An Act To Increase the Affordability of College Tuition and Attract Professionals to Maine
Maine Legislature, Session 127, LD 1141
Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs
Sponsors: DAUGHTRY, CHENETTE, EDGECOMB, FECTEAU, MOONEN, POULIOT, TIPPING-SPITZ, TUCKER, WHITE

Legislative Document 
No. 1141 
H.P. 779 
House of Representatives, March 31, 2015 
An Act To Increase the Affordability of College Tuition and Attract 
Professionals to Maine 
Reference to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed. 
ROBERT B. HUNT 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative DAUGHTRY of Brunswick. 
Cosponsored by Representatives: CHENETTE of Saco, EDGECOMB of Fort Fairfield, 
FECTEAU of Biddeford, MOONEN of Portland, POULIOT of Augusta, TIPPING-SPITZ of 
Orono, TUCKER of Brunswick, WHITE of Washburn. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
CONCEPT DRAFT 
SUMMARY 
This bill is a concept draft pursuant to Joint Rule 208. 
This bill proposes to implement a comprehensive strategy to increase the affordability 
of tuition at state public universities and colleges for Maine residents, thereby increasing 
the graduation rate from those state public institutions of higher education, and to attract 
to and keep in Maine young professionals. The comprehensive strategy may include, but 
is not limited to: 
1.  Establishing a textbook scholarship program, in coordination with the public 
institutions of higher education to provide scholarships for the purchase of textbooks at 
those institutions.  The scholarships would be available to graduates of Maine high 
schools who have a grade point average of 3.0 or better on a 4.0 scale; 
2.  Establishing scholarships or providing incentives for degree completion with 
agreements to remain in the State after graduation for specified periods.  Under this 
program, a full scholarship for the 4th and final year of school at a Maine public 
institution of higher education would be provided to students who agree to work in the 
State for a certain period of time following graduation; 
3.  Requiring the Department of Education and the Finance Authority of Maine 
cooperatively to issue low-interest student loans to students attending a public or private 
institution of higher education in this State who meet certain criteria, such as financial 
need, academic merit, graduating within 4 years or agreeing to work in public service for 
a certain period after graduation; 
4. Requiring the Finance Authority of Maine to establish additional tax credits, state 
grants and other forms of financial aid for higher education for residents of this State who 
are graduates from a Maine public institution of higher education and an education loan 
repayment program for all graduates of an institution of higher education who are 
residents of this State; 
5.  Establishing a loan repayment program for graduates employed in certain high-
demand fields in this State; 
6.  Establishing goals for college graduation attainment for the next 25 years; 
7.  Exploring the development of an entity, such as a board of regents, to oversee 
higher education in this State in order to best serve the higher education needs of the 
residents and businesses of this State; and 
8.  Establishing a pilot project, based on Oregon's "Pay Forward, Pay Back" model, 
under which a student enrolled in a public institution of higher education, in lieu of 
paying tuition or fees, contracts to pay the State a certain percentage of the student's 
annual income following graduation for a specified number of years.   The pilot project 
would eventually replace the current system of charging a resident of the State tuition and 
fees for enrollment at a state public institution of higher education.  The pilot project 
would: 
A.  Allow a student who is a resident of the State and who qualifies for admission to 
an institution to enroll in the institution without paying tuition or fees; 
B.  Provide that, in lieu of paying tuition or fees, the student must sign a binding 
contract to pay to the State or the institution for a specified number of years a certain 
percentage of the student's annual adjusted gross income upon graduation from the 
institution;  
C.  Specify the number of years and the percentage of annual adjusted gross income 
for contracts at each participating institution and base the specifications on research 
to date; and 
D.  Establish a funding source for the first 15 to 20 years of the pilot project and a 
revolving fund into which payments made under the pilot project are deposited to 
provide long-term funding. 
A pilot project may include variations by specific institution depending on the total cost 
of education at the institution, the portion of the cost that is paid by the State, the number 
of years of student repayment specified in the contract and the percentage of annual 
adjusted gross income specified in the contract.