Revise early literacy targeted intervention laws

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AN ACT GENERALLY REVISING THE EARLY LITERACY TARGETED INTERVENTION PROGRAM;
INCREASING THE SCOPE OF THE TARGETED INTERVENTIONS TO INCLUDE SCHOLASTIC LITERACY;
PROVIDING THAT A SCHOOL DISTRICT MAY OPT IN TO ENROLLING NO MORE THAN ONE ON-TARGET
STUDENT FOR EVERY FIVE ELIGIBLE STUDENTS IN A CLASSROOM-BASED INTERVENTION OR
JUMPSTART INTERVENTION; PROVIDING THAT A SCHOOL DISTRICT MAY COUNT AN ON-TARGET
STUDENT ENROLLED IN A CLASSROOM-BASED OR JUMPSTART INTERVENTION PROGRAM FOR ANB
PURPOSES; AMENDING SECTIONS 20-7-1801, 20-7-1802, 20-7-1803, AND 20-7-1804, MCA; AND
PROVIDING AN IMMEDIATE EFFECTIVE DATE AND AN APPLICABILITY DATE.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:
Section 1. Section 20-7-1801, MCA, is amended to read:
"20-7-1801. Findings -- purpose -- legislative intent. (1) The legislature finds that the ability to read
and do mathematics at or above grade level is essential for educational success. The legislature also finds that
too many Montana children are not reading proficient in reading or math at the end of 3rd grade.
(2) The purposes of this bill part are to:
(a) provide parents with voluntary early scholastic literacy interventions for their children;
(b) increase the number of children who are reading proficient in reading and math at the end of
3rd grade and in so doing help those children develop their full educational potential pursuant to Article X,
section 1(1), of the Montana constitution; and
(c) foster a strong economic return for the state on early scholastic literacy investment through
enhancing Montana's skilled workforce and decreasing future reliance on social programs and the criminal
justice system.
(3) The legislature intends that the board of public education, the office of public instruction, and
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the boards of trustees of school districts collaborate to implement this part and achieve the purposes under
subsection (2).
(4) The legislature further intends that the board of public education, the office of public instruction,
and the boards of trustees of school districts collaborate on an ongoing basis to gather, analyze, and make
available outcome data and continually refine the interventions to increase the efficacy and efficiency of each
intervention."
Section 2. Section 20-7-1802, MCA, is amended to read:
"20-7-1802. Definitions. As used in this part, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the
following definitions apply:
(1) "Early scholastic literacy targeted intervention" or "intervention" means, as further described in
20-7-1803, any of the following:
(a) a classroom-based program;
(b) a home-based program; or
(c) a jumpstart program.
(2) "Eligible child" means a child who is determined through the selected evaluation methodology
selected by the board of public education pursuant to 20-7-1803 to be below a trajectory leading to reading
proficiency or math proficiency at the end of 3rd grade.
(3) "Evaluation methodology" means a research-based methodology, instrument, or assessment
selected by the board of public education pursuant to 20-7-1803 to determine, based on a child's age or grade
level, whether the child is above, at, or below a developmental trajectory leading to reading proficiency or math
proficiency on completion of 3rd grade.
(4) "On-target child" means a child who is determined through the selected evaluation
methodology to be at or above a trajectory leading to reading proficiency or math proficiency at the end of 3rd
grade.
(5) "Scholastic literacy" means a comprehensive competency in a variety of academic standards
and developmental domains necessary to prepare a child to be successful in the child's primary, secondary,
and postsecondary pursuits. The academic standards include English language arts, literacy, mathematics, and
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numeracy.
(4)(6) "Trustees" means the board of trustees of an elementary or K-12 school district."
Section 3. Section 20-7-1803, MCA, is amended to read:
"20-7-1803. Early scholastic literacy targeted interventions. (1) The trustees of a school district
may provide eligible children with any one or more of the interventions described in this section. This part may
not be construed to limit the duty or authority of trustees to provide educational opportunities described
elsewhere in this title.
(2) The board of public education shall determine an select at least one evaluation methodology to
determine, based on a child's age or grade level, whether the child is above, at, or below a developmental
trajectory leading to reading or math proficiency on completion of 3rd grade. The evaluation must be:
(a) developmentally appropriate;
(b) research-based;
(c) cost-effective; and
(d) if possible, aligned with formative assessments that inform instruction in the classroom-based
program and the jumpstart program.
(3) The superintendent of public instruction shall provide school districts with access to and
technical support for the evaluation methodology, instrument, or assessment determined selected by the board
of public education.
(4) A child may not be evaluated for the purposes of this part unless requested by the child's
parent or guardian. The trustees may administer the evaluation methodology in April, May, or June to no sooner
than 5 months prior to enrolling or upon enrollment of a child who will be 4 years of age or older on or before
the following September 10 and who has not yet entered 3rd grade at the time the evaluation methodology is
administered. A child who is evaluated to be below trajectory for 3rd-grade reading proficiency or 3rd-grade
math proficiency for the child's age or grade level is an eligible child for the subsequent school year. A child's
eligibility must be reevaluated using the evaluation methodology at least annually.
(5) (a) For an eligible child who is 4 years of age or older on or before September 10 of the year in
which the child is to participate in the program and who is not entering and who has not completed
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kindergarten, the trustees may offer a classroom-based program, which may be a half-time or full-time program.
A full-time program must allow a parent or guardian to enroll the child half-time.
(b) The classroom-based program must align with developmentally appropriate early education
learning standards as determined by the board of public education. The standards must include a requirement
for ongoing evaluation of student progress used to tailor instruction to specific student needs.
(6) (a) For an eligible child who is 4 years of age or older on or before September 10 of the year in
which the child is to participate in the program and who has not yet completed 2nd grade, the trustees may
offer a home-based program.
(b) The home-based program must be selected by the board of public education and must:
(i) be operated by a nonprofit entity;
(ii) be research-based and proven effective at developing early scholastic literacy skills in
populations at risk of not being reading proficient in reading or math at the end of 3rd grade;
(iii) foster parental engagement; and
(iv) have a cost of no more than $1,000 a year for each child.
(c) The superintendent of public instruction shall provide school districts with access to and
technical support for the home-based early scholastic literacy program.
(7) (a) For an eligible child who is 5 years of age or older on or before September 10 of the year in
which the child is to participate in the program and who has not yet completed 3rd grade, the trustees may offer
a jumpstart program.
(b) The jumpstart program must:
(i) take place during the time between the end of one school calendar year and the start of the
next school calendar year, as determined by the trustees, preceding a child's entry into kindergarten, 1st grade,
2nd grade, or 3rd grade;
(ii) be at least 4 weeks in duration and provide at least 120 instructional hours;
(iii) be aligned to a framework determined by the board of public education;
(iv) be designed in a manner to increase the likelihood of a child being evaluated at the end of the
ensuing school year to be at or above a trajectory leading to reading proficiency or math proficiency at the end
of 3rd grade."
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Section 4. Section 20-7-1804, MCA, is amended to read:
"20-7-1804. Early scholastic literacy targeted interventions -- funding -- reporting. (1) An eligible
child participating in a classroom-based program pursuant to 20-7-1803(5) must be included in enrollment
counts for the purpose of ANB calculations in the manner described in 20-9-311.
(2) The superintendent of public instruction shall pay for the costs for an eligible child participating
in a home-based program pursuant to 20-7-1803(6) from funds appropriated for this purpose. The cost for each
child may not exceed $1,000 a year. If the annual appropriation for this program is not sufficient to fully fund all
eligible children participating in the home-based program, the superintendent shall limit participation on a first-
come, first-served basis.
(3) An eligible child participating in a jumpstart program pursuant to 20-7-1803(7) must be counted
as quarter-time enrollment for the purpose of ANB calculations pursuant to 20-9-311.
(4) Trustees offering an one or more early scholastic literacy targeted intervention programs shall
closely monitor the each program and report annually to the superintendent of public instruction on the efficacy
of the each program no later than July 15. The superintendent shall collaborate with trustees in maximizing the
efficiency of fulfilling this reporting requirement. The report must include anonymized information on student
progress, including the student's performance on:
(a) the evaluation methodology that led to eligibility for the program;
(b) any formative assessments administered;
(c) if administered, the evaluation methodology at the end of the school year in which intervention
was provided; and
(d) any statewide reading and math assessments administered in grades 4 through 6.
(5) Pursuant to 20-7-104, the superintendent of public instruction shall monitor early scholastic
literacy targeted interventions and gather data to evaluate the efficacy of the interventions while protecting the
privacy rights of students and families. The superintendent shall report, in accordance with 5-11-210, to the
education interim committee and the education interim budget committee no later than September 1 annually.
The report must contain a comparison analysis by intervention type, including no intervention, and must
include:
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(a) the number of participating and nonparticipating children and districts;
(b) longitudinal data displaying the proficiency level of participating and nonparticipating children at
each grade level following participation in an intervention;
(c) at a time when the data is available, long-term outcome data for participants and
nonparticipants, including but not limited to:
(i) assessment data in 8th grade and high school;
(ii) high school graduation rates; and
(iii) postsecondary participation rates; and
(d) a list of schools offering one or more targeted interventions and a list of the matched
comparable nonparticipating schools that on the most recent 4th grade statewide reading assessment and
math assessment:
(i) had 75% or more of its students score at proficient or above; or
(ii) improved the percentage of students scoring at proficient or above by 10 or more percentage
points."
Section 5. Early scholastic literacy targeted intervention -- optional enrollment -- on-target
students. (1) To encourage school districts to foster inclusive learning environments with heterogenous
populations of early learners and based on research and evidence-based practices which demonstrate that
having students with a wide range of skills benefits all students enrolled in an early scholastic literacy targeted
intervention program, a school district that provides a classroom program pursuant to 20-7-1083(5), or a
jumpstart program pursuant to 20-7-1803(7), may opt in to enrolling on-target children into the targeted
intervention program. A district is not required to enroll an on-target child in a classroom or jumpstart program
under this section.
(2) A district that opts in to enrolling on-target children into the classroom or jumpstart targeted
intervention program may admit a maximum of one on-target child for every five eligible children enrolled in the
targeted intervention program.
(3) An on-target child that is enrolled in a classroom or jumpstart targeted intervention program
under this section is entitled to be counted in the enrollment count for ANB purposes, pursuant to 20-7-1804(1)
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for an on-target student enrolled in a classroom program or 20-7-1804(3) for an on-target student enrolled in a
jumpstart program.
Section 6. Directions to code commissioner. Whenever a reference to "early literacy" appears in
relation to a targeted intervention or a jumpstart program in Title 5 or Title 20 and in all law enacted by the 69th
legislature, the code commissioner is directed to change the reference to "early scholastic literacy".
Section 7. Codification instruction. [Section 5] is intended to be codified as an integral part of Title
20, chapter 7, part 18, and the provisions of Title 20, chapter 7, part 18, apply to [section 5].
Section 8. Effective date. [This act] is effective on passage and approval.
Section 9. Coordination instruction. If both House Bill No. 338 and [this act] are passed and
approved, then House Bill No. 338 is void.
Section 10. Transition. A school district may administer an evaluation methodology for math
proficiency as soon as the methodology is determined by the board of public education pursuant to 20-7-1803,
and a district may incorporate scholastic literacy in jumpstart programs starting on or after [the effective date of
this act].
Section 11. Applicability. [This act] applies to students enrolled in an early scholastic literacy
intervention program on or after May 1, 2025.
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I hereby certify that the within bill,
HB 628, originated in the House.
___________________________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
___________________________________________
Speaker of the House
Signed this _______________________________day
of____________________________________, 2025.
___________________________________________
President of the Senate
Signed this _______________________________day
of____________________________________, 2025.
HOUSE BILL NO. 628
INTRODUCED BY M. NIKOLAKAKOS, S. NOVAK, R. GREGG, D. BEDEY, J. FULLER, L. JONES, W.
MCKAMEY, R. MINER, B. BARKER, N. DURAM, G. NIKOLAKAKOS, M. ROMANO, J. TREBAS, S. ESSMANN
AN ACT GENERALLY REVISING THE EARLY LITERACY TARGETED INTERVENTION PROGRAM;
INCREASING THE SCOPE OF THE TARGETED INTERVENTIONS TO INCLUDE SCHOLASTIC LITERACY;
PROVIDING THAT A SCHOOL DISTRICT MAY OPT IN TO ENROLLING NO MORE THAN ONE ON-TARGET
STUDENT FOR EVERY FIVE ELIGIBLE STUDENTS IN A CLASSROOM-BASED INTERVENTION OR
JUMPSTART INTERVENTION; PROVIDING THAT A SCHOOL DISTRICT MAY COUNT AN ON-TARGET
STUDENT ENROLLED IN A CLASSROOM-BASED OR JUMPSTART INTERVENTION PROGRAM FOR ANB
PURPOSES; AMENDING SECTIONS 20-7-1801, 20-7-1802, 20-7-1803, AND 20-7-1804, MCA; AND
PROVIDING AN IMMEDIATE EFFECTIVE DATE AND AN APPLICABILITY DATE.