Billings School District Weighs Spending Priorities After Levy Rejection

Voters in Billings rejected the latest public school levy, a result that now forces district leaders to set new spending limits before the next academic year begins.

The defeat aligns Billings with Helena on the same outcome and arrives while the district manages a sharp rise in English learner enrollment. Billings Public Schools opened its charter academy in fall 2024 to serve those students. The program addresses growth from 25 English learners in 2015 to 348 by fall 2023. Without added levy funds, choices about class sizes, materials and staff support at the academy will rest on existing revenue streams.

Teacher Pay and Classroom Grants

Starting wages for the upcoming school year stand at $50,000 for bachelor's degree holders and reach $58,000 for those with master's degrees. Those rates reflect the most recent teacher contract. The Billings Education Foundation separately awarded $150,000 in classroom grants during the prior year and continues weekly Reading Rocks sessions through the summer to limit learning loss. District staff must now decide whether those grant levels and summer sessions can continue at the same scale if overall revenue stays flat.

State records show Montana public school districts face more than $100 million in underfunding. Billings officials have already absorbed that gap through prior cuts. The failed levy adds another constraint on top of those shortfalls.

Next Steps for Budget Decisions

School board members will review enrollment data and program costs at upcoming meetings. They must balance commitments to the charter academy against requests from other buildings. The Billings Education Foundation has signaled it will keep its grant cycle open, yet the foundation cannot replace lost levy dollars. Administrators will present revised spending plans once final student counts are confirmed later this summer.