An Act To Authorize the Implementation of Modified School Year Calendars
Maine Legislature, Session 124, LD 0096
Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs
Sponsors: MILLETT, WATSON
Amends: 20-A MRSA §15689

MAINE STATE LEGISLATURE 
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124th MAl E LEGISLATURE 
FIRST F-E(;ULAR SESSION-2009 
Legislative Document 
No. 96 
H.P.80 
House of Representatives, January 12,2009 
An Act To Authorize the Implementation of Modified School Year 
Calendars 
Reference to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed. 
Presented by Representative MILLETT of Waterford. 
Cosponsored by Representative WATSON of Bath. 
Printed L'1l n.:cydt!J pap!!!' 
'-77/~d 1J7 .11!ac~5?{ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. ZO-A MRSA §4801, slllb-§l, as amended by PL 2005, c. 662, Pt. A, § 10, 
is further amended to read: 
1. Number. A school administrative unit shall make provision for the maintenance 
of all of its schools for at least 180 days a year or for an equivalent amount of student 
instruction accomplished by an alternative school calendar of 4 days of student 
instruction per week or by another alternative school calendar. At least 175 days s-fl.al.I. or 
its equivalent must be used for instruction. In meeting the requirement of a 180-day 
school year or its equivalent, no more than 5 days or its equivalent may be used for in-
service education of teachers, administrative meetings, parent-teacher conferences, 
records' days and similar activities. 
A. 
The commissioner may reduce or waive the minimum number of days or its 
equivalent required on application from a school board. The application must be 
suppOl1ed in writing with a statement of the reasons for the request. 
B. Notwithstanding any other section of the statutes, school committees, with the 
approval of the commissioner, may adopt or amend rules necessary to implement an 
extended school year at the local level. The commissioner may make appropriate 
adjustments, not to exceed the allowable subsidy, to insure fair and equitable 
1'9 
treatment in the distribution of state aid. 
C. Notwithstanding this subsection, the commissioner shall promulgate adopt a rule 
to provide that local school units may allow secondary school students to graduate up 
to 5 school days prior to the regular end of the school year. 
D. 
A school administrative unit, operating under a plan approved by the 
commissioner, may provide for the use of up to 5 of the 175 instructional days or its 
equivalent required by this section to be used for screening incoming first year 
students for the purpose of identifying children with disabilities and students at risk 
of school failure as required by state or federal law. 
E. Notwithstanding this subsection and any other provision of law, for school years 
1991-92 and 1992-93, a school administrative unit may reduce the number of days 
for the maintenance of all its schools by 5 days a year. A school administrative unit 
that decides to reduce the number of school days for school year 1991-92 or 1992-93, 
or both, shall notify the commissioner in writing of its plan. 
Sec. Z. ZO-A MRSA §13507-A, sub-§Z, as amended by PL 2007, c. 466, Pt. A, 
§39, is further amended to read: 
2. 
Minimums. Notwithstanding any other provIsIOn of law, the State and the 
bargaining agent for state teachers in state-operated schools and related classifications 
shall at a minimum, in accordance with bargaining procedures set fOl1h in Title 26, 
chapter 9-B, negotiate as to the impact of implementation of sections 13405 and 13406. 
The negotiations must be limited to salaries. Minimum salaries established by those 
negotiations must be based upon a 180-day school year or its equivalent in the case of a 
state-operated school that uses an altemative school calendar pursuant to section 4801, 
Page I - 124LR0058(OI)-1 
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subsection 1 and must be propotiionately higher for positions whose incumbents work for 
longer terms. Negotiations must establish pay schedules that enable the State to be 
competitive with local school administrative units in recruitment and retention with 
regard to teachers and related classifications. 
The term "teachers and related 
classifications" includes any classification in State Government that is a teaching 
classification, requires professional work in or around the classroom setting or is within 
the career ladder of the classifications by vitiue of its relationship to educational 
supervision or programming. 
Sec. 3. 20-A MRSA §15689, sub-§5, ~, as enacted by PL 2005, c. 2, Pt. D, §60 
and affected by §§72 and 74 and by c. 12, Pt. WW, §18, is amended to read: 
B. 
The rate of reimbursement per student may not exceed the state average tuition 
rates in effect during the year of placement as computed under sections 5804 and 
5805. The tuition rates must be computed based on the state average secondaty 
tuition rate and may be adjusted if the program is approved to operate beyond the 
180-day school year or its equivalent in the case of a school administrative unit that 
uses an alternative school calendar pursuant to section 4801, subsection I. 
Sec. 4. Rules. The Depatiment of Education shall adopt rules or amend its rules as 
is necessaty to comply with the provisions of this Act. 
Rules adopted or amended 
pursuant to this section are major substantive rules as described in the Maine Revised 
Statutes, Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A. 
SUMMARY 
This bill authorizes a school administrative unit to use an alternative school calendar, 
such as a calendar of 4 days of student instruction per week, if that calendar provides for 
an amount of student instructio!1 equivalent to that provided by a traditional school 
calendar.