An Act To Invest in the Future of Maine Citizens
Maine Legislature, Session 122, LD 1954
Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs
Sponsors: BRENNAN, MITCHELL, NORTON, EDMONDS, GAGNON, MARTIN, BRYANT, CUMMINGS, RICHARDSON
Amends: 20-A MRSA §4772, 20-A MRSA §4772-A, 20-A MRSA §10910, 5 MRSA §1536

Legislative Document 
No. 1954 
S.P.751 
In Senate, January 10, 2006 
An Act To Invest in the Future of Maine Citizens 
Approved for introduction by a majority of the Legislative Council pursuant to Joint Rule 
203. 
Reference to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed. 
Presented by Senator BRENNAN of Cumberland. 
JOY J. O'BRIEN 
Secretary of the Senate 
Cosponsored by Senator MITCHELL of Kennebec, Representative NORTON of Bangor and 
Senators: BRYANT of Oxford, President EDMONDS of Cumberland, GAGNON of 
Kennebec, MARTIN of Aroostook, Representatives: BRYANT of Windham, CUMMINGS of 
Portland, Speaker RICHARDSON of Brunswick. 
Pnnted on recycled p;)pel 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
PART A 
Sec. A-t. 20-A MRSA §4772, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 1997, c. 
758, §2, is repealed. 
Sec. A-2. 20-A MRSA §4772, sub-§2-A is enacted to read: 
Z-~. 
R~~qmenctat.iQ:q. 
l:he 
s.tudent 
has 
received __ 
Cl, 
recommendation to take a postsecondary course or courses at an 
eligible 
institution 
either 
from 
the 
student's 
school 
administration following an assessment of the student by the 
school administration or 
from 
one of the student's secondary 
school teachers; 
Sec. A-3. 20-A MRSA §4772, sub-§4, as enac ted by PL 1997, c. 
758, §2, is amended to read: 
4. 
School approval. 
The school unit approves; aaa 
Sec. A-4. 20-A MRSA §4772, sub-§S, as enacted by PL 1997, c. 
758, §2, is amended to read: 
5. 
Parental approval •. The student's parent approvesT; and 
Sec. A-S. 20-A MRSA §4772, sub-§6 is enacted to read: 
6. 
Eligible instityJ;j,Qn approval. 
The student has been 
approved for participation in a course or courses by an eligible 
institution. 
Sec. A-6. 20-A MRSA §4772-A. as corrected by RR 1999, c. 1, 
§25, is repealed. 
Sec. A-7. 20-A MRSA §10910 is enacted to read: 
§10910. 
Limitation on tuition increase 
This section applies only to those undergraduate students 
who meet the state residency requirements that are established by 
the trustees and who first enroll in the university after the 
2006 2007 
academic 
year. 
For 
continuous 
academic 
years 
following initial enrollment, or for those undergraduate programs 
that the university determines normally take more than 4 years to 
complete, the tuition charged to an undergraduate student may not 
.el!:~ed the amount that the student was charged at the time the 
student first enrolled in the university. 
If a student changes 
majors 
during this 
time 
period, 
the tuition charged to 
the 
student must equal the amount the student would have been charged 
Page l-LR2870(1) 
had the student been admitted to the new major when the student 
first enrolled. 
The university shall absorb the reduction in 
tJ,lj,J;;j,on revenues th,?lt results fro11L-Providing this limitation on 
tuition increases to eligible persons under this section. 
The 
yniversity may not request additional General Fund appropriations 
from the Legislature to offset the reduction in tuition revenues. 
Sec. A-8. 20-A MRSA §l2706, sub-§7-A is enacted to read: 
7-A~1,litiQ.~fa~ain~esident~; fees and charges. 
To 
establish and collect room and board fees and tuition and to set 
policies 
relating 
to 
other 
charges, 
including 
fees 
for 
the 
reasonable 
use 
of 
the 
colleges' 
facilities 
by 
others, 
as 
determined necessary by the board of trustees for the efficient 
administration of this chapter, to be credited to a separate fund 
and 
used for 
the purposes of this chapter. 
This subsection 
rumJies only to those studen.ts 
who 
meet 
the state residency 
reguirements that are established by the board of trustees, who 
are accepted for admission in a college and who first enroll in 
the system after the 2006-2007 academic year. 
A student who is a 
resident of this State may attend a 
college free of tuition 
charges for the first academic year following initial enrollment 
in the system; 
and such a 
student may receive a 
50% tuition 
waiver 
for 
the 
2nd 
and 
subsequent 
academic 
years 
following 
initial enrollment. By February 15, 2007 and every February 15th 
thereafter, the board of trustees shall estimate the cost to the 
system of providing the tuition assistance for the next academic 
year and report that amount to the Governor and to the joint 
standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over 
education and cultural affairs and the joint standing committee 
of the Legislature having jurisdiction over appropriations and 
financial affairs. 
Sec. A-9. 20-A MRSA §l568l. sub-§l. ~D is enacted to read: 
D. To receive after-school progLgm funds calculated pursuant 
to subsection 5, the school administrative unit must be in 
compliance with 
any applicable federal 
or state program 
reguirements 
for 
after-school 
programs, 
including 
requirements 
of 
the 
21st 
Century 
Communities 
Learning 
Centers program authorized under Title IV, Part B of the 
federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as 
amended by the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, 20 
United States Code, Chapter 70. 
Sec. A-lO. 20-A MRSA §l568l, sub-§4-A is enacted to read: 
-A. 
Af ter -scllaal prQ9..r am fun . 
.><d."s...,.'----"F_.><o'-"r~a.....,.f_"'t""e'_"r~-__'s"_'c,.,hl±:o""_""o_=_l_..lp""r"-'O",-g~r-",a=m 
kJmds, 
the commiss_ioner 
shal~lctlg.tJ~ one 
amo~that may be 
made available to the elementary school level and middle school 
level and another amount that may be made available to the high 
school level in accordance with the following. 
A. For fiscal year 2007-08, the commissioner shall establish 
a per-pupil amount for after-school program funds. 
It._fQr __ JiscaJ_-yelu·_~_QQli:::Q_9~1ld._.J!_Q.ch.......s..U.R.9J;~qy~.~ear-L-th.e. 
commissioner shall recalculate the per-pupil amount by using 
~he amount 
calculat~d under 
P9x£graph 
A as 
a 
base 
and 
gppropriate trends in the Consumer Price Index or other 
.comparable index. 
PARTB 
Sec. B-1. 5 MRSA §1536, sub-§4 is enacted to read: 
4. 
Transfer from unappropriated surplus beginning at close 
of fiscal year 2006-01 and each subsequent fiscal year. 
A.t the 
close of fiscal year 2006-07 and each subseguent fiscal year, the 
State 
Controller 
shall 
transfer 
an 
amount 
up 
to 
$3,500,000 
available from the unappropriated surplus of the General Fund to 
the 
department 
and 
agency 
accounts 
listed in 
subsection 
6, 
paragraphs 
A., 
Band 
C 
after 
all 
reguired 
deductions 
of 
appropriations, 
budgeted financial 
commitments 
and adjustments 
considered necessary by the State Controller have been made and 
as the next priority before the transfers reguired pursuant to 
sections 1507 and 1511. 
Sec. B-2. 5 MRSA §1536. sub-§5 is enacted to read: 
5. 
Additional tr~er frQm unap~~riated surplus at close 
of fiscal year 2006-01 
an~ach subsequent fiscal year. 
In 
addition to the transfer identified in subsection 4, at the close 
of fiscal year 2006-07 and each subseguent fiscal year, the State 
Controller shall transfer from the unappropriated surplus of the 
General Fund to the Maine Community College System an amount up 
to but not exceeding the 
amount identified by 
the 
Board of 
Trustees of the Maine Community Col~ge System reported in Title 
20-A, section 12706, subsection 7 after all reguired deductions 
of appropriations, budgeted financial commitments and adjustments 
considered necessary by the State Controller have been made and 
as the next priority before the transfers reguired pursuant to 
sections 1507 and 1511. 
Sec. B-3. 5 MRSA §1536, sub-§6 is enacted to read: 
6. 
Pri.9_~~ty of t:t;'_i;?,D..Rf.m:s. 
Begipning in fiscal year 2007 -08 
and each subseguent fiscal year, transfers made in accordance 
with subsections 4 and 5 must be expended for tpe purposes listed 
in this subsection in the following amounts and priority order. 
l'.ransfers to the Department of Health and Human Services, the 
Department of Education and the Maine Community College System 
must be made in the following amounts and priority order: 
A. 
As 
the 
f~n:!t priority, 
of 
the 
amount 
transferre.Q 
pursuant to subsection 4, $2,000,000 to the Department of 
Health and Human Services to expand preschool child care 
including Head Start and other child programs and services. 
l'~~~i~§ioner of 
Hea~th __ ~Q~wman 
S~rvices 
shall 
determine the amounts to be distributed to each program; 
~~~he 2D~Lority, of the amount transferred pursuant 
to subsection 4, $1, OOO~O to the General Purpose Aid for 
Local Schools program within the Department of Education to 
provide targeted funds for after-school programs pursuant to 
Title 20-A, section 15681; 
{,::._. __ 
As 
tb,~_uL.l2-Li-odt~ th_e amount 
tLansfe:rJ'.~~uant 
to subsection 4, 
$500,000 to the Support Services program 
within the Department of Education to expand funding for 
eligible students to take postsecondary education courses 
pursuant to Title 20-A, chapter 208-A; and 
D. 
As the 4th priority, the amount transferred pursuant to 
subsection 5 to the Board of Trustees of the Maine Community 
College System to provide funds to offset the decline in 
tuition revenues resulting from the tuition waiver program 
for 
eligible 
students 
enrolled 
at 
each 
of 
the 
Maine 
Communi ty 
College 
System 
campuses 
after 
the 
2006-2007 
academic 
year 
pursuant 
to 
Title 
20-A, 
section 
12706, 
subsection 7-A. 
Sec. B-4. 5 MRSA §1536. sub-§7 is enacted to read: 
7. 
Tr.<msf~~:red aJl!Qunts. 
Notwithstanding section 1667 -B, 
t...h~mounts t.ransferred by the State Controller for the purposes 
listed in subsection 6 may be allotted by financial order upon 
recommendation of the State Budget Officer and approval of the 
Governor. 
The 
State 
Budget Officer shall provide 
the 
joint 
~tandi~ommittee of the Legislature having wisdiction over 
appropriations 
and 
financial 
affairs 
and 
the 
joint standing 
committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over education 
and cultural affairs with a report of the transferred amounts no 
later than September 15, 2007 and each subsequent September 15th. 
SUMMARY 
This bill would establish resources to improve the health, 
well-being, education and economic security of Maine citizens by 
enhancing 
and 
expanding 
early 
education 
opportunities, 
after-school initiatives, early college programs for secondary 
school 
students 
and 
access 
to higher 
education opportunities 
through a guaranteed tuition program for undergraduate students 
enrolled at the University of Maine System and a tuition waiver 
program for resident students enrolled at the Maine 
Community 
College System. 
The bill authorizes a prioritized series of transfers from 
the unappropriated surplus of the General Fund at the end of 
fiscal year 2006-07 and subsequent fiscal years to these various 
prekindergarten to grade 14 educational programs within the State.