An Act To Encourage Cooperation among School Administrative Units
Maine Legislature, Session 124, LD 1049
Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs
Sponsors: SUTHERLAND, DILL, DUCHESNE, JOHNSON, O'BRIEN, PERCY, PIEH, WESTON
Amends: 20-A MRSA §6202, 20-A MRSA §8457

Legislative Document 
No. 1049 
H.P.724 
House of Representatives, March 17,2009 
An Act To Encourage Cooperation among School Administrative 
Units 
(EMERGENCY) 
Reference to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed. 
Presented by Representative SUTHERLAND of Chapman. 
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111· 7I!(;£;:f~{ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Cosponsored by Representatives: DILL of Cape Elizabeth, DUCHESNE of Hudson, 
JOHNSON of GreenvIlle, O'BRIEN of Lincolnville, PERCY of Phippsburg, PIEH of Bremen, 
TRlNWARD of Waterville, Senator: WESTON of Waldo. 
Printt::d on r.:cyclcd pilpt:r 
Emergency preamble. 'Vhereas, acts and resolves of the Legislature do not 
become effective until 90 days after adjournment unless enacted as emergencies; and 
Whereas, the econornic situation confronting our nation and all levels of 
government in the State willlikeIy result in flat funding or reduced state and local general 
funds available for appropriation to support prekindergarten to grade 12 public education; 
and 
Whereas, school administrative .u11its.in.theStat~. )1111st ach.ieve . IllaXlmum 
efficiencies and reductions in administrative and other noninstructional costs while 
maintaining and fostering excellence in the classroom; and 
Whereas, the enactment of this legislation is necessary to allow school 
administrative units to initiate organizational effOI:ts· to enter regional education 
cQoperatives il). order to achieve maximum efficiencies by carrying out specified 
educational functions and support services in a region of the State; and 
Whereas, in the judgment of the Legislature, these facts create an emergency within 
the meaning of the Constitution of Maine and require the following legislation as 
immediately necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health and safety; now, 
therefore, 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 20-A MRS A c. 113, as amended, is repealed. 
Sec. 2. 20-A MRSA c. 113-A is enacted to read: 
CHAPTER 113-A 
REGIONAL EDUCATION COOPERATIVES 
§2511. Definitions 
As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms 
have the following meanings. 
. 
1. Cooperative. "Cooperative" means a regional education cooperative formed 
pursuant to this chapter. 
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2. Cooperative agreement. "Cooperative agreement" means an agreement between 
school administrative units that form a regional education cooperative to share the 
responsibility for and cost of the delivery of specified educational functions and support 
services in a region such as, without limitation: 
A. Alternative education programs; 
B. Special education programs or support services; 
C. Public preschool programs or 2-year ldndergartens pursuant to chapter 203; 
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D. Gifted and t~lented education programs pursuant to chapter 311; 
E. Online learning and distance education programs; 
F. Postsecondary education options pursuant to chapter 208-A; 
G. Adult education programs pursuant to chapter 315; 
H. Purchasing o~ contracting for goods or services; 
I. Staff training or professional development; 
J. Technology or teclmologysupport services; 
K. Accounting, payroll and financial management; 
L Transportation routing and vehicle maintenance; 
M. Food service planning and purchasing; and 
N. Energy management and facilities maintenance. 
3. Cooperative board. "Cooperative board" means the goveming body with the 
powers and duties set forth iIi this chapter for a regional education cooperative. 
§2512. Regional education cooperatives 
The school boards of 2 or more school administrative units in existence as of July 1, 
2009 may file an application to the commissioner for the purpose of entering a 
cooperative agreement to form a regional education cooperative. 
A cooperative is 
governed by a cooperative board fornled and operating in accordance with this chapter. 
The participation of school administrative units in any of the specified educational 
functions or supporl services included in the cooperative agreement is voluntary. 
A 
cooperative board may designate school administrative unit personnel or service 
providers to provide the specified educational functions or support services inchided in 
the cooperative agreement. 
The cooperative board must include one school. board 
member from each school administrative unit participating in the cooperative. The voting 
method established by the cooperative board may not include a method in which the 
board members cast weighted votes. The application for the cooperative must designate 
the lead school admiilistrative unit for the cooperative. The superintendent of the lead 
school unit shall serve as a nonvoting, ex officio member of the cooperative board and 
shall administer the cooperative agreement and serve as fiscal agent for the cooperative 
board. 
. 
§2513. Application; approval; ratification 
1. Application. An application under section 2512 for a cooperative must be in a 
form and contain such information as required by the commissioner, including, but not 
limited to: 
A. The identification of the school administrative units that are applying to fonn the 
cooperative; 
B. The identification of the lead school administrative unit; 
C. The specified educational functions and support services to be provided by the 
cooperative, including the identification of the school administrative units that will 
participate in each specified educational function or support service and the number 
of students or staff to be served in each school administrative unit that is participating 
in each specified educational function or support service to be carried out by the 
cooperative; 
D. The duration of the cooperative agreement; 
E. The cost estimate or operational budget for the specified educational functions or 
support services to be carried out; 
'F. The method of providing the specified educational functions or support services 
and the designation of school administrative unit persomlel or service providers who 
'Will provide the specified educational functions or support services; 
G. The method of sharing costs among the school administrative units; and 
H. The projected cost savings for the cooperative agreement and the method for 
redistributing cost savings among the school administrative units. 
2. Approval. The cOlmnissioner shall either approve or rej ect an application under 
section 2512 based upon the information submitted pursuant to subsection 1, but no more 
than 20 cooperatives may be in existence at anyone time. The commissioner shall keep a 
register of approved cooperatives. If at any' time there are 20 cooperatives in existence, 
the commissioner may not accept applications under this chapter. 
3. School board ratification. If the commissioner approves an application for a 
cooperative pursuant to subsection 2, the cooperative must be approved by a majority of· 
the members of the school board of each school administrative unit involved in the 
cooperative before the cooperative becomes effective. 
§2514. Cooperative agreement 
1. Duration of cooperative agreement. A cooperative agreement that has been 
ratified pursuant to section 2513 is valid for the fiscal year beginning July 1 st following 
the ratification vote and ends June 30th of the calendar year that coincides with the 
expiration date included in the cooperative agreement. . 
2. Renewal of cooperative. A cooperative may be renewed only upon reapplication 
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to the commissioner and ratification by a majority of the members of each school board 
involved in the cooperative in accordance with this chapter. 
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§2515. Finance 
1. State-local allocation. Expenses incurred under a cooperative agreement may be 
reported by the participating school administrative units as per-pupil amounts not related 
to staffing in addition to the items listed in section 15680. 
2. Administrative costs. Costs for carrying out a cooperative agreement must be 
shared in accordance. with the tenns of the cooperative agreement, but costs' of 
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administration of the cooperati ve may not exceed 10% of the total budget of the 
cooperative agreement. 
3. Cost savings. School administrative units that enter into a cooperative agreement 
shall share any identified cost savings in accordance with the method for redistributing 
cost savings set forth in the cooperative agreement. For the purposes of this chapter, the 
cost savings achieved are those cost savings directly assoCiated with the categories of the 
specified educational functions and support services carried out in a region in accordance 
with a cooperative agreement for the delivery of prekindergarten to grade 12 education 
when comparing the base year costs to the costs in the subsequent fiscal year and· 
adjusting for inflation. 
§25I6. Existing agreements 
A shared service agreement between 2 or more school administrative units 
established in accordance with fonner chapter 113 or an interlocal agreement between 2 
or more school administrative units established in accordance with Title 30-A, chapter 
may remairi in effect after July 1, 2009. Notwithstanding any other provision oflaw 
to the contrary, a shared service agreement or interlocal agreement in existence on the 
effective date of this section may be extended or modified by the parties to the agreement. 
§25I7. Development of interlocal agreements 
Nothing contained· in this chapter may be construed to prevent a school 
administrative unit from entering an interlocal agreementin accordance with Title 30-A, 
chapter 115 with other school administrative units and, whenever possible, with local and 
'county governments and State Government to achieve efficiencies and reduce costs in the 
delivery of specified educational functions or support services. 
Sec. 3. 20-A MRSA §6202, sub-§l-A, as enacted by PL 2005, c. 118, §1, is 
amended to read: 
I-A. Interpretation. The statewide assessment program results may be interpreted 
in a maImer that takes into account the particular role within a school administratiye unit 
of regional special education or regional alternative education programs or schools 
approved by the commissioner in accordance with section 2501 chapter 113-A or section 
7253. For these programs or schools, the results may be interpreted by assigning the 
student and the scores of the student to the school in the community where the student 
resides: The commi,ssioner shall adopt rules to implement this subsection. Rules adopted 
pursuant to this subsection are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, 
subchapter 2-A. 
Sec. 4. 20-A MRSA §8457, sub-§l, as amended by PL 1991, c. 716, §6 and PL 
2003, c. 545, §5, is further amended to read: 
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1. General powers arid duties. A cooperative board has all of the powers and 
duties of a school board as provided in section 1001, subsections 1,2,4 to 7, ll-A and 
12; section 1002; section 1256, subsections 1, 2 and 4 to 7; section 1257; sections 1313 to 
1315; section 2501; section 4801; section 13201; and section 13202. For such purposes, 
references in those sections to "school administrative unit," "administrative unit," "school 
unit," "unit," "school administrative district" or "district" mean career and technical 
education region; references in those sections to "school board," "school committee," 
"board," "board of directors" or "directors" mean cooperative board; references in those 
sections to "director" mean a member of a cooperative board; and references in those 
sections to "they" mean either, as appropriate in the context, cooperative board or 
members of the cooperative board. 
Sec. 5. O.rganization of regional education coop.eratives. It is the intent of 
the Legislature that school administrative units may begin to organize regional education 
cooperatives as set forth in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 20-A, chapter 113-A upon 
the effect~ve date of this Act and that regional education cooperatives may begin to carry 
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out the operations set forth in cooperative agreements beginning on July 1, 2009. 
Emergency clause. 
In view of the emergency cited in the preamble, this 
legislation takes effect when approved. 
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. SUMMARY 
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This bill provides for the formation of 20 regional education cooperatives. School 
.' administrative units established as of July 1, 2009 may join a regional education 
cooperative of their choice, and each participating school administrative unit has a single 
representative to the cooperative board. Participation in regional education cooperatives 
is voluntary and the participation of participating school administrative units in any of the 
specified educational functions or support services carried out by the regional education 
cooperative is voluntary. 
The educational functions and support services to be provided by regional education 
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cooperatives may include, but are not limited tQ: 
1. Alternative education programs; 
2. Special education programs or support services; 
3. Public preschool programs or 2-year kindergartens; 
4. Gifted and talented ~ducation programs; 
5. Online learning and distance education programs; 
306. Postsecondary education options; 
7. Adult education programs; 
8. Purchasing or contracting for goods or services; 
9. Staff training or professional development; 
10. Technology or technology support services; 
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11. Accounting, payroll and financial management; 
12. Transportation routing and vehicle maintenance; 
13. Food service planning and purchasing; and 
14. 'Energy management and facilities maintenance. 
Participating school administrative units voluntarily choose which educational 
functions or support services they purchase from the regional education cooperative and 
contrihu.fe -OnlYIor the costs of those educational functions or support services that they 
use. 
Savings achieved through the regional education cooperative accrue to the 
participating school administrative units, with a portion reserved for administrative costs 
of the regional education cooperative.