An Act To Expand Educational Opportunities for Students Attending Public Secondary Schools with Enrollments of 300 or Fewer Students
Maine Legislature, Session 129, LD 1029
Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs
Sponsors: HIGGINS, DAVIS, ACKLEY, ALLEY, STANLEY, VEROW
Amends: 20-A MRSA §4730

Legislative Document
No. 1029
H.P. 759
House of Representatives, February 28, 2019
An Act To Expand Educational Opportunities for Students 
Attending Public Secondary Schools with Enrollments of 300 or 
Fewer Students
Reference to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative HIGGINS of Dover-Foxcroft.
Cosponsored by Senator DAVIS of Piscataquis and
Representatives: ACKLEY of Monmouth, ALLEY of Beals, STANLEY of Medway, VEROW 
of Brewer.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  20-A MRSA §4730 is enacted to read:
§4730.  Academic opportunity programs
1.  Secondary schools with more than 300 students.  A private or public secondary 
school with more than 300 students shall enter into an agreement with any secondary 
school with 300 or fewer students to establish an academic opportunity program at the 
smaller school that makes available to students of that school courses and academic 
programs at the larger school, including, but not limited to, advanced placement courses, 
international baccalaureate programs and early college programs.
2.  Secondary schools with 300 or fewer students.  A secondary school with 300 or 
fewer students shall establish an academic opportunity program in accordance with the 
agreements entered into pursuant to subsection 1 and inform its resident students of the 
program.
3.  School administrative units; policies and procedures; report.  The school 
administrative unit of a secondary school with 300 or fewer students shall develop 
policies and procedures for the school's academic opportunity program.  The school 
administrative unit shall report annually to the department the number of students 
participating in the program and the number of courses and academic programs accessed 
through the program.
4.  Rates; rulemaking.  The department shall establish tuition rates for students 
participating in an academic opportunity program under this section and shall publish the 
rates on the department's publicly accessible website.  The department shall adopt rules to 
implement this section.  Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection are routine technical 
rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A.
5.  Transportation.  A secondary school with an academic opportunity program 
under this section and the school providing access to its courses are not responsible for 
providing transportation for a student in the academic opportunity program who requires 
transportation to a secondary school outside the student's resident school administrative 
unit in order to participate.
SUMMARY
This bill requires private and public secondary schools with more than 300 students 
to enter into contracts with secondary schools with 300 or fewer students to establish 
academic opportunity programs that make available to resident students of the smaller 
schools the courses and academic programs of the larger schools, including, but not 
limited to, advanced placement courses, international baccalaureate programs and early 
college programs. The bill also requires the secondary schools with 300 or fewer students 
to inform their resident students of the academic opportunity program and provides that 
the schools participating in an academic opportunity program are not responsible for 
providing transportation to participating students.