Senate enacts bill to improve attendance for youngest schoolkids

Sen. Libby’s bill extends truancy law to students as young as 5, protects parent’s rights

Legislation from Sen. Nate Libby, D-Lewiston, which would give Maine schools the tools they need to ensure all students, regardless of their age, receive the education they need and deserve, was enacted following a bipartisan, unanimous vote in the Maine Senate on Wednesday.

The bill — LD 150, “An Act To Improve Attendance at Public Elementary Schools” — would allow school districts to extend enforcement of truancy rules to 5- and 6-year-old students enrolled in public school, while protecting the rights of parents to choose which school environment, and at what age, is appropriate for their children.

Truancy has harmful effects on a child’s education. Chronic tardiness or absenteeism affects graduation rates, proficiency and academic performance. Maine’s truancy law currently doesn’t apply to students until they are 7 years old, leaving schools with no way to ensure that 5- and 6-year-olds who are enrolled in school are attending classes and building the solid scholastic foundation necessary for later educational success.

“When a student misses a month or more of school each year, the clear, foundational link between early childhood education and success later in life is endangered, and in some cases, can’t be made up,” said Sen. Libby. “With LD 150 in place, school districts will have the authority they need to help get the parents and guardians of our youngest learners the help they need to get these kids to school.”

This is the third iteration of Sen. Libby’s bill. In 2015, the bill was opposed by homeschool advocates for inadvertently requiring school enrollment for young students. LD 150 addresses this concern by explicitly stating that the truancy law for 5- and 6-year-olds only applies to those whose parents make the affirmative decision to enroll their children in public school. Under LD 150, parents may also un-enroll their 5- and 6-year-old children from school at any time.

The 2017 bill passed with broad, bipartisan support: unanimous in the Senate and with a 99-45 vote in the House. Unfortunately, the bill was vetoed by then Gov. Paul LePage, and the veto was not overridden.

LD 150 has now been sent to Gov. Janet Mills, who has 10 days to sign it into law, veto it, or allow it to become law without her signature.