# Montana SB 486: Revise equal opportunity education savings account funding Montana SB 486, Revise equal opportunity education savings account funding, is a 69th Legislature, Regular Session (2025) Senate bill sponsored by Sue Vinton (Republican); status signed, last action 2025-05-08 (Chapter Number Assigned); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MT-SB486-2025 - As of: 2026-10-12 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: Montana SB 486 - State: Montana - Session: 69th Legislature, Regular Session (2025) - Title: Revise equal opportunity education savings account funding - Status: signed - Chamber: Senate - Introduced: 2025-02-25 - Last action: 2025-05-08, Chapter Number Assigned - Sponsor: Sue Vinton (Republican) - Cosponsors: 1 - Subjects: Education - K-12, Education - School Finance, Developmental Disabilities - Touches household money: yes - Roll calls: 4 (292 yes, 6 no in all) - Economic provisions PRIA read: 5 ## Summary No summary available. ## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read - Monthly payments and 95/5 split for education savings accounts: benefit, medium. Districts send a monthly payment for each participating student. The monthly amount equals the student’s annual ESA amount divided by 10. Payments are due by the 10th of the month after each BASE aid payment for August through May. The state deposits 95% into the student’s special needs education s… - Changes start July 1, 2025: benefit, low. This law takes effect July 1, 2025. - Education accounts close at age 24: cost, medium. When a participating student turns 24, the education savings account closes. Any money left in the account goes back to the state guarantee account. Plan to use funds before age 24. - State fronts first-year funds for education, later payback: mixed, medium. A district can choose to have the state pay a student’s ESA amount in the first year. The state uses BASE aid money to make that first-year payment. In the first year after the student stops participating, the state reduces the district’s BASE aid by the same amount, plus the same inflation adjustm… - District funding source and student count rules: mixed, low. Districts must use their general fund to make ESA remittance payments and cannot use the state guarantee account. The state counts each participating student in the resident district’s funding student count used for state aid. No other district can count that student, and the student is not conside… ## Sponsors and cosponsors - Sponsor: Sue Vinton (Republican), Senate - Cosponsor: Eric Tilleman (Republican), House ## Roll call votes | Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 2025-04-11 | House | Do Concur | pass | 99 | 0 | | | 2025-04-11 | House | Do Concur | pass | 94 | 6 | | | 2025-03-06 | Senate | Do Pass | pass | 50 | 0 | | | 2025-03-06 | Senate | Do Pass | pass | 49 | 0 | | ## Actions (28) - 2025-05-08: Chapter Number Assigned (Senate) - 2025-05-05: Signed by Governor (Senate) - 2025-04-25: Transmitted to Governor (Senate) - 2025-04-25: Signed by Speaker (House) - 2025-04-21: Signed by President (Senate) - 2025-04-13: Returned from Enrolling (Senate) - 2025-04-11: Sent to Enrolling (Senate) - 2025-04-11: 3rd Reading (House) - 2025-04-11: 2nd Reading (House) - 2025-04-10: Committee Report (House) - 2025-04-09: Committee Executive Action (House) - 2025-04-07: Hearing (House) - 2025-04-06: Hearing (House) - 2025-03-17: 1st Reading (House) - 2025-03-17: Referred to Committee (House) - 2025-03-07: Transmitted to House (Senate) - 2025-03-06: 3rd Reading (Senate) - 2025-03-06: 2nd Reading (Senate) - 2025-03-05: Fiscal Note Printed (Senate) - 2025-03-04: Fiscal Note Unsigned (Senate) - 2025-03-04: Fiscal Note Received (Senate) - 2025-03-04: Committee Report (Senate) - 2025-02-27: Committee Executive Action (Senate) - 2025-02-26: Hearing (Senate) - 2025-02-26: Referred to Committee (Senate) - 2025-02-25: Fiscal Note Requested (Senate) - 2025-02-25: 1st Reading (Senate) - 2025-02-25: Introduced (Senate) ## Bill text - Enrolled, 2025-04-12: [PDF](https://docs.legmt.gov/download-ticket?ticketId=bbf964a7-effe-4479-b8f7-51bf54a7de9c) - Introduced, 2025-02-25: [PDF](https://docs.legmt.gov/download-ticket?ticketId=c85416e3-01df-479c-8591-ed2793a86ae5) ## Related bills - SB 437: Revise definition of sex in Montana law (signed) - HB 831: Increase elderly homeowner and renter income tax credit (vetoed) - HB 628: Revise early literacy targeted intervention laws (vetoed) - SB 410: Provide for Montana genomic security act (vetoed) - SB 422: Generally revise laws relating to insurance coverage relating to cancer (vetoed) - SB 424: Revising the disabled veteran property tax assistance program (vetoed) ## Sources - [Enrolled (PDF)](https://docs.legmt.gov/download-ticket?ticketId=bbf964a7-effe-4479-b8f7-51bf54a7de9c) - [Introduced (PDF)](https://docs.legmt.gov/download-ticket?ticketId=c85416e3-01df-479c-8591-ed2793a86ae5) ## Related - [SB 437: Revise definition of sex in Montana law](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MT-SB437-2025) - [HB 831: Increase elderly homeowner and renter income tax credit](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MT-HB831-2025) - [HB 628: Revise early literacy targeted intervention laws](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MT-HB628-2025) - [SB 410: Provide for Montana genomic security act](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MT-SB410-2025) - [SB 422: Generally revise laws relating to insurance coverage relating to cancer](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MT-SB422-2025) - [SB 424: Revising the disabled veteran property tax assistance program](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MT-SB424-2025) - [Montana bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/montana/bills) - [Montana state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/montana) - [All state legislation](https://policyrisk.com/state-bills) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MT-SB486-2025 (as of 2026-10-12).