An Act to Grant or Extend Conditional Teaching Certificates Under
Maine Legislature, Session 132, LD 0369
Sponsors: LIBBY
Amends: 20-A MRSA §6103, 20-A MRSA §13011-B, 20-A MRSA §13012-A

Legislative Document
No. 369
S.P. 161
In Senate, February 3, 2025
An Act to Grant or Extend Conditional Teaching Certificates Under 
Certain Circumstances
Received by the Secretary of the Senate on January 30, 2025.  Referred to the Committee 
on Education and Cultural Affairs pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed.
DAREK M. GRANT
Secretary of the Senate
Presented by Senator LIBBY of Cumberland.
Cosponsored by Representatives: BAGSHAW of Windham, CARLOW of Buxton, HAGGAN 
of Hampden, LYMAN of Livermore Falls.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  20-A MRSA §6103, sub-§3-A, as amended by PL 2015, c. 395, §3, is 
further amended to read:
3-A.  Fees.  The Commissioner of Public Safety shall assess a fee set annually by the 
Commissioner of Education for each initial criminal history record check and a fee set 
annually by the Commissioner of Education for each renewal criminal history record check 
required by this section.  The Commissioner of Public Safety may not assess a fee for 
fingerprinting an applicant for a conditional certificate pursuant to section 13012-A, 
subsection 1, paragraph D.
Sec. 2.  20-A MRSA §13011-B is enacted to read:
§13011-B.  Conditional certification extension based on extenuating circumstances
Notwithstanding the term of a conditional certificate under section 13012-A, 
subsection 2, upon request of a school administrative unit, the commissioner may grant an 
extension on an individual’s conditional certificate in the case of extenuating 
circumstances, including, but not limited to, public health emergencies, illness of the 
individual or an inability of the individual to teach for an extended period of time.  The 
request for an extension must be accompanied by supporting documentation of the 
extenuating circumstances, which may include, but is not limited to, correspondence from 
a physician or a written request from the superintendent of the school administrative unit 
where the individual is employed.
Sec. 3.  20-A MRSA §13012-A, sub-§1, as enacted by PL 2017, c. 235, §11 and 
affected by §41, is amended to read:
1.  Conditional certificate.  The commissioner may issue a conditional certificate to:
A.  An individual who has not met all of the requirements for a certificate as set forth 
in section 13013, 13019‑I, 13019‑G or 13022.;
B.  An individual who is eligible for an endorsement to teach in a teacher shortage area 
as determined by the commissioner; or
C.  A holder of a professional teacher certificate under section 13013 who is 
transitioning to another endorsement; or
D.  An individual who has been employed as a full-time professor at a college or 
university in the State for at least 5 years.
SUMMARY
This bill allows the Commissioner of Education to grant an extension of a conditional 
teaching certificate in the case of extenuating circumstances. The request for an extension 
must be accompanied by supporting documentation of the circumstances.  The bill also 
allows the commissioner to issue a conditional certificate to an individual who has been 
employed as a full-time professor at a college or university in the State for at least 5 years 
and prohibits the Commissioner of Public Safety from assessing a fee for fingerprinting 
such an applicant.