# Maine LD 2098: An Act to Update Certain Higher Education Statutes and Laws

Maine LD 2098, An Act to Update Certain Higher Education Statutes and Laws, is a 132nd Maine Legislature (2025-2026) House bill sponsored by Holly Sargent (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-04-03 (Signed by Governor, ACTPUB Chapter 630) (as of 2026-10-19).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/ME-LD2098-132
- As of: 2026-10-19
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Maine LD 2098
- State: Maine
- Session: 132nd Maine Legislature (2025-2026)
- Title: An Act to Update Certain Higher Education Statutes and Laws
- Status: signed
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2026-01-07
- Last action: 2026-04-03, Signed by Governor, ACTPUB Chapter 630
- Sponsor: Holly Sargent (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Subjects: COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES, COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES - CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOLS
- Touches household money: no
- Roll calls: 2 (95 yes, 79 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 4

## Summary

No summary available.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- College of the Atlantic gains broader degrees: benefit, low. College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor can award Bachelor of Arts degrees like those awarded by similar colleges. Its authority is no longer limited to a Bachelor of Arts in Human Ecology. The provision does not specify tuition changes.
- Recently approved colleges can skip another review: benefit, low. The State Board can recommend authority to grant degrees without another review for qualifying institutions. The Board must have approved or renewed approval for their Maine programs within five years before the application. Applications must cover only degrees tied to those approved programs. When…
- Temporary college approvals cannot support permanent authority: cost, low. Institutions cannot use temporary approval as the basis for a State Board recommendation for permanent authority to grant degrees.
- College fees fund Maine higher education administration: cost, low. Institutions must submit initial degree-authority applications through the commissioner's process and pay a fee based on processing costs. Processing fees also apply to temporary college-name use, out-of-state courses for credit, coordinated programs, and exempt-status applications. The commissione…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Holly Sargent (Democratic), House

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-03-18 | Senate | ACCEPT MAJORITY OUGHT TO PASS AS AMENDED REPORT | pass | 20 | 12 |   |
| 2026-03-17 | House | ACC MAJ OTP AS AMENDED REP | pass | 75 | 67 |   |

## Actions (8)

- 2026-04-03: Signed by Governor, ACTPUB Chapter 630
- 2026-03-25: PASSED TO BE ENACTED, in concurrence. (Senate)
- 2026-03-24: PASSED TO BE ENACTED. Sent for concurrence. ORDERED SENT FORTHWITH. (House)
- 2026-03-19: COMMITTEE ON BILLS IN THE SECOND READING REPORTS NO FURTHER VERBAL AMENDMENTS NECESSARY. REPORT ACCEPTED.READ A SECOND TIME and PASSED TO BE ENGROSSED AS AMENDED BY Committee Amendment "A" (H-853), in concurrence.Ordered sent down forthwith. (Senate)
- 2026-03-18: Reports READOn motion by Senator RAFFERTY of York the Majority Ought to Pass as Amended Report ACCEPTED in concurrence. Roll Call Ordered Roll Call Number 774 Yeas 20 - Nays 12 - Excused 3 - Absent 0 Bill READ ONCE Committee Amendment "A" (H-853) READ and ADOPTED. ASSIGNED FOR SECOND READING NEXT LEGISLATIVE DAY. (Senate)
- 2026-03-17: Reports READ.On motion of Representative MURPHY of Scarborough, the Majority Ought to Pass as Amended Report was ACCEPTED.ROLL CALL NO. 654(Yeas 75 - Nays 67 - Absent 7 - Excused 1 - Vacant 1)The Bill was READ ONCE.Committee Amendment "A" (H-853) was READ and ADOPTED.Under suspension of the rules, the Bill was given its SECOND READING without REFERENCE to the Committee on Bills in the Second Reading.The Bill was PASSED TO BE ENGROSSED as Amended by Committee Amendment "A" (H-853). Sent for concurrence. ORDERED SENT FORTHWITH. (House)
- 2026-01-07: The Bill was REFERRED to the Committee on EDUCATION AND CULTURAL AFFAIRS in concurrence (Senate)
- 2026-01-07: Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered printed. The Bill was REFERRED to the Committee on EDUCATION AND CULTURAL AFFAIRS.Sent for concurrence. ORDERED SENT FORTHWITH. (House)

## Bill text

- Amendment C-A (H-853), adopted by House & Senate: [PDF](https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/getPDF.asp?paper=HP1413&item=2&snum=132)
- Enacted: [PDF](https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/getPDF.asp?paper=HP1413&item=3&snum=132)
- Introduced: [PDF](https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/getPDF.asp?paper=HP1413&item=1&snum=132)

## Related bills

- LD 1522: An Act to Establish the Maine Eviction Prevention Program (failed)
- LD 2067: An Act to Include Community Mental Health Workers Under the 1998 Special Plan for Retirement (failed)
- LD 1665: An Act to Provide Property Tax Relief to Maine Families (failed)
- LD 1872: An Act to Reinvest in the Pension Funds of the Maine Public Employees Retirement System (failed)
- LD 1611: An Act to Decrease the Retirement Contributions Required for Teachers and State Employees (failed)
- LD 1294: An Act to Expand the Dependent Exemption Tax Credit (failed)

## Sources
- [Amendment C-A (H-853), adopted by House & Senate (PDF)](https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/getPDF.asp?paper=HP1413&item=2&snum=132)
- [Enacted (PDF)](https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/getPDF.asp?paper=HP1413&item=3&snum=132)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/getPDF.asp?paper=HP1413&item=1&snum=132)

## Related
- [LD 1522: An Act to Establish the Maine Eviction Prevention Program](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/ME-LD1522-132)
- [LD 2067: An Act to Include Community Mental Health Workers Under the 1998 Special Plan f…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/ME-LD2067-132)
- [LD 1665: An Act to Provide Property Tax Relief to Maine Families](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/ME-LD1665-132)
- [LD 1872: An Act to Reinvest in the Pension Funds of the Maine Public Employees Retiremen…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/ME-LD1872-132)
- [LD 1611: An Act to Decrease the Retirement Contributions Required for Teachers and State…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/ME-LD1611-132)
- [LD 1294: An Act to Expand the Dependent Exemption Tax Credit](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/ME-LD1294-132)
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Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/ME-LD2098-132 (as of 2026-10-19).