APPROVED CHAPTER
APRIL 20, 2022 646
BY GOVERNOR PUBLIC LAW
STATE OF MAINE
_____
IN THE YEAR OF OUR LORD
TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-TWO
_____
H.P. 1216 - L.D. 1632
An Act To Update the Laws Regarding the Maine Educational Center for the
Deaf and Hard of Hearing and the Governor Baxter School for the Deaf
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 20-A MRSA §7401, as amended by PL 2005, c. 279, §6, is further amended
to read:
§7401. School established Deaf and hard-of-hearing service provider established
The Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing and the Governor
Baxter School for the Deaf is established as a public school deaf and hard-of-hearing
service provider pursuant to this chapter for the purpose of educating deaf and hard-of-
hearing students. The school center is a body politic and corporate and is an instrumentality
and agency of the State. The exercise by the school center of the powers conferred by this
chapter is the performance of an essential public function by and on behalf of the State.
The center includes the Mackworth Island preschool, located at Mackworth Island, as
an integrated preschool program for children who are deaf or hard of hearing and typically
developing children, and includes early intervention services that include deaf and hard-of-
hearing related services delivered to children from birth to under 3 years of age who are
deaf and hard of hearing and statewide education and family services that are provided to
schools by staff employed through the center, including, but not limited to, site-based
programs, consultation, evaluation and specially designed instruction.
Sec. 2. 20-A MRSA §7402, as amended by PL 2011, c. 683, §1, is further amended
to read:
§7402. Definitions
As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms
have the following meanings.
1. School Center. "School" "Center" means the Maine Educational Center for the
Deaf and Hard of Hearing and the Governor Baxter School for the Deaf established under
this chapter, including the center school located at Mackworth Island known as the
Governor Baxter School for the Deaf, the center preschool and any satellite school within
the State that may be operated under a contracted services agreement section 7401 that is
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responsible for operating the Mackworth Island preschool, early intervention services and
statewide education and family services.
2. School Center board or board. "School Center board" or "board" means the
School Board of the Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing and the
Governor Baxter School for the Deaf.
2-A. Early intervention and family services program. "Early intervention and
family services program" means a program that assists in providing early intervention
services to children from birth to under 3 years of age who are deaf or hard of hearing
within the State in accordance with a memorandum of understanding with the department
and in collaboration with the State's intermediate educational unit.
3. Sending school. "Sending school" means any school administrative unit that has a
student in attendance at the center school or at a satellite school Mackworth Island
preschool or a site-based program.
4. Executive director. "Executive director" means the Executive Director of the
Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing and the Governor Baxter
School for the Deaf.
5. Center school. "Center school" means the kindergarten to grade 12 programs
established and operated by the Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
and the Governor Baxter School for the Deaf at the Governor Baxter School for the Deaf
located at Mackworth Island or at a location determined by the school board in accordance
with section 7407, subsection 17.
5-A. 504 plan. "504 plan" means a program developed pursuant to Section 504 of the
federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Public Law 93-112.
5-B. Host school. "Host school" means the school administrative unit at which a site-
based program is located.
5-C. Room and board. "Room and board" means food and residence provided to a
student.
6. Satellite school. "Satellite school" means the programs, including a residential
program, day school programs, early childhood programs and outreach programs, that are
located near the population centers of deaf and hard-of-hearing students within the State
established by the School Board of the Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of
Hearing and the Governor Baxter School for the Deaf.
6-A. Site-based program. "Site-based program" means an inclusive deaf education
classroom or classrooms embedded in a general education setting, operating through a
memorandum of understanding between the center and a host school.
7. Statewide educational education and family services or outreach. "Statewide
educational education and family services" or "outreach" means consultation services
provided to families of children from birth to 5 years of age who are deaf or hard-of-hearing
students and consulting services to school administrative units that serve school-age deaf
or hard-of-hearing children educational outreach services, resources and information that
are provided by staff employed through the center to children who are deaf or hard of
hearing, from 3 through 22 years of age, their families and schools throughout the State,
including students at site-based programs. These services may include, but are not limited
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to, specially designed instruction, consultation, evaluation, speech therapy, social-
emotional programming, site-based programs and involvement with a 504 plan or an
individualized education program plan, family programming and interpreting referral
services.
8. Statewide resource center. "Statewide resource center" means the information and
referral services provided by the library at the center school and the distance education
program and the community education program offered at the center school.
9. Center Mackworth Island preschool. "Center Mackworth Island preschool"
means the preschool program established located at Mackworth Island and operated by the
Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing and the Governor Baxter
School for the Deaf at the Governor Baxter School for the Deaf.
Sec. 3. 20-A MRSA §7403, as amended by PL 2013, c. 552, §1, is repealed.
Sec. 4. 20-A MRSA §7404, as amended by PL 2011, c. 683, §3, is further amended
to read:
§7404. Funding; and tuition for Mackworth Island preschool and site-based
programs
The following provisions apply to funding for and tuition to the school Mackworth
Island preschool, early intervention services for children from birth to under 3 years of age
who are deaf and hard of hearing and statewide education and family services, including
site-based programs.
1. Funding of the Mackworth Island preschool. Students from this State may attend
the center school Mackworth Island preschool free of tuition and room and board expense.
Funding for these students is provided by legislative appropriation or allocation based on
the services necessary, including room and board, to satisfy the individualized education
programs of the students enrolled in the center school Mackworth Island preschool.
Funding must support maintenance of the center school Mackworth Island preschool and
that portion of the island used by the center school, security, outreach services, adult
education, access to the education network of Maine and operations of the center school,
including the residential program, parent-infant program, preschool program and
communication garden program Mackworth Island preschool. Funding must also support
maintenance and operations of any satellite school.
2. Out-of-state tuition; site-based programs. Students from other states and
countries who meet enrollment criteria and receive approval from the host school may
attend the school a site-based program on a space-available basis by paying the cost of
tuition, fees and room and board as established by the school center board.
3. In-state tuition; site-based programs. The sending school shall pay tuition to the
host school and any additional costs for the individualized education program services and
evaluations that are not specific to deaf and hard-of-hearing students and not otherwise
covered by funding through the center. Funding for the individualized education services
at the site-based program must be provided by legislative appropriation or allocation based
on the services necessary to satisfy the individualized education program for deaf and hard-
of-hearing students in accordance with section 7405-D.
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 4. Room and board. The center shall pay the room and board costs for each student
placed in a site-based program in grades 9 to 12, and grade 8 on a case-by-case basis, whose
full-time residence is more than a 50-mile one-way commute from the site-based program.
The costs must be paid using funds appropriated or allocated by the State in accordance
with a memorandum of understanding between the host school and the center.
Sec. 5. 20-A MRSA §7405-A, as enacted by PL 2013, c. 552, §3, is repealed.
Sec. 6. 20-A MRSA §7405-B is enacted to read:
§7405-B. Early intervention services
1. Provision of early intervention services. The State's intermediate educational unit
is responsible for the provision of early intervention services for children from birth to
under 3 years of age who are deaf or hard of hearing.
2. Responsibility for early intervention services. The center is responsible for the
following early intervention services for children from birth to under 3 years of age who
are deaf or hard of hearing in collaboration with the State's intermediate educational unit
through a memorandum of understanding with the department:
A. Statewide coordination of early intervention specialists, including but not limited
to teachers of deaf students, speech-language pathologists, special education providers
and occupational therapists specializing in deafness;
B. Special instruction through primary service delivery;
C. Consultations; and
D. Family training in American Sign Language and cued language.
3. Supports. The center is responsible for providing the following support to the
State's intermediate educational unit:
A. Statewide coordination of hearing assistive technology;
B. Statewide coordination of American Sign Language interpreting services and cued
speech transliteration services; and
C. Assistance with the coordination of referrals, pursuant to Part C of the federal
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Public Law 91-230, to the State's
intermediate educational unit for children who are deaf or hard of hearing.
Sec. 7. 20-A MRSA §7405-C is enacted to read:
§7405-C. Mackworth Island preschool
1. Free, appropriate public education responsibility. The State's intermediate
educational unit is responsible for providing a free, appropriate public education pursuant
to chapter 301 and Part B of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Public
Law 91-230, for deaf and hard-of-hearing students attending the Mackworth Island
preschool.
2. Responsibility for Mackworth Island preschool. The center is responsible for
the following services, required pursuant to Section 1419 of the federal Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act, for deaf and hard-of-hearing students attending the Mackworth
Island preschool:
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 A. Specially designed instruction;
B. Speech-language therapy, including listening and spoken language services;
C. Audiology services in conjunction with the student's managing audiologist;
D. Occupational therapy;
E. Social work services;
F. American Sign Language interpreting;
G. Cue transliteration services for educational programming;
H. Transition planning;
I. Extended school year services;
J. Remote hearing technology services designed for educational use;
K. Acoustic consultation, including measurement of unoccupied classroom noise
levels and observation of the environment, in order to make recommendations for
acoustically appropriate treatment;
L. Educational technician services in general education classes;
M. Evaluations for the following:
(1) American Sign Language services;
(2) Occupational therapy;
(3) Speech-language therapy;
(4) Psychoeducational services;
(5) Academic achievement services; and
(6) Functional listening services;
N. Observations in the learning environment; and
O. Behavioral support services and planning, including functional behavioral
evaluations and behavior intervention plans.
Sec. 8. 20-A MRSA §7405-D is enacted to read:
§7405-D. Statewide education and family services; site-based programs
1. Free, appropriate public education responsibility. The school administrative
unit is responsible for providing a free, appropriate public education pursuant to chapter
301 and Part B of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Public Law
91-230, for deaf and hard-of-hearing students at that school administrative unit receiving
services delivered by the center. When a student attends a site-based program, the student's
sending school is responsible for providing a free, appropriate public education as required
under Part B of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Public Law 91-230.
2. Responsibility for statewide education and family services. Responsibility for
providing statewide education and family services pursuant to Part B of the federal
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Public Law 91-230, is as follows:
A. The center is responsible for:
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 (1) Any specially designed instruction. The center shall ensure staffing to support
a child's individualized education program services;
(2) Any speech-language services. The center shall ensure staffing for speech-
language consultation services;
(3) Any consultation services, including but not limited to consultations with
teachers of deaf students, speech-language pathologists, special education
providers, American Sign Language specialists, interpreters and social workers;
(4) Parent training and counseling in American Sign Language and cued language;
(5) Evaluations in speech language, functional listening and American Sign
Language;
(6) Statewide coordination of hearing assistive technology;
(7) Statewide coordination of American Sign Language interpreting services and
cued speech transliteration services;
(8) Statewide social-emotional programming; and
(9) Behavioral analysis provided by or performed under the supervision of a
person certified by a national board of behavior analysts; and
B. The sending school is responsible for:
(1) American Sign Language interpreting services and cued speech transliteration
services in the sending school's district for students; and
(2) Transportation to and from extracurricular events hosted by the center.
3. Responsibility for services at site-based programs; center. The center is
responsible for providing the following services at site-based programs that are specific to
deaf and hard-of-hearing students:
A. The costs of transportation and other related services as defined by section 7001,
subsection 4‑B, including the following related services:
(1) Speech-language therapy, including listening and spoken-language services;
(2) Audiology services in conjunction with the student's managing audiologist;
(3) Occupational therapy;
(4) Transportation for students attending site-based programs from towns other
than the host school towns;
(5) American Sign Language interpreting services for educational programming;
(6) Extended school year services;
(7) Evaluation for the following:
(a) Occupational therapy services;
(b) Speech-language therapy;
(c) American Sign Language services;
(d) Psychoeducational services;
(e) Academic achievement services; and
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 (f) Functional listening services;
(8) Observations in the learning environment;
(9) Behavioral support services and planning, including functional behavioral
evaluations and behavior intervention plans;
(10) Specially designed instruction;
(11) Social work services;
(12) Behavioral analysis provided by or performed under the supervision of a
person certified by a national board of behavior analysts;
(13) Cued speech transliteration services for educational programming;
(14) Transition planning;
(15) Remote hearing technology services designed for educational use;
(16) Acoustic consultation, including measurement of unoccupied classroom noise
levels and observation of the environment, in order to make recommendations for
acoustically appropriate treatment;
(17) Educational technician services in general education classes;
(18) Social-emotional programming; and
(19) Boarding for high school students.
The center shall pay the room and board costs for each student who is eligible for
room and board and placed