An Act To Change the Name of the Governor Baxter School for the Deaf
Maine Legislature, Session 122, LD 0981
Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs
Sponsors: CUMMINGS, FISCHER, SMITH
Amends: 20-A MRSA §7406, 20-A MRSA §7407, 20-A MRSA §7412

Legislative Document 
No. 981 
H.P.691 
House of Representatives, February 24, 2005 
An Act To Change the Name of the Governor Baxter School for the 
Deaf 
Reference to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed. 
Presented by Representative CUMMINGS of Portland. 
1J1~ 
/J7.7J?u£~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Cosponsored by Representatives: FISCHER of Presque Isle, SMITH of Monmouth. 
PnnteJ 011 recy(.:!eJ papt'f 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 20·A MRSA c. 304. as amended, is further amended by 
repealing the chapter headnote and enacting the following in its 
place: 
CHAPTER 304 
MAINE EDUC~'.J:'JQN~_ C~~~ 
f"Q~ THE DEAF 
AND HARD OF HEARING 
Sec. 2. 20·A MRSA §7401. as amended by PL 1999, c. 775, §l, 
is further amended to read: 
§7401. School established 
The 
Ge",eFBeF--Bai!:-t.~-~l--.£e-£--t.-he--bleaE Maine Educational 
Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing is established as 
a 
public 
school 
pursuant 
to 
this 
chapter 
for 
the 
purpose 
of 
educating deaf and hard-of-hearing students. 
The school is a 
body politic and corporate and is an instrumentality and agency 
of the State. 
The exercise by the school of the powers conferred 
by this 
chapter 
is 
the 
performance 
of 
an 
essential public 
function by and on behalf of the State. 
Sec. 3. 20·A MRSA §7402, as amended by PL 1999, c. 775, §3, 
is further amended to read: 
§7402. Definitions 
As 
used 
in this 
chapter, 
unless 
the 
context 
otherwise 
indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. 
1. 
School. 
"School" means the 
Geye~Be~--Bai!:-t.~-~l--EeF 
~Ae--Peaf Maine Educational Center for 
the Deaf 
and Hard of 
Hearing established under this chapter, 
including the 
center 
school located at Mackworth Island known as the Governor Baxter 
School for the Deaf and any satellite school within the State 
that may be operated under a contracted services agreement. 
2. 
School. board. 
"School board" means the School Board of 
the Ge",e~Be~-~~~~e-£-~~~-~~--&a&-bleaE Maine Educational Center 
for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. 
3. 
Sending 
school. 
"Sending 
school" 
means 
any 
school 
administrative unit that has 
a 
student in attendance at the 
Geye~Be~-~~H~e-£-~~-~~--~a&-bleaE Maine Educational Center for 
the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. 
Page l-LR0928(1) 
.. 
4. 
Superintendent. 
"Superintendent" 
means 
the 
Superintendent of the Geve~ReF-~~-~hG~~-~~-~~-QeaE Maine 
Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. 
5. 
Center 
school. 
"Center 
school" 
means 
the 
programs 
established and operated by the 
GeveFReF-~-e-t=--~eRee,l--t-o-r--t:Re 
QeaE Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing at 
the Governor Baxter School ;for the Deaf located at Mackworth 
Island, including the residential program, day school program, 
statewide 
consultation 
and 
outreach 
programs, 
parent-infant 
program, 
preschool 
program, 
communication 
garden 
program, 
distance education program and community education program. 
6. 
Satellite 
school. 
"Satellite 
school" 
means 
the 
programs, including a residential program, day school programs, 
early childhood programs and outreach programs, that are located 
near the population centers of deaf and hard-of-hearing students 
within the State established by the School Board of the Geve~Re~ 
8aHte~-~€~--t-o-r--&a&-QeaE Maine Educational Center for the Deaf 
and Hard of Hearing. 
Sec. 4. 20-A MRSA §7406, first" 
as enacted by PL 1995, c. 
676, §5, is amended to read: 
The School Board of the Geve~Re~-~~K~e~-~-~-o-r--&h&-QeaE 
Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing is 
established as the pOlicy-making authority and the governing body 
of the school. 
Sec. 5. 20-A MRSA §7407. sub-§4-A. as amended by PL 1999, c. 
790, Pt. L, §l and affected by §2, is further amended to read: 
4-A. 
Budget development. 
The school board shall, with the 
aid of the superintendent and staff, prepare an annual budget for 
the 
operation 
of 
the 
school 
and 
exercise 
budgetary 
responsibili ty. 
The school board shall allocate for expenditure 
by 
the 
school 
and 
programs 
under 
its 
jurisdiction all 
the 
resources available for 
the operation of the 
school 
and its 
programs. 
Annually, not later than January 1st, beginning for 
fiscal year 2001-02, in addition to complying with the provisions 
of Title 
5, 
sections 
1665 
and 
1666, 
the 
school board shall 
present the 
administrative operating budget for 
the 
Geve~Re~ 
8aHte~-~€.fl-e-e-d.--t-o-r--&a&-QeaE Maine~_g~tional Center for the Deaf 
and Hard of Hearing to the Governor 
and the Legislature for 
review by the joint standing committee of the Legislature having 
jurisdiction 
over 
education 
matters. 
The 
administrative 
operating budget must be presented as a line-item budget for each 
of 
the 
programs 
under 
its 
jurisdiction. 
A 
liability 
or 
obligation may not be incurred under this chapter beyond the 
amount 
approved in the administrative operating budget. 
The 
school 
board 
may 
make 
expenditures 
only 
in 
accordance 
with 
allocations 
approved 
by 
the Legislature. 
Any 
balance of 
an 
allocation 
or 
subdivision 
of 
an 
allocation 
made 
by 
the 
Legislature for the school that at the time is not required for 
the 
purpose 
named 
in the 
allocation or 
subdivision 
may 
be 
transferred prior to the closing of the books for the fiscal year 
to any other allocation or subdivision of any allocation made by 
the Legislature for the use of the school for the same fiscal 
year. 
The transfer is subject to review by the joint standing 
committee 
of 
the 
Legislature 
having 
jurisdiction 
over 
appropriations 
and 
financial 
affairs. 
Financial 
statements 
describing the transfer must be submitted by the school board to 
the Office of Fiscal 
and Program Review 
days before the 
transfer is 
implemented. 
In case of extraordinary emergency 
transfers, the 30-day prior submission requirement may be waived 
by 
vote 
of 
the 
committee. 
These 
financial 
statements 
must 
include information specifying the accounts that are affected, 
the amounts to be transferred, a description of the transfer and 
a detailed explanation of the reason the transfer is needed. 
The 
school board shall also provide an annual justification for the 
finances and operations of the programs under the jurisdiction of 
the school to the joint standing committee of the Legislature 
having jurisdiction over appropriations and financial affairs and 
the 
joint 
standing 
committee 
of 
the 
Legislature 
having 
jurisdiction over education matters. 
The justification for the 
finances and operations of the school must be presented as 
a 
line-item budget for each of the programs under its jurisdiction. 
Sec. 6. 20-A MRSA §7407, sub-§17, as amended by PL 1999, c. 
775, §ll, is further amended to read: 
17. 
School programs. 
The school board may create, maintain 
and expand center school programs and programs for children that 
may be served by the school at any satellite school. 
For the 
2000-01 and 2001-02 school years only, the residential program at 
the Governor Baxter School for the Deaf located on Mackworth 
Island is limited to enrolling up to 20 students who are deaf or 
hard-of-hearing. 
The 
superintendent 
may 
request 
that 
the 
commissioner approve a waiver of the residential enrollment limit 
and 
establish 
additional 
placements 
for 
students 
1n 
the 
residential program at tpe GoVe-.LtlOr .E!.g,xter School for the Deaf 
located on Mackworth Island; the commissioner may approve those 
placements on a case-by-case basis and only if the individual 
education 
plan 
of 
the 
prospective 
student 
who 
is 
deaf 
or 
hard-of-hearing 
requires 
placement 
in 
a 
residential 
program. 
Beginning with the 2002-03 school year, the school board shall 
establish a satellite school program that offers an array of 
educational 
programs 
that provide 
students 
who 
are 
deaf 
or 
hard-of-hearing 
with 
geographically 
convenient 
access 
to 
placement options that may be required by their individualized 
education program. 
Sec. 7. 20-A MRSA §7412, as amended by PL 2001, c. 429, Pt. 
T, §§6 and 7, is further amended to read: 
§74l2. Maine Educational Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing 
n 
Student Trust Fund established 
1. 
Fund established. 
Notwithstanding the provisions of 
Title 5, section 135-A, the 
Gevenl.e~-..£l.aR-e-r--Se-h~~l-.f-e-F---t-he--geaf 
Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Student 
Trust Fund, 
referred to in this section as ,:the 
!.!fund," 
is 
established. 
2. 
Investment of funds. 
The money in the fund may 
be 
invested by the Treasurer of State with the assistance of one or 
more fiduciaries or registered investment advisors. 
The duties 
and expenses of the fiduciaries or registered investment advisors 
must be handled in a manner consistent with Title 5, 
section 
17108, subsections 2 and 3. 
All earnings must be credited to the 
fund. 
3. 
Nonlapsing fund; transfer to General Fund. 
Until July 
1, 2007, any unexpended funds remaining in the fund may not lapse 
but must be carried forward for the benefit of the fund. 
On July 
1, 
2007, 
any unexpended funds 
remaining in the fund must be 
transferred to the General Fund. 
Sec. 8. Maine Revised Statutes amended; revision clause. 
Wherever 
in the Maine Revised Statutes the words "Governor Baxte~ School 
for the Deaf" appear or reference is made to the entity or those 
words, those words are amended to read or mean, as appropr ~te, 
"Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing," ~d 
the 
Revisor 
of 
Statutes 
shall 
implement 
this 
revision 
whe~ 
updating, publishing or republishing the statutes. 
SUMMARY 
This bill changes the name of the Governor Baxter School for 
the Deaf to the Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of 
Hearing but retains 
the 
old 
name 
for 
the 
center 
school 
on 
Mackworth Island. 
The name change is intended to better reflect 
the range of services provided to the deaf and hard-of-hearing 
pursuant to state law.