All divisions that have DSFM students living within their boundaries pay a pro-rated portion of their school property taxes to the Francophone division. Those divisions will also pay a piece of their TIG, the province says. "I have no idea what our portion will be," said Louis Riel school board chair Hugh Coburn, whose division has six DSFM schools within its boundaries.

Winnipeg School Division secretary-treasurer Rene Appelmans said it's a question of semantics, and the relationship between the DSFM and other school divisions this year is really no different than usual. "It's a question of the interpretation of that one word, 'remitting'," Appelmans said. "It's really a question of semantics."

"The TIG is a grant to reduce the Special Levy (school property taxes) so, to the extent that a division has to raise Special Levy for DSFM, the division will remit a portion of the TIG to the DSFM. This is not unusual, and reflects the way DSFM is funded," the department of education said Monday.