RSU 40 Consolidation Update Jay, Livermore, Livermore Falls

The school consolidation law had the requirement that a consolidation plan be submitted to the State by December 1, 2007. The school boards in Jay and S.A.D. # 36 unanimously voted at the end of November 2007 to submit a partial plan to the State. Although the regional school district plan was not complete, the planning committee submitted it to the State and decided not to meet again until the Maine Legislature considered changes in the law that would make consolidating more feasible.

In April of 2008, the Maine Legislature approved L. D. 2323. Under the changed law ( LD 2323) a fully consolidated new district can still be formed. A fully consolidated school system would involve the new district owning and controlling all aspects of the schools in Jay, Livermore Falls, and Livermore.

New, with LD 23 23 however, is an Alternative Organizational Structure (AOS) option that allows for the creation of a new school unit that includes some consolidation but not all the consolidation features that the original 2007 law mandated. The Alternative Organizational Structure allows for consolidation of :

• system administration ( superintendent office services)
• special education administration
• transportation administration
• administration of business functions ( such as payroll, payables, and reporting)

In the Alternative Organization - a curriculum that is the same in all schools is required. Also required are common school calendars, policies and consistent collective bargaining agreements.

The consolidation law is very complicated. The C.P.A. has a great deal of work to to do and it is likely that a full plan will not be ready in the near future. It is expected that the plan will reach the voters in January of 2009. Because a referendum vote takes over 45 days to set up, the new plan required by the State will probably be completed in early November of 2008. A great deal of work and public input will take place before the vote takes place. Click Here for a list of the Regional Planning Committee Members (PDF)

For more information on school consolidation, visit the Maine Department of Education web site: http://www.maine.gov/education/

A Fully Consolidated Regional School Unit 40 - Jay, Livermore and Livermore Falls- would involve transfer of property.

State law 20-A M.R.S.A. 1462 provides that the school property will be transferred in the towns that will be part of a new school unit . For Jay, Livermore and Livermore Falls that would mean all of the school buildings and the land that is used for the schools including sports fields. Jay has a different view on this process than S. A.D. # 36 towns since all of the properties in Jay belong to the town of Jay. The S. A.D. # 36 buildings and land belong to the school administrative district. That was determined when the district was formed back in the 1960's. Therefore, SAD # 36 does not need to determine the buildings, fields, and other land that would be transferred. Jay has several areas that are shared by the town and the school. The community center was built as a shared community and school property. The Jay bus garage and the Jay tennis courts area are also shared.

WWW Jay School Department