An Act To Count Study Abroad toward Secondaiy School Credit
Maine Legislature, Session 129, LD 0662
Committee Amendment CA_A_H54 (House)
Amends: 20-A MRSA §1001

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A." to H.P. 483, L.D. 662, Bill, "An Act To Count 
Study Abroad toward Secondaiy School Credit" 
Amend the bill by strildng out everything after the enacting clause and inserting the 
following: 
1Sec. 1. 20-A MRSA §1001, sub-§20 is enacted to read: 
20. Adoption of policy to award credit for study abroad. Each school boai·d shall 
adopt a policy to award course credit to a student who has studied abroad and who seeks 
to be awarded course credit by the school administrative unit. In adopting the Q.Qlicy,JJ: 
school board may consider that the school administrative unit award the student the 
following: 
· 
A. Elective credit in the amount equal to 1/3 of the direct instruction hours received 
abroad: 
B. Course credit in the relevant content ai·ea if the student attains certification in that 
content area by a 3rd party approved by the school administrative unit. The amount 
of course credit must be determined by comparing the results of the certification and 
the requirements of an equivalent course offered by the school administrative unit: or 
C. Course credit in the 1·elevant content area if the student receives a passing grade 
on: 
(1) The summative assessment in an equivalent course offered by the school 
administrative unit: or 
(2) The first summative assessment in a course that is one level higher than the 
equivalent course offered by the school administrative unit. 
Sec. 2. Administrative letter. · The Commissioner of Education shall send an 
administrative letter to school boards 8:fld superintendents regarding the adoption of a 
policy on awarding course credit to a student who has studied abroad and seeks to be 
awarded course credit by a school a~inistrative unit pursuant to the Maine Revised 
Statutes, Title 20-A, section 1001, subsection 20. The letter must address the benefits of 
Page l-129LR1657(02)-1 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
,i. 
"' , 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A "to H.P. 483, L.D. 662 
proactive communication between the school administrative unit and parents of a student 
and the student regarding the credit options available to the student prior to the student's 
participation in the study abroad program. 1 
Amend the bill by relettering or renumbering any nonconsecutive Part letter or 
section number to read consecutively. 
SUMMARY 
This amendment, which is the unanimous report of the committee, amends the bill by 
requiring school boards to adopt a policy on awarding credit to students who have studied 
abroad. The school board may include· in the policy that the school administrative unit 
award credit as elective credit, through ·3rd-party certification or based on a summative 
assessment. 
This amendment also requires the Department of Education to issue an administrative 
letter to school boards and superintendents · addressing the benefits of proactive 
communication between the school administrative unit and parents of a student and the 
student regarding the credit options available to the student prior to the student's 
participation in the study abroad program. 
This amendment also incorporates' a fiscal note. 
The fiscal note identifies the 
requirement that local school boards adopt a policy on awarding credit to students who 
have studied abroad as a potential untun;ded state mandate. The committee reviewed the 
fiscal note and determined that requiring a school board to adopt a policy on awarding 
credit to students who have studied abroad is not a mandate. Because school boards have 
a duty to adopt policies that govern school administrative units pursuant to the Maine 
Revised Statutes, Title 20-A, section 1001, subsection 1-A, and because Title 20-A 
requires school administrative units to provide students with opportunities for learning in 
multiple pathways, the requirement that, local school boards adopt a policy on awarding 
credit to students who have studied abroad does not require an expansion or modification 
of activities so as to necessitate additional expenditures. 
FISCAL NOTE REQUIRED 
(See attached) 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
State Mandates 
Required Activity 
I 
Approved: 03/22/ 19 feac 
LD 662 
LR 1657(02) 
An Act To Count Study Abroad toward Secondary School Credit 
Fiscal Note for Bill as Amended by Committee Amendment~· ( H ,.--54) 
Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs 
Fiscal Note Required: Yes 
Fiscal Note 
Potential State Mandate - Unfunded 
Requires local school boards to adopt a policy on awarding credit to students who 
Unit Affected 
School 
Local Cost 
Moderate 
statewide 
have studied abroad. 
The required local activities in this bill may represent a state mandate pursuant to the Constitution of Maine. If the bill 
does require a local unit of government to expand or modify its activities so as to necessitate additional expenditures 
from local revenue, the state mandate provisions of the Constitution of Maine require either: (1) General Fund 
appropriations be provided to nmd at least 90% of any additional necessitated local costs of the mandate; or (2) a 
Mandate Preamble be added to the bill and two-thirds of the members of each House vote to exempt the mandate from 
the funding requirement. If the bill does represent a state mandate and neither one of these actions occurs, the local 
units of government will not be required to implement the mandated activities. 
Fiscal Detail and Notes 
To the extent that the requiiements included in this bill are already in place, the impact of this legislation on school 
administrative units is not expected to be significant. The impact to those school administrative units that have not put 
the requirements of this legislation into place may be greater but are still not expected to be significant. 
Additional costs to the Department of Education to issue the required administrative letter can be absorbed within 
existing budgeted resources. 
LRl 657(02) - Fiscal Note - Page 1 of 1