Maine's Legislation

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The History
 of Charter School Legislation in Maine

Current Status:  There are no charter schools in Maine, as Maine has not passed enabling charter school legislation.

        Maine educators and parents have been working since 1993 to introduce public charter school options in Maine. MACS has been able to take advantage of the many years of experience in 40 states to craft bills that adapt the model to Maine's unique characteristics. Support for allowing public charter schools in Maine has been growing steadily over the years.
                           

History of School Choice in Maine

Maine has had forms of school choice for decades, as has New Hampshire and Vermont. Towns that do not have their own schools, mostly at the high school level, allow parents to choose among public and private schools in the vicinity, with the tuition paid by the town.

Some districts provide choices among public elementary programs, for example, the Mast Landing School in Freeport hosts 3 different programs. These choice options have worked well for many Maine communities, and expanding public school choices for more Maine children would give a boost to the state's goal of "success for all children."

Charter Schools Proposed to Expand School Choice to All Maine Children.

Charter schools are a recent addition to public school choice programs that draws on the history of independently-managed public academies in New England.

Educators and citizens in Maine have been exploring the concept of public school choice since 1993. The first charter school bills were sponsored by Rep. Roland Barth of Bethel and Sen. Mary Cathcart of Orono. After several different bills were submitted to the Legislature in 1997, at the request of the Legislature's Joint Standing Committee on Education, the State Board of Education conducted a study of Charter Schools in 1997-1998.

In 1998, a group of educators began meeting to discuss and promote public charter schools especiall adapted to the particular needs of Maine. This group invited Joe Nathan, of the Center for School Change in Minnesota, to a forum in Maine, to provide some national expertise to Maine's efforts.  This group became Maine Association for Charter Schools or "MACS".

In 1999, Rep. Judy Powers introduced LD 2027, "An Act to Enable the Formation of Public Charter Schools," and the Joint Legislative Committee on Education held a public hearing on January 5, 2000. Several committee "work sessions" followed. The amendments proposed by the Maine Department of Education so weakened the proposed charter school bill, that Rep. Powers requested that the original language be deleted. The Committee Chairman proposed new language that aimed to expand enrollment flexibility within the existing system of public education. LD 2027, newly titled "An Act to Encourage Educational Options," was passed and signed by the Governor. Part of this bill required the Maine Department of Education to convene a "Charter School Stakeholders' Group" in the fall of 2000 to address how a charter school bill in Maine could meet the federal criteria for participation in the federal Charter School Grant Program. This group met and sent its report to the Legislature in January 2001.

In February 2001, Rep. Elizabeth Watson re-introduced an improved version of the charter school enabling legislation; there was a public hearing on April 29 with strong support expressed by the members of the public. At its work session on May 1, the Education Committee opposed the bill 8-5. Rep. Watson then introduced substitute language which would have allowed existing public schools to convert to charter school status, and required the State Board of Education to draft rules by February 2002 allowing new groups to start public charter schools. LD 1531, as amended, was sent to the full Legislature with a 5-8 Committee report. On June 8th, the Senate passed the bill; it was defeated in the House, 89 to 49 with 13 absent.

In January 2003, improved charter school enabling legislation was introduced, with a bi-partisan group of sponsors. After a public hearing on April 7th, the Education Committee voted 4-9 against LD 1391, but supporters promised a floor fight. A compromise was worked out that the Education Committee would request the Maine State Board of Education to conduct a study of charter schools and report back to the Committee in January 2004. The Board’s Charter School Study Committee met several times from July to November; it included 3 members of the Board, 2 representatives from the Maine Department of Education, and 3 professors to help with the research. Interested observers included MACS, the Maine School Superintendents Association, the Maine Principals Association and the Maine Education Association.

After research into the available literature on charter schools and experiences in other state, telephone and personal interviews with several charter school leaders, and many discussions, the Committee voted to recommend a pilot program of charter schools. The full Board ratified this recommendation on December 10, 2003. The Board’s report and recommendations were presented to the Legislature’s Education Committee on January 29, 2004. The Committee did not act on the Board’s recommendations during the second half of the 2 year legislative session.

In January 2005, charter school enabling legislation, LD 1640, was introduced again by Sen. Carol Weston and Rep Karl Turner.  The Education Committee responded to a request by the Department of Education to "carry" the bill over to the second session, to give the Department more time to consider the specifics of the bill. 

In October 2005, MACS arranged a workshop with the Department of Education, bringing five national experts on charter schools to Augusta....

In January 2006, the Education Committee held a work session on LD 1640 and voted 8 to 3 that the bill "ought not to pass".  Two weeks later, however, the bill was re-visited by the committee to consider amendments by Rep. Karl Turner and Sen. Connie Goldman.  This time, the committee voted "ought not to pass" by a slim margin, 7-5 with one abstention.  The member abstaining did so since she worked for MACS several years earlier, lobbying for charter school legislation.  Because of the divided committee report, LD 1640 automatically goes to the full House and Senate for floor debate and vote.

Unfortunately, LD 1640 lost by a few votes in the Maine Senate and House in late March 2006.

In the 124th Legislative Session in 2006, LD 1438, "An Act to Permit Charter Schools in Maine" was sponsored by Senator Dennis Damon.  A Public Hearing was held on LD 1438 before the Legislature's Education Committee on May 5, followed by two work sessions. Though reported out of committee "ought not to pass", and defeated narrowly in the Senate, the House voted to pass the bill.  A follow-up vote in the Senate, however, failed again to pass by a narrow margin. 

To contact MACS: macs@mainecharterschools.org