An Act To Increase the Penalties for Possessing and Displaying a Firearm on School Property
Maine Legislature, Session 125, LD 0717
Committee: Criminal Justice and Public Safety
Sponsors: MacDONALD, BEAUDOIN, BLODGETT, BRIGGS
Amends: 20-A MRSA §6552

Legislative Document 
No. 717 
H.P. 548 
House of Representatives, February 23, 2011 
An Act To Increase the Penalties for Possessing and Displaying a 
Firearm on School Property 
Received by the Clerk of the House on February 18, 2011.  Referred to the Committee on 
Criminal Justice and Public Safety pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed pursuant to 
Joint Rule 401. 
HEATHER J.R. PRIEST 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative MacDONALD of Boothbay. 
Cosponsored by Representatives: BEAUDOIN of Biddeford, BLODGETT of Augusta, 
BRIGGS of Mexico. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  20-A MRSA §6552, as amended by PL 2009, c. 614, §§2 and 3, is 
repealed and the following enacted in its place: 
§6552.  Firearms 
1.  Prohibition.  A person may not: 
A.  Possess a firearm on public school property or the property of an approved private 
school; 
B.  Display a firearm on public school property or the property of an approved private 
school; or 
C.  Discharge a firearm within 500 feet of public school property or the property of 
an approved private school. 
2.  Exceptions.  The provisions under subsection 1 do not apply to the following. 
A.  The prohibition on the possession, display and discharge of a firearm does not 
apply to law enforcement officials. 
B.  The prohibition on the possession and display of a firearm does not apply to the 
following persons, if the possession and display is authorized by a written policy 
adopted by the school board: 
(1)  A person who possesses and displays an unloaded firearm for use in a 
supervised educational program approved and authorized by the school board and 
for which the school board has adopted appropriate safeguards to ensure student 
safety; and 
(2)  A person who possesses or possesses and displays an unloaded firearm that is 
stored inside a locked vehicle in a closed container, a zipped case or a locked 
firearms rack while the person is attending a hunter's breakfast or similar event 
that: 
(a)  Is held during an open firearm season established under Title 12, Part 13 
for any species of wild bird or wild animal; 
(b)  Takes place outside of regular school hours; and 
(c)  Is authorized by the school board. 
C.  The prohibition on possession, display and discharge of a firearm does not apply 
to a person possessing a firearm at a school-operated gun range or a person 
discharging a firearm as part of a school-sanctioned program at a school-operated gun 
range if the gun range and the program are authorized by a written policy adopted by 
the school's governing body. 
3.  Penalty.  This subsection applies to violations of subsection 1. 
A.  A person who violates subsection 1, paragraph A commits a Class C crime. 
B.  A person who violates subsection 1, paragraph B commits a Class B crime. 
C.  A person who violates subsection 1, paragraph C commits a Class E crime. 
SUMMARY 
This bill increases the offense of possessing a firearm on public school property or 
the property of an approved private school from a Class E crime to a Class C crime and 
provides that the offense of displaying a firearm on public school property or the property 
of an approved private school is a Class B crime.