An Act Regarding Public Preschool Programs Serving Children
Maine Legislature, Session 132, LD 2114
Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs
Sponsors: MURPHY
Amends: 20-A MRSA §1, 20-A MRSA §405, 20-A MRSA §4251, 20-A MRSA §4252, 20-A MRSA §4271, 20-A MRSA §4502, 20-A MRSA §5201, 20-A MRSA §15688-A

Legislative Document
No. 2114
H.P. 1429
House of Representatives, January 7, 2026
An Act Regarding Public Preschool Programs Serving Children 
Who Are 3 Years of Age
Submitted by the Department of Education pursuant to Joint Rule 203.
Reference to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative MURPHY of Scarborough.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  20-A MRSA §1, sub-§23-A, as amended by PL 2019, c. 241, §1, is further 
amended to read:
23-A.  Public preschool program.  "Public preschool program" means a program 
offered by a public elementary school pursuant to chapter 203 that provides instruction to 
children who are 3 or 4 years of age, including but not limited to a Head Start program of 
instruction provided by providers licensed by the Department of Health and Human 
Services that is approved as a component of the public preschool program.
Sec. 2.  20-A MRSA §405, sub-§3, ¶T, as amended by PL 2013, c. 581, §1, is 
further amended to read:
T.  Establish and maintain a 5-year plan for education that includes goals and policies 
for the education of children who are 4 years of age in public preschool programs and 
children in kindergarten and grades one to 12 and that promotes services for public 
preschool children.  The plan must incorporate and build upon the work of the Task 
Force on Learning Results established in Public Law 1993, chapter 290 and the federal 
GOALS 2000:  Educate America Act;
Sec. 3.  20-A MRSA §4251, first ¶, as amended by PL 2015, c. 267, Pt. C, §1, is 
further amended to read:
The intent of this subchapter is to encourage school administrative units to place an 
increased emphasis on instruction and curriculum for all children beginning at 4 years of 
age in public preschool programs to grade 2.  This subchapter is not intended as a method 
of financing existing efforts but as a way of encouraging the development of new or 
expanded programs.
Sec. 4.  20-A MRSA §4252, sub-§4, as amended by PL 2007, c. 141, §3, is further 
amended to read:
4.  Programs for children 3 years of age, 4 years of age and 5 years of age.  
Encourage the development of public preschool programs or 2-year kindergartens in 
conformity with section 5201, subsection 2, paragraph C, D and E and other appropriate 
programs to address the needs of children 3 years of age, 4 years of age and 5 years of age;
Sec. 5.  20-A MRSA c. 203, sub-c. 3, headnote is amended to read:
SUBCHAPTER 3
PUBLIC PRESCHOOL PROGRAMS FOR CHILDREN 4 YEARS OF AGE
Sec. 6.  20-A MRSA §4271, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 2013, c. 581, §3, is amended 
to read:
2.  Allowable costs; children 4 years of age.  Beginning with the 2015-2016 school 
year and for each subsequent school year, the State may provide start-up funding for the 
allowable costs to operate public preschool programs for children 4 years of age under this 
subchapter.
Sec. 7.  20-A MRSA §4271, sub-§2-A is enacted to read:
2-A.  Allowable costs; children 3 years of age with disabilities.  Beginning with the 
2026-2027 school year and for each subsequent school year, in addition to the funding 
permitted pursuant to subsection 2, the State may provide start-up funding for the allowable 
costs to operate public preschool programs for children who are 3 years of age and have 
been identified as a child with a disability pursuant to section 7001, subsection 1-B.
Sec. 8.  20-A MRSA §4271, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2017, c. 284, Pt. C, §5, is 
further amended to read:
3.  Grant funds.  Beginning with the 2015-2016 school year and for each subsequent 
school year until the 2026-2027 school year, the commissioner may provide start-up 
funding to qualified school administrative units to operate public preschool programs for 
children 4 years of age and, beginning with the 2026-2027 school year and for each 
subsequent school year, public preschool programs for children 3 or 4 years of age. Grants 
provided for allowable costs for approved public preschool programs must be provided 
from state, federal or private funds appropriated, allocated or authorized by the Legislature 
for that purpose.
Sec. 9.  20-A MRSA §4271, sub-§4, as enacted by PL 2013, c. 581, §3, is amended 
to read:
4.  Qualifications; rules.  To qualify for a grant under this section, a school 
administrative unit must submit an implementation plan to the department for the operation 
of a new or expanded public preschool program. The qualifications established for 
implementation plans must contain standards and best practices for public preschool 
programs and must encourage a school administrative unit to demonstrate coordination 
with other early childhood programs in the community to maximize resources and provide 
comprehensive services to meet the needs of children 3 or 4 years of age in accordance 
with this subchapter and rules adopted by the commissioner.  In awarding grants under this 
section, the commissioner shall give priority to a qualified school administrative unit that 
has a greater percentage of economically disadvantaged students as determined pursuant to 
section 15675, subsection 2 than other qualified school administrative units under this 
subsection and in accordance with the following order of preference:
A.  The first preference must be to award grant funds to a qualified school 
administrative unit that does not operate a public preschool program and that submits 
a plan for the development and operation of a new public preschool program; and
B.  The 2nd preference must be to award grant funds to a qualified school 
administrative unit that operates a public preschool program and that submits a plan 
for the development and operation of an expanded public preschool program.
The commissioner shall adopt rules that establish criteria for the approval of 
implementation plans and for the awarding of start-up funds for the allowable costs of 
operating public preschool programs.  Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection are routine 
technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2‑A.
Sec. 10.  20-A MRSA §4271, sub-§5, as enacted by PL 2013, c. 581, §3, is amended 
to read:
5.  Application for federal public preschool funds.  The department may apply for 
assistance from the Federal Government for the development of public preschool programs 
for children 3 or 4 years of age on behalf of school administrative units in the State.  The 
department shall administer any federal funds received for the benefit of public preschool 
programs in the State.  As the designated state agency authorized to administer federal 
funds, the department shall develop a state plan and application for funding public 
preschool programs and shall disburse federal funds as authorized and required by 
applicable federal law.  Beginning in fiscal year 2015-16, the department shall provide any 
federal funds received to qualified school administrative units as part of the start-up funding 
provided for the development and operation of public preschool programs under this 
section.  If federal funds are used as part of the start-up funds to operate new or expanded 
public preschool programs, the students enrolled in these programs must be considered 
subsidizable pupils for purposes of state subsidy calculations pursuant to chapter 606‑B, 
except that students who have not attained 4 years of age and have not been identified as a 
child with a disability pursuant to section 7001, subsection 1-B may not be considered 
subsidizable pupils for the purposes of state subsidy calculations made pursuant to chapter 
606-B.
Sec. 11.  20-A MRSA §4502, sub-§9, as amended by PL 2013, c. 581, §5, is further 
amended to read:
9.  Public preschool programs for children 3 or 4 years of age.  To the extent the 
State provides adequate start-up funding for a public preschool program for children 3 or 4 
years of age, a school administrative unit that does not have a public preschool program for 
children 3 or 4 years of age may develop a public preschool program implementation plan 
for children 3 or 4 years of age for submission to and approval by the department.  
Evaluation and approval of the proposal must include consideration of at least the following 
factors:
A.  Demonstrated coordination with other early childhood programs in the community 
to maximize resources;
B.  Consideration of the extended child care needs of working parents; and
C.  Provision of public notice regarding the proposal to the community being served, 
including the extent to which public notice has been disseminated broadly to other early 
childhood programs in the community.
Beginning with the 2015-2016 school year until the 2026-2027 school year, the 
commissioner may provide start-up funding as set forth in section 4271 to school 
administrative units to implement or expand public preschool programs for children 4 years 
of age as required under this subsection. Beginning with the 2026-2027 school year, the 
commissioner may provide start-up funding as set forth in section 4271 to school 
administrative units to implement or expand public preschool programs for children 3 or 4 
years of age as required under this subsection.
Sec. 12.  20-A MRSA §5201, sub-§2, ¶C, as amended by PL 2007, c. 141, §12, is 
further amended to read:
C.  A person who will be at least 4 years of age on October 15th of the school year may 
enroll in a public preschool program prior to kindergarten if it is offered available.
Sec. 13.  20-A MRSA §5201, sub-§2, ¶D is enacted to read:
D.  A person who will be at least 3 years of age on October 15th of the school year and 
is not identified as a child with a disability pursuant to section 7001, subsection 1-B, 
may enroll in a public preschool program if it is available and the program provides 
instruction to children who are 3 years of age.
Sec. 14.  20-A MRSA §5201, sub-§2, ¶E is enacted to read:
E.  A person who is at least 3 years of age and is identified as a child with a disability 
pursuant to section 7001, subsection 1-B may enroll in an available public preschool 
program at any time prior to enrolling in kindergarten.
Sec. 15.  20-A MRSA §15688-A, sub-§4, as enacted by PL 2013, c. 581, §10, is 
amended to read:
4.  New or expanded public preschool programs for children 4 years of age.  
Beginning in fiscal year 2015-16 and for each subsequent fiscal year until the 2026-27 
fiscal year, the commissioner may expend and disburse one-time, start-up funds to provide 
grants for expanded access to public preschool programs for children 4 years of age 
pursuant to chapter 203, subchapter 3. Beginning in fiscal year 2026-27 and for each 
subsequent fiscal year, the commissioner may expend and disburse one-time, start-up funds 
to provide grants for expanded access to public preschool programs for children 3 or 4 
years of age pursuant to chapter 203, subchapter 3. The amounts of the grant funding 
provided to qualified school administrative units pursuant to chapter 203, subchapter 3 are 
limited to the amounts appropriated, allocated or authorized by the Legislature for the 
operation of public preschool programs. Any balance of funds appropriated, allocated or 
authorized by the Legislature remaining at the end of a fiscal year do not lapse and are 
carried forward to the next fiscal year to carry out the purposes of chapter 203, subchapter 
3.
SUMMARY
This bill expands the definition of "public preschool program" to include a program 
that provides instruction to children who are 3 years of age. The bill provides that, in 
addition to allowing start-up funds for the operation of public preschools for children who 
are 4 years of age, the State, beginning in the 2026-2027 school year, may provide start-up 
funding for the allowable costs to operate public preschool programs for children who are 
both 3 years of age and identified as a child with a disability. The bill specifies that public 
preschool students who are 3 years of age and have not been identified as a child with a 
disability are not subsidizable pupils for the purposes of state subsidy calculations under 
the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 20-A, chapter 606-B. Under the bill, a child who is 3 
years of age on October 15th and does not have an identified disability may still attend a 
public preschool program that offers instruction to children who are 3 years of age. Under 
the bill, a person who is at least 3 years of age and is identified as a child with a disability 
may enroll in an available public preschool program at any time prior to enrolling in 
kindergarten.