Disability Rights Montana and the Montana Quality Education Coalition, two organizations that advocate for public school students, filed a lawsuit Tuesday challenging the constitutionality of a new state law that grants parents of students with special needs direct access to state education funding.

HB 393 emerged as a key victory for in-state and national school choice advocates last session. The law allows students with disabilities defined in the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act to participate in an education savings account program that enables their parents to obtain reimbursements from the state for tutoring, educational therapy, online programs and other private services. To fund the accounts, HB 393 directs districts to return state dollars associated with participating students to the Office of Public Instruction.

During the 2023 session, legislative staff reported that 21,127 students statewide would qualify for the program, equating to a transfer of roughly $140 million into savings accounts if all eligible students chose to participate. Supporters of the bill argued that actual participation rates are likely to be much lower.

The plaintiffs are now presenting in court a key criticism raised by HB 393’s opponents last year: that the education savings accounts pull money directly from local school district general funds without reducing the overall costs of special education services for students who opt to remain in public schools.

Montana Free Press: New special education accounts draw legal challenge