State
Superintendent Linda McCulloch is one of five
members of the state Board of Land Commissioners,
which oversees the management of 5.2 million
acres of school trust land across Montana. The
federal government ceded the land to the state
in 1889, under the Enabling Act that granted
statehood. The Land Board is
responsible for deciding how best to generate
revenue from school
trust lands for
the trust. It considers such options as:
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Grazing and farming leases
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Timber-harvesting
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Leases for oil, wind, gas, coal and mining operations
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Easements for such projects as power lines,
roads, and private driveways
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Fees for recreational use
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Cabin-site leases
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Land sales and exchanges
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Commercial development
The
Department of Natural Resources and Conservation
(DNRC), specifically the Trust
Land Management Division ,
carries out the management decisions of the Land
Board. Income and interest earnings from school
trust lands are set aside in a “Guarantee
Account” and statutorily appropriated to
fund K-12 BASE aid. The legislature
builds these school trust funds into its revenue
estimates for schools. If income
and interest earnings from the school trust lands
exceed the revenue estimates, the state general
fund obligation for schools is reduced. In
2002, the school trust revenues generated nearly
10% of school funding in Montana, or more than
$45 million, for our students and classrooms.
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Photo by Travel Montana
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