An Act To Amend the Composition and Duties of the Maine Children's Growth Council
Maine Legislature, Session 126, LD 1449
Committee: Health and Human Services
Sponsors: ALFOND, FARNSWORTH, CRAVEN, HILL, LACHOWICZ, BERRY, LIBBY, STUCKEY
Amends: 5 MRSA §24001, 5 MRSA §24002, 5 MRSA §24002-A

Legislative Document 
No. 1449 
S.P. 531 
In Senate, April 24, 2013 
An Act To Amend the Composition and Duties of the Maine 
Children's Growth Council 
Reference to the Committee on Health and Human Services suggested and ordered printed. 
DAREK M. GRANT 
Secretary of the Senate 
Presented by President ALFOND of Cumberland. 
Cosponsored by Representative FARNSWORTH of Portland and 
Senators: CRAVEN of Androscoggin, HILL of York, LACHOWICZ of Kennebec, 
Representatives: BERRY of Bowdoinham, LIBBY of Lewiston, STUCKEY of Portland. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  5 MRSA §24001, as amended by PL 2011, c. 388, §§1 and 2, is further 
amended to read: 
§24001.  Maine Children's Growth Council 
1.  Definitions.  As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, the 
following terms have the following meanings. 
A.  "Council" means the Maine Children's Growth Council established in subsection 
2. 
B.  "Young children" means children from birth through 5 years of age. 
2.  Establishment; role.  The Maine Children's Growth Council, as established in 
section 12004-J, subsection 16, is created to develop, implement, maintain and evaluate a 
comprehensive plan for sustainable social and financial investment in and infrastructure 
to support healthy development of the State's young children and their families. 
3.  Membership.  The council consists of the members listed in this subsection who 
must have a strong interest in early childhood and early care and education and must be 
influential in their communities .  In making the appointments under this subsection, the 
appointing authority shall select persons who represent a diversity of interests, including, 
but not limited to, early learning coalitions; community public health and safety 
networks; organizations that work to prevent and address child abuse and neglect; Indian 
tribes; representatives of public agencies involved with interventions in or prevention of 
adverse childhood experiences; philanthropic organizations; and organizations focused on 
community mobilization.  The appointing authority also shall ensure that each person 
selected has a strong interest in comprehensive early childhood health, early care and 
education through the prevention and early treatment of adverse childhood experiences 
and is influential in that person's community and that each state agency representative is 
vested with decision-making capacity over the development of public policy and the 
ability to designate funding within that representative's state agency: 
A.  Two members of the Senate, one from each of the 2 political parties having the 
greatest number of members in the Senate, appointed by the President of the Senate; 
B.  Two members of the House of Representatives, one from each of the 2 political 
parties having the greatest number of members in the House, appointed by the 
Speaker of the House; 
C.  The Governor or the Governor's designee and the Attorney General or the 
Attorney General's designee; 
D.  Three parents, at least one of whom has a young child, one each appointed by the 
Governor, the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House; 
E.  Two persons with experience in public funding and philanthropy, appointed by 
the President of the Senate; 
F.  One person representing child abuse and neglect prevention, appointed by the 
Speaker of the House; 
G.  One person representing postsecondary education, appointed by the Governor; 
H.  Eight persons representing statewide, membership or constituent organizations 
that advance the well-being of young children and their families, nominated by their 
organizations and appointed by the Governor, of whom: 
(1)  Three must represent statewide organizations or associations involved in 
early care and education programs, child care centers, Head Start programs, 
family child care providers, resource development centers, programs for school-
age children, child development services, physicians and child advocacy; 
(2)  One must represent a law enforcement organization involved with children; 
(3)  One must represent an organization that works on community organization 
and mobilization; 
(4)  One must represent public health; 
(5)  One must represent the Maine Economic Growth Council; and 
(6)  One must represent a labor organization; 
I.  One person Two persons representing  a  statewide association associations of 
business and industry and one person representing a business roundtable on early 
childhood investment, appointed by the Governor; 
J.   Up to 8 members of the public, appointed by the Governor;  
K.  Three ex-officio nonvoting members:  the Commissioner of Education or the 
commissioner's designee, a Department of Health and Human Services employee 
who works with early childhood programs including Head Start and a person 
representing the office within the Department of Health and Human Services that is 
the fiscal agent for the federal grant program for comprehensive early childhood 
initiatives; and 
K-1.  Twelve members as follows: 
(1)  The Commissioner of Corrections, or the commissioner's designee; 
(2)  The Commissioner of Economic and Community Development, or the 
commissioner's designee; 
(3)  The Commissioner of Education, or the commissioner's designee; 
(4)  The Superintendent of Insurance, or the superintendent's designee; 
(5)  The Commissioner of Labor, or the commissioner's designee; 
(6)  The Commissioner of Public Safety, or the commissioner's designee; 
(7)  Five members from the Department of Education or the Department of 
Health and Human Services, selected jointly by the Commissioner of Education 
and the Commissioner of Health and Human Services, who work with early 
childhood programs including child welfare, behavioral health, MaineCare, 
substance abuse prevention and treatment, early care and childhood programs 
including child care licensing, prekindergarten, kindergarten or child 
development services; and 
(8)  One member of the Department of Health and Human Services who is the 
fiscal agent for the federal grant program for comprehensive early childhood 
initiatives; and 
L.  The director of the Head Start collaboration project within the Department of 
Health and Human Services, Office of Child Care and Head Start. 
4.  Terms of appointment.  Except for ex-officio members serving pursuant to 
subsection 3, paragraph K-1, subparagraphs (1) to (6), members of the council are 
appointed for terms of 3 years.  Members who are Legislators are appointed for the 
duration of the legislative terms in which they were appointed. Members who are not 
Legislators may serve beyond their designated terms until their successors are appointed.  
5.  Cochairs. The Governor shall appoint consider the recommendations of the 
council when appointing cochairs for the council. 
6.  Quorum; meetings.   A majority of the voting members of the council constitute 
a quorum. The council may meet as often as necessary but shall meet at least 6 times a 
year.  A meeting may be called by a cochair or by any 5 members. 
7.  Compensation.  Members of the council serve without compensation for their 
services, except that parents appointed under subsection 3, paragraph D and the members 
appointed pursuant to subsection 3, paragraphs H and J who are not reimbursed by 
another organization may receive mileage reimbursement and a per diem to cover related 
costs such as child care, and Legislators are entitled to receive the legislative per diem, as 
defined in Title 3, section 2, and reimbursement for travel and other necessary expenses 
for attendance at authorized meetings of the council. 
8.  Staffing; funding.  The council may hire staff as necessary for its work and as 
resources permit.  The council may Such staff may enter into contracts on behalf of the 
council to carry out the purposes of this chapter, provide funding to communities or any 
governance entity that is created as a result of a partnership pursuant to this chapter and 
accept grant funding and other funding as may be available for the work of the council 
and any committees of the council. 
9.  Logo.  The council may develop, adopt and publicize a logo or slogan to identify 
its work. 
Sec. 2.  5 MRSA §24002, as amended by PL 2011, c. 388, §3, is repealed. 
Sec. 3.  5 MRSA §24002-A is enacted to read: 
§24002-A.  Duties; long-term plan 
1.  Duties.  The duties of the council include, but are not limited to: 
A.  Reviewing and addressing recommendations of legislative studies and advisory 
committees established by statute regarding young children and their families for the 
purpose of ensuring coordination and enhancement of local, state and federal service 
systems and stakeholder groups; 
B.  Leading the development of a birth-to-grade-3 continuum to ensure local, state 
and federal service systems alignment; 
C.  Connecting statutorily established bodies that have the expressed purpose of 
providing guidance regarding early childhood health, development, care and 
education issues to coordinate and align strategies and communication; 
D.  Leading the development of a high-quality, comprehensive and coordinated 
system of early childhood development and care for children from birth to school-
entry age so that all young children begin school socially, emotionally and physically 
healthy and prepared to be successful; and 
E.  Developing, ensuring the implementation of and updating a long-term plan for 
investment in the healthy development of young children that will achieve sustainable 
social and financial investment in the healthy development of young children and 
their families. 
2.  Long-term plan.  The council shall develop the long-term plan required by 
subsection 1, paragraph E in accordance with this subsection. 
A.  To ensure the successful accomplishment of the development, implementation 
and updating of the long-term plan, the council shall: 
(1)  Consult and coordinate with: 
(a)  Members of the public; 
(b)  The Department of Education, the Department of Health and Human 
Services, the Department of Corrections, the Department of Economic and 
Community Development, the Department of Labor, the Department of 
Public Safety and the Department of Professional and Financial Regulation, 
Bureau of Insurance; 
(c)  Municipal and county governments; and 
(d)  Advocates, community agencies and providers of early care and 
education and services to children and their families; 
(2)  Monitor and evaluate progress in accomplishing the long-term plan's vision, 
goals and performance indicators and best practice research; and 
(3)  Consider the changing economic and demographic conditions and the effect 
of investments on economic growth and productivity. 
B.  The long-term plan must involve responsible entities and include strategies and 
timelines that: 
(1)  Provide for the coordination of resources and services across State 
Government and the elimination of duplicate programs and services; 
(2)  Provide uniform standards for quality, programs and measures of 
effectiveness based on outcomes; 
(3)  Reflect the diversity and uniqueness of young children and their families; 
(4)  Reflect a commitment to sustainable growth of young children; 
(5)  Improve access to an efficient system of services and programs; 
(6)  Include family representation and preserve parental choice in providers; 
(7)  Reflect the importance of child care in sustaining employment for parents; 
(8)  Encourage cooperation among government, business and the public in 
achieving the goals of the long-term plan; 
(9)  Develop a consistent and coherent policy that is applied to all services, 
programs and agencies, including the development of a common language and a 
common vision; 
(10)  Require communication and collaboration among all parties involved in the 
long-term plan; 
(11)  Require data sharing and outcome measurement; 
(12)  Create a comprehensive system for workforce development to include 
professional and resource development and procedures to meet compliance and 
relevant licensing requirements; 
(13)  Maximize federal funding; 
(14)  Provide recommendations for the streamlining and merging of advisory and 
oversight bodies; 
(15)  Make use of community services across the State; and 
(16)  Invest in technology and infrastructure. 
C.  The council shall develop the long-term plan as a detailed plan designed to 
develop, implement and sustain a unified, statewide early childhood services system 
that: 
(1)  Provides essential prevention, intervention and family support resources for 
children from birth to 5 years of age and their families; shares common standards 
for quality; respects the diversity and uniqueness of young children and their 
families; reflects a commitment to sustainable growth; includes family 
representation; recognizes the importance of child care in sustaining employment 
for parents; and recognizes the value of new forms of cooperation among 
government, business and society in achieving the goals of the long-term plan; 
(2)  Ensures that individualized, family-centered, culturally sensitive and high-
quality services are available to expectant families and to those with children 
under 5 years of age; and 
(3)  Contains a comprehensive, research-based plan that identifies effective 
strategies and methodologies that match capacity with need based on public 
health and education data, workforce development needs across the spectrum of 
early childhood and family-centered services and supports. 
D.  The council shall complete the long-term plan no later than 12 months following 
the effective date of this section. 
E.  By January 15, 2014 and every 2 years thereafter, the council shall report to the 
Governor and to the joint standing committees of the Legislature having jurisdiction 
over health and human services, corrections, economic development, insurance, 
labor, public safety, taxation and education matters on the activities and 
accomplishments of the council and its long-term plan for investment in the healthy 
development of young children and may issue such other reports as the council 
determines to be appropriate. 
Sec. 4.  Staggered terms of members of Maine Children's Growth 
Council.  Notwithstanding the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 5, section 24001, 
subsection 4, the Governor, President of the Senate and Speaker of the House, when 
making appointments to the Maine Children’s Growth Council during calendar years 
2014, 2015 and 2016, shall make their respective appointments to one-year, 2-year and 3-
year terms proportionately to ensure that the terms of members of the council are 
staggered. 
SUMMARY 
This bill amends the composition and duties of the Maine Children's Growth Council 
by: 
1.  Requiring the Governor, President of the Senate and Speaker of the House of 
Representatives, when making appointments to the council, to ensure that appointees 
represent a diversity of interests including early learning coalitions, public health and 
safety networks, organizations that prevent and address child abuse and neglect and 
philanthropic organizations; 
2.  Increasing the number of members who represent statewide associations of 
business and industry to 2; 
3.  Adding the commissioner, or the commissioner's designee, of the Department of 
Corrections, the Department of Economic and Community Development, the Department 
of Labor and the Department of Public Safety and the Superintendent of Insurance, or the 
superintendent's designee, as members; 
4.  Adding 3 more employees from the Department of Health and Human Services or 
the Department of Education; 
5.  Staggering the terms of appointed members; 
6.  Requiring the Governor, when appointing the chairs of the council, to consider the 
recommendations of the council; 
7.  Specifying that certain public members not otherwise compensated are entitled to 
receive mileage and a per diem; 
8.  Specifying that staff members of the council are authorized to undertake certain 
actions, such as entering into contracts and providing funding; 
9.  Repealing the current law that requires the council to develop a long-term plan for 
investment in the healthy development of young children and replacing it with the 
requirement to develop a long-term plan in accordance with specific requirements, 
including: 
A.  Requirements for the council to consult with specified state agencies and local 
governments when developing the long-term plan; and 
B.  Strategies and timelines that provide for the coordination of resources and 
services across State Government and the elimination of duplicate programs and 
services to reflect the diversity of and uniqueness of young children and their families 
and to maximize federal funding; and 
10.  Requiring the long-term plan to be developed within 12 months of the effective 
date of this bill.