An Act To Ensure Funding for After-school Programs
Maine Legislature, Session 122, LD 0116
Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs
Sponsors: BARSTOW, COWGER, BLANCHETTE, CAIN, FARRINGTON, FISCHER, GERZOFSKY, PINGREE

Legislative Document 
No. 116 
H.P.92 
House of Representatives, January 11,2005 
An Act To Ensure Funding for After-school Programs 
Reference to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed. 
Presented by Representative BARSTOW of Gorham. 
Cosponsored by Senator COWGER of Kennebec and 
---m~ /J1. 7ifoc~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: BLANCHETTE of Bangor, CAIN of Orono, FARRINGTON of Gorham, 
FISCHER of Presque Isle, GERZOFSKY of Brunswick, PINGREE of North Haven. 
Printed on recycled paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 20·A MRS A c. 318 is enacted to read: 
CHAPTER 318 
AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAMS 
§e901. 
After-school programs: standards: approval 
The after-school program is established to encourage the 
facilitation of 
high-quality after-school 
programs 
in 
schoo~ 
administrative 
units 
throughout 
the 
State. 
The 
commissioner 
shall administer the program within the department. 
Standards 
and approval for after-school programs are as follows. 
1. 
Standards. 
The state board and the commissioner shall 
jointly adopt rules to establish standards consistent with basic; 
school approval requirements for after-school programs offered at 
elementary or secondary schools in the State. 
2. 
Approval. 
An after-school program may be offered by any 
school 
administrative 
unit 
with 
the 
approval 
of 
the 
commissioner. 
The 
commissioner 
may 
inspect 
any 
after-schoo~ 
program, after which the commissioner may approve and grant a 
certificate to a school that maintains approval standards. 
The 
expense of inspection must be paid by the department. 
§e90l. 
Authority to raise, appropriate, receive and expend money 
A school administrative unit may: 
1. 
Fund after-school programs. 
Raise, appropriate, receive 
and 
expend 
money 
for 
after-school 
programs. 
After-schou,l 
programs are provided under the direction and supervision of the 
school board; and 
2. 
Fund tuition costs. 
Raise, 
appropriate, 
receive 
and 
expend 
money 
to 
pay 
tuition charged 
to 
any 
resident 
of 
~ 
municipality served by the school administrative unit who attends 
an after-school progra,.m offered by another school administrative 
unit if the after-school program is not offered by the school 
administrative unit that serves the person's residence. 
§e903. 
Authority to operate programs not receiving state subsidy 
~hool administrative unit may make available facilities 
for children enrolled in after-school programs not 
reimbursabl~ 
by the State. 
These after-school programs may be financed bv 
tuition 
fees, 
by 
funds 
made 
available 
by 
the 
school 
administrative 
unit, 
by 
fUnds 
from 
other 
sources 
or 
by 
a 
combination of these. 
§e904. 
Eligibility 
Page l-LROI47 (1) 
1. 
General 
right. 
The 
following 
persons 
may 
attend 
after-school courses offered by a school administrative unit in 
accordance with that entity's published program criteria and 
admission standards: 
A. 
A resident of 
a 
municipality served by 
the 
school 
administrative 
unit 
who 
meets 
the 
student 
eligibility 
requirements of chapter 213 to enroll in a public elementary 
or secondary school; and 
B. 
A resident of a municipality served by another school 
administrative 
unit 
who 
meets 
the 
student 
eligibility 
requirements of chapter 213 to enroll in a public elementary 
or secondary school if the person's school administrative 
unit does not offer an after-school program that serves the 
person's residence. 
Priority to enroll in any after-school course offered by a school 
administrative unit must be given to residents of municipalities 
served by that school administrative unit. 
SOgos. 
Reimbursement procedures 
1. 
Definition. 
For 
the 
purposes 
of 
this 
section, 
"foundation year" means the fiscal year prior to the fiscal year 
in which funds are distributed. 
2. 
Budget recommendation. 
The commissioner shall include 
the required funding levels for after-school programs, which must 
be equal to 0.5°;, of the annual General Fund appropriation for 
::12 
kindergarten to grade 12 public education, in the department's 
request to the Legislature for appropriations from the General 
Fund to carry out the purposes of this chapter. 
3. 
State 
reimbursement. 
The 
state 
reimbursement 
for 
expenditures for after-school programs must be based on each 
school administrative uuit' s actual after-school program costs in 
the foundation year. 
A. 
The state reimbursement must be based 
administrative unit's expenditures for the 
in accordance with the maximum allowable 
determined by the commissioner. 
on the school 
foundation year 
expenditures as 
B. 
The state reimbursement must be paid to each eligible 
school administrative unit during the 2nd quarter of the 
State's fiscal year. 
4. 
State administration. 
The commissioner shall add to the 
funding-
level 
an 
amount 
sufficient 
to 
l?rovide 
for 
the 
administration of this section. 
§8906. 
Report 
The del?artment shall rel?ort by June 30, 
2006 and annually 
thereafter to the joint standing committee of the 
Legislatur~ 
having jurisdiction over education and cultural affairs on the 
number 
of 
l?articipants 
in 
the 
program, 
the 
nature 
of 
the 
after-school 
programs 
receiving-
funds, 
the 
amount 
of 
funds 
distributed and 
the 
number 
of 
children participating in the 
program. 
§U907. 
Rules 
The commissioner shall adopt rules for the implementation 
and administration of the after-school program, 
including the 
establishment 
of 
program 
requirements 
and 
specifications 
and 
l?rocedures 
for 
the 
al?l?lication 
and distribution of 
available 
funds, and to otherwise carry out the purpose of this prog-ram. 
Rules 
adol?ted l?ursuant to this section are routine technical 
rules as defined by Title 5, chapter 375, subchal?ter 2-A. 
Sec. 
2. 
Appropriations 
and 
allocations. 
The 
following 
appropriations and allocations are made. 
EDUCATION, DEPARTMENT OF 
After-school Program 
Initiative: 
Provides funds for the facilitation of after-school 
programs. 
The appropriation is based on after-school programs 
recei ving an amount equal to 0.5°10 of the annual General Fund 
appropriations for kindergarten to grade 12 public education. 
GENERAL FUND 
All Other 
GENERAL FUND TOTAL 
SUMMARY 
2005-06 
$4,042,836 
$4,042,836 
2006-07 
$4,257,653 
$4,257,653 
This bill establishes the after-school program as an ongoino 
program to be implemented and administered by the Department of 
Education. 
This bill also requires the ongoing funding for the 
after-school program to be equal to 0.5°" of the annual General 
Fund appropriation for kindergarten to grade 12 public education.