[Local-Maine-Schools] May 21: Education Committee's public forum and map unveiling

[Brian Hubbell]

Dick,

In response to your questions, here's the way I understand it.  But I
should caution that in legislative matters my opinion may not be any
more valid than the next citizen's.

> 1. "A Popular vote of the new school administrative unit will be final."
> What happens if the popular vote is against consolidation?

I believe the concept is that if a municipality votes down
consolidation then they do not become consolidated.  Both proposals A
& B mention penalties that would follow such a vote.  Penalties in B
are less specific, although one would expect that they would have
something to do with diminished state subsidy.

I'm not sure of the details about what would happen if one town from
an existing SAD voted not to participate in an SAD's further
consolidation.  Perhaps that town would no longer be a part of the
original SAD or perhaps the vote would be SAD-wide and binding upon
individual towns.

> 2. Outer islands are excepted.
> What does this actually mean for them structurally -- particularly the
> smaller islands, and what happens to them when their share of the $36
> million in GPA cuts hits?

I understand this exception to be the default starting point for
islands. According to the Commissioner's presentation, the islands are
very much welcome to voluntarily associate either with mainland
districts or band together with each other.  The Commissioner stated
several times that the map was a starting point, not the end point and
that every district could be altered through regional agreements

> 3. "26 Reorganization planning committees" -- are these 26 "sons of
> Baldacci" -- i.e., technical school regions, and in what way are they
> actually going to help "local regional" (oxymoron?) planning groups?

I understand these two ways.  One is that, anchored by the regional
technical centers, they remain a sort of reminder and regional
benchmark from the Governor's proposal.  But the other is that the
legislators at this point favor having the details and disputes of the
district boundaries settled regionally rather than by Augusta.  I
think Augusta is expected only to intervene if regional planning
committees are unable to arrive at a complete map themselves.

One thing to keep in mind when viewing the map is that the
Commissioner said that it was not by coincidence that certain of these
26 regions had their districts rendered in very close colors.  The
Commissioner said that these were areas in which the exact district
boundaries might be considered locally to be more mutable than
elsewhere.

So, naturally, we all noted that our three nearest hypothetical
districts in Hancock County were rendered in very similar shades of
green.

Brian Hubbell
mdischools.net