riverbed rent settlement. During the upcoming biennium, these funds will be used to enhance the Debt Service Assistance program described in section § 20-9-367, MCA.
During Superintendent Arntzen’s time in office, the following distributions have been made available for the benefit of Montana’s public schools:
- 2017: $43.1 million
- 2018: $41.9 million
- 2019: $45.9 million
- 2020: $41.1 million
- 2021: $47.7 million
- 2022: $46.3 million
- 2023: $48.6 million
All state trust lands are managed by the DNRC Trust Lands Management Division and benefit public schools through the sale of timber, surface, and mineral resources. The Land Board members are the five constitutionally elected officials in the state -- the Superintendent of Public Instruction, Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, and the Commissioner of Securities and Insurance.
When Montana became a state in 1889, the Enabling Act set aside a vast number of lands that support Common Schools. Today, the State manages 5.2 million surface acres and 6.2 million mineral acres in state trust lands that benefit Montana’s Common Schools.
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