Resolve, To Promote Partnerships between the University of Maine System and the Maine Business C~mmunity
Maine Legislature, Session 124, LD 1415
Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs
Sponsors: LOVEJOY

FIRST P~GULAR SESSION=2009 
Legislative Document 
No. 1415 
H.P.991 
House of Representatives, April 7, 2009 -
Resolve, To Promote Partnerships between the University of Maine 
System and the Maine Business C~mmunity 
Reference to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed. 
Presented by Representative LOVEJOY of Portland. 
Cosponsored by' Senator ALFOND of Cumberland and 
'!1/~ 1h.17liLC~{ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: BERRY of Bowdoinham, FLOOD of Winthrop, MARTIN of Orono, 
McFADDEN of Dennysville. 
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Printed l'll recycled p~pt:r 
Sec. 1. Pilot project. R.esolved: That the University of Maine System and the, 
Department of Economic and Community Development shall establish a pilot project to 
provide financial support for developing partnerships between the University of Maine 
System and Maine's business community and to provide assistance to Maine's business 
community in developing the skills and expertise needed for Maine's future economic 
'growth. 
1. An eq\lal amount of funding must be provided in each biennium to each university 
campus in the University of Maine System, to be used for funding new partnership 
initiatives with regional businesses. Of that amount, a maximum of 10% of Jhe funds 
may be used for marketing the partnership initiatives of the pilot program to regional 
businesses and the remaining 90% of the funds must be used for either tuition or course 
development by the faculty of the university campus. 
2. Any funds not used during the biennium by any university campus for the purposes 
of the pilot project may not be used for any other purpose, but must lapse to the General 
Fund. 
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3. Failure to use funds may not result in any penalty or restriction on future 
allocations. 
4. University campuses may work in partnership with each other to provide services 
to regional businesses. 
5. A university campus and a regional business or group of businesses may negotiate 
tuition funding, allowing each partnership initiative of the pilot project to be funded with 
up to 100% of tuition paid through the funds provided under the pilot project. 
6. In order to participate in the pilot project, a regional business or group of 
businesses: 
' A. Must intend to create or preserve jobs. The new jobs created or preserved must 
pay a wage of at least 150% of the state minimum wage. If the regional business or 
group of businesses does not create or preserve the job-or jobs anticipated, there is no 
recapture of the funding or penalty to the company or university, but that regional 
business or group of businesses is ineligible to participate in the pilot project; or 
B. 
Be a Maine company, subject to increasing competition from nondomestic 
competitors, and be able to benefit from the opportunity provided by the pilot project 
to increase employee skill levels; and be it -further 
Sec. 2. Evaluation of pilot project. Resolved: That the University of Maine 
System and the Department of Economic and Community Development, referred to in 
this section as "the departments," shall establish a process and criteria for evaluating the 
effectiveness of the pilot project established in section 1. The departments shall submit 
the results of the evaluation to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having 
jurisdiction over education matters in a written report no later than January 15, 2012, 
along with the departments' recommendation as to whether the pilot project should be 
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expanded, modified, reduced or tenninated. In lieu of any action by the Legislature, the 
pilot project tenninates June 30, 2012. 
SUMMARY 
TIns resolve directs the University of Maine System and the Department of Econonllc 
and Community Development to develop a pilot project to provide financial support for 
developing partnerslllps between the University of Maine' System and Maine's business 
community and to provide assistance to Maine's business community in developing the 
skills and expertise needed for Maine's future econonllc growth.