Distributed at the request of Representative James Schatz
The Appropriations Sub-Committee's "School Consolidation Plan" Will Destroy What Maine Parents, Taxpayers and Voters Value Most...
Local Involvement and Local Control
1. Local Voters Are Ignored
The Plan does not allow a local vote on the new regional school units. They will be designed by the State Department of Education, the State Board of Education or unelected committees.
The Plan violates Maine's long tradition of home rule and community-based decision making. Although the proponents of the Plan claim to have struck a balance between State and local control; in fact the consolidation of Maine’s local school units will be controlled by the Commissioner and the State Board of Education. Local voters will have no say in the design of the regional school units they will be required to fund and support.
2. Most Current School Systems Will Be Abolished
Nearly all existing elected school boards will be abolished on June 30, 2008, and all Community School Districts, School Unions, and SAD's will be abolished.
Larger existing school districts with student enrollments of 2,500 or more may be required to consolidate, at the discretion of the Commissioner.
3. The Commissioner of Education & the Unelected State Board of Education Will Dictate the New School Districts
The Department will provide one or more plans for the consolidation of existing school districts into 80 larger units that will average approximately 2,500 students...
Planning committees appointed according to Department guidelines (that do not yet exist) will be authorized 10 develop alternatives to the Commissioner's consolidation plan; but the Commissioner of Education retains exclusive authority to approve each plan. Non-participating school systems will be unilaterally merged into larger school systems by the State Board of Education.
4. The State Will Mandate Local Budget Procedures
Beginning in January 2008, all school districts will be required to use a "budget validation" process that mandates costly district-wide referendums…no exceptions! If the budget is rejected
at referendum, the budget validation process must be repeated again and again and again... until a budget is finally approved.
The mandatory budget validation referendum process violates Maine's tradition of home rule. Parts of this process have been deliberately designed to make it more difficult to adopt school
budgets that exceed State-determined 'EPS" funding levels. If these budget procedures succeed at limiting all school budgets to the "EPS" benchmark, many schools will have to be closed and as many as 1,800 teachers may have to be laid off.
5. All School Assets - but Not Local Debt - Will Have to Be Turned Over To Regional Districts
The boards of directors of the new regional school units can take existing school property and financial assets, but the existing school units and municipalities may have to pay the local debt associated with those assets.
6. All School Consolidation Will Be Forced Into A Rushed & Unworkable Time-Frame.
By June 1, 2007, the Commissioner of Education must develop consolidation plans for the entire state, even though the law will not yet be effective unless it is approved by a 2/3rds vote
By July 31, 2007, existing school units and municipalities must form consolidation committees, conduct public meetings to receive input, hold joint meetings with the committees from neighboring school units and municipalities, and then arrive at joint decisions on the final boundaries of new regional school units that may serve as an alternative to the DOE plans. It is simply unrealistic to think that all of this can be done in 60 days.
Between August 15, 2007 and November 15, 2007, unelected committees which are appointed under Department of Education guidelines must prepare and submit final school consolidation plans. These plans must include final decisions regarding the new regional board size and composition; configuration of new voting districts; disposition of school property; disposition of trust, reserve and other school funds; responsibility for existing contracts; changes to cost sharing formulas; amendments to private and special laws; plans to reduce administrative costs; and plans to achieve 5% cost reductions in special education, transportation and building and maintenance. It is simply unrealistic to think that all of this can be done in 90 days.
If the consolidation committees (whoever they turn out to be) are not able to meet the 60 and 90 day deadlines, then the State Board of Education is required to develop final plans for the new regional school units.
School consolidation is one of the most important and challenging issues facing the State of Maine. It should not be attempted on a rushed and unrealistic timeline that does not allow time for careful planning and democratic decision-making.
This undemocratic and rushed approach is NOT the right way to reorganize Maine's Public school system.
There IS a better way!