Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that establishes total cost of education and state and local contributions to the education budget for fiscal year 2018-2019.

Highlights:

• Establishes the 2019 property tax year and subsequent tax years, the full-value education mill rate is the amount necessary to result in a 45 percent statewide total local share in fiscal year 2019-2020 (Sec. 2).

• Establishes the total cost of public education funding for grades K-12, in addition to state contributions to unfunded actuarial liabilities of the Maine Public Employees Retirement System that are attributable to teachers, retired teacher health insurance and retired teacher life insurance for fiscal year 2018-19 as $2.43 billion, with it being allocated as follows (Sec. 4):

• $2.2 billion for the total cost of funding public education from from grades K through 12;

• $46.51 million for the total normal cost of teacher retirement; and

• $181.53 million for the total cost of state contribution to unfunded actuarial liabilities of the Maine Public Employees Retirement System that are attributable to teachers, retired teacher health insurance and retired teacher life insurance for fiscal year 2018-19.

• Establishes the state and local contributions to the total cost of funding public education from grades K through 12 as the following (Sec. 5):

• $1.13 billion form Local governments; and

• $1.11 billion from the state government.

Full Bill Text