123rd MAINE LEGISLATURE
		LD 1292		LR 1863(01)
	An Act To Ensure the Provision of Necessary Conditions for Effective Education Reform
	Fiscal Note for Original Bill
	Sponsor: Rep. Norton of Bangor
	Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs
	Fiscal Note Required: Yes
Fiscal Note
State Mandate - Unfunded
State Mandates
	Required Activity				Unit Affected	Costs
	The requirement that school administrative units establish "teacher learning communities" within each school building, comprised of all teachers in that building, who must meet for a minimum of one hour daily within the normal school day and that the teachers must have coverage for their assigned responsibilities while meeting in a teacher learning community is a State mandate pursuant to the Constitution of Maine.  The cost can not be determined at this time, however, the Department of Education has estimated the cost to be approximately $30 million per year.				School	Significant
Fiscal Detail and Notes
	The Department of Education's cost estimate is based on approximately 14,160 teachers who teach for approximately 175 - 180 student days per year.  This would result in approximately 175 - 180 hours of "teacher learning community" time per teacher, or between 2,478,000 and 2,548,800 total hours per year. The cost for coverage by other personnel is estimated to be $12.00 per hour for a total cost of between $29.7 million and $30.6 million annually.