An Act To Support Regionalization of Public Schools and Achieve Efficiency and Improve Quality
Maine Legislature, Session 123, LD 0910
Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs
Sponsors: PERCY, BENOIT, GROSE, WATSON
Amends: 20-A MRSA §1201, 20-A MRSA §1202

Legislative Document 
No. 910 
H.P.685 
House of Representatives, March 1,2007 
An Act To Support Regionalization of Public Schools and Achieve 
Efficiency and Improve Quality 
Reference to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed. 
Presented by Representative PERCY of Phippsburg. 
Cosponsored by Senator BENOIT of Sagadahoc and 
'7iJ~ /)? 7lIP£~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: GROSE of Woolwich, MacDONALD of Boothbay, WATSON of Bath. 
Prinred on recycled paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 20-A MRSA §1201, sub-§l, as enacted by PL 1981, c. 693, §§5 and 8, is 
amended to read: 
1. Number of municipalities. The district sflaI.l must have 2 or more member 
municipalities and may include a municipality or school administrative district combining 
with another school administrative district. 
Sec. 2. 20-A MRSA §1202, sub-§l, as enacted by PL 1981, c. 693, §§5 and 8, is 
amended to read: 
1. Application vote. At a duly called special or regular meeting or city election the 
voters of a municipality may instruct its school board to file an application with the state 
board. The article to be inserted in the warrant for the meeting sflaI.l must be in the 
following form: 
"To see if the municipality will vote to instruct its school board to file an 
application with the State Board of Education for the purpose of forming 
a school administrative district with the following towns: 
(naming them)" 
For a school administrative district that is forming a new school administrative district 
with another school administrative district or municipality, approval of the article requires 
a majority vote of those voting in each municipality in the district. 
Sec. 3. 20-A MRSA §1202, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 1981, c. 693, §§5 and 8, is 
amended to read: 
2. Initial application. If the article is approved, the school board shall file an initial 
application with the state board. 
A. The application sflaI.l must include a list of the names of the municipalities that 
propose to form the school administrative district, an adequate study outlining the 
desirability and the educational feasibility of the proposed district and whatever other 
information the state board may deem determines necessary and proper. 
B. In municipalities 'Nhich have For a municipality or school administrative district 
that has less than 300, but more than 99 resident pupils, the application sflaI.l must 
state in detail the educational, economic and geographic reasons for the formation of 
the proposed school administrative district. 
C. 
An application sflaI.l must be filed on a form prepared by the state board. 
Sec. 4. 20-A MRSA §1202, sub-§3, as enacted by PL 1981, c. 693, §§5 and 8, is 
amended to read: 
3. 
Calling of a joint meeting. 
If the state board finds the proposed school 
administrative district eligible and approves its initial application, the state board shall 
Page! - 123LRG70SWO-I 
notify the municipal officers and the members of the school boards ffi of the 
municipalities within the proposed district of a date, time and place of a joint meeting of 
J 
the municipal officers and the school board members fffim for each municipality. 
A. The notice sJta.l.l. must be in writing and sent by registered or certified mail, return 
receipt requested, to the addresses as shown on the application. 
B. The notice sJta.l.l. must be mailed at least 10 days prior to the date set for the 
meeting. 
Sec. 5. 20-A MRSA §1202, sub-§4, as amended by PL 1983, c. 485, §7, IS 
further amended to read: 
4. Joint meeting. The following shall govern governs the joint meeting. 
A. 
At least 112 of the total number of municipal officers and school committee 
members eligible to vote at the joint meeting sJta.l.l. must be present to constitute a 
quorum. If there is no quorum, those present shall report to the state board that a 
quorum was not present and request the state board to issue a new notice. 
B. The school boards and municipal officers of each municipality shall each caucus 
and select 3 of their members to represent theH= each municipality in the joint 
meeting. Other members may not vote in the joint meeting. 
C. 
Those with voting rights shall, by majority vote: 
( I) Elect a chairman chair and a secretary; 
(2) Determine the total number of school directors to represent each municipality 
and the method of apportioning voting power among directors consistent with 
this section and sections 1251 and 1252; 
(3) Determine the method of sharing costs under section 130 I; and 
(4) Determine the date when all the municipalities in the proposed district sJta.l.l. 
must vote on the articles of district formation. The date sJta.l.l. must be at least 60 
days from the date on which it is determined. 
D. The chairman chair and secretary shall prepare a report describing the number of 
directors and the representation from each municipality. They shall sign and forward 
that report to the state board. 
SUMMARY 
This bill allows a school administrative unit that is a municipality or school 
administrative district to combine with another school administrative district to create a 
larger school administrative district. 
flag.- 2 - l2_'LRO~05«('J)-1