An Act to Repeal and Replace the Charter of the Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor Community School District
Maine Legislature, Session 131, LD 1786
Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs
Sponsors: STOVER

Legislative Document
No. 1786
H.P. 1149
House of Representatives, April 25, 2023
An Act to Repeal and Replace the Charter of the Boothbay-
Boothbay Harbor Community School District
Reference to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative STOVER of Boothbay.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  P&SL 1953, c. 156, as amended by P&SL 2019, c. 11, §§1 to 3, is repealed 
and the following enacted in its place:
Sec. 1.  Organization and continued existence.  The Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor 
Community School District, referred to in this Act as "the community school district," is a 
community school district organized pursuant to the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 20-A, 
chapter 105 and this Act to provide public education in grades prekindergarten or 
kindergarten to grade 12 for the Town of Boothbay and the Town of Boothbay Harbor.  
The community school district is governed by Title 20-A, chapter 105 except as provided 
by this Act.
Sec. 2.  Governance transition.  The district school committee members and the 
trustees of the community school district serving as of the effective date of this Act shall 
continue in their offices for their respective remaining terms.
Sec. 3.  Board of trustees; district school committee.  Except as provided by 
this Act, the board of trustees and district school committee have the duties and authority 
pursuant to the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 20-A, chapter 105.  The board of trustees may 
act as a building and facilities governing committee, including authority in consultation 
with the district school committee over the budget for maintaining, repairing, replacing and 
improving the community school district's buildings and other facilities and over the 
district's capital reserve funds.  The community school district may vote in accordance with 
Title 20-A, section 1651, subsection 4 to have the district school committee perform the 
duties of the board of trustees.
Sec. 4. Cost sharing; amendment. The community school district shall apportion 
amounts to each member municipality for the total sum of the annual capital budget, less 
funds available from other sources to meet the same, and for the total sum of the annual 
operating budget, less funds available to meet the same, based upon the number of resident 
pupils in each municipality on the most recent June 1st before the fiscal year prior to the 
fiscal year of the budget; except that no more than 60% and no less than 40% of such net 
sum for the annual capital budget may be so apportioned to any town in any year.  For the 
purpose of local cost sharing under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 20-A, section 15688, 
subsection 4, the district's cost-sharing formula was established by this Act prior to January 
1, 2004, and this formula determines each municipality's local cost of education for 
purposes of Title 20-A, section 15688.  The community school district shall assess and 
collect school taxes from each member municipality as provided by state law. The 
community school district shall follow the procedure under state law for amendment of 
cost-sharing, except that the district school committee shall submit any cost-sharing 
amendment to voters at a referendum and may determine the amendment to be approved 
only if each municipality adopts the amendment by a majority of its voters voting and if 
the total vote cast in each municipality is at least 20% of the number of votes cast in the 
last gubernatorial election.
Sec. 5. Borrowing authority; voter authorization. Except as provided by this 
Act, the board of trustees has the authority to borrow pursuant to the Maine Revised 
Statutes, Title 20-A, section 1651, subsection 2, paragraph E.  Capital project bonds or 
notes of the community school district that are general obligations must be approved by the 
district voters.  The board of trustees shall issue a warrant to initiate a district referendum 
on a general obligation bond issue of $250,000 or more and a warrant to initiate either a 
district meeting or district referendum on a general obligation bond issue in an amount of 
less than $250,000.
Sec. 6. Budget validation referendum. The format and procedure for the school 
operating budget to be presented to the voters of the community school district must be the 
cost center summary budget format and the budget validation referendum procedure of the 
Maine Revised Statutes, Title 20-A, chapter 105, subchapter 3, except that the budget 
validation referendum procedure may be discontinued only by a referendum vote called by 
the district school committee and held on a date at least 10 years after the effective date of 
this Act or by a written petition for its discontinuance filed with the district school 
committee by at least 10% of the number of voters voting in the last gubernatorial election 
in the municipalities of the community school district.  In either case, the referendum 
question submitted to the voters must be as follows:  "Do you wish to continue the budget 
validation referendum of this Community School District for at least another 10 years?"  
The district school committee shall place the question on the next scheduled warrant for a 
budget validation referendum or an earlier one if determined appropriate by the district 
school committee.  If this referendum passes, the budget validation referendum procedure 
may be discontinued only by a referendum vote called by the district school committee and 
held on a date at least 10 years after the date of the prior vote to continue the budget 
validation or by a written petition for its discontinuance filed with the district school 
committee by at least 10% of the number of voters voting in the last gubernatorial election 
in the municipalities of the community school district.  If this referendum fails, that vote 
ends the use of the budget validation referendum beginning with the following budget year 
and prohibits its reconsideration for at least 3 years.  At least 3 years after a vote that 
discontinued the budget validation referendum, an article to reinstate the budget validation 
referendum procedure may be placed on the ballot by vote of the district school committee 
or by petition as provided by state law, and if approved by the voters the budget validation 
referendum may not be discontinued except after 10 years as provided in this section or by 
voter petition as provided in this section.
Sec. 7. District meeting procedures.  The community school district shall conduct 
budget meetings and special budget meetings in the manner provided under the Maine 
Revised Statutes, Title 20-A, chapter 105, subchapter 3. The community school district 
may conduct other meetings of its voters in the manner provided for budget meetings under 
state law. 
Sec. 8. District referendum procedures.  The community school district shall 
conduct referenda for purposes described in this Act or state law in the manner provided 
for regional school units under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 20-A, chapter 103-A.   
Sec. 9. Controlling law.  If any provision of this Act conflicts with the Maine 
Revised Statutes, Title 20-A, chapter 105, the provisions of this Act control.
SUMMARY
This bill replaces the original 1953 charter of the Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor 
Community School District, as amended.  It eliminates numerous outdated charter 
provisions and aligns governance and operations with state law.  It follows the budget 
validation referendum process in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 20-A, chapter 105 and 
requires voter approval of capital bonds. It retains the district's current cost-sharing 
formula.