Maine school drill rule

What drills does Maine require?

Maine's Department of Education rule (Chapter 125) requires public schools, including public charter schools, to hold both lockdown drills and emergency evacuation drills. The drill counts come from this rule, not from a statute. Schools at every level, K-12, must hold two drills during the first two weeks of school. On top of those two, schools must hold more drills during the year, by grade level:

A school that spans several grade bands holds the extra-drill count of the lowest grade level it enrolls, and the local fire chief may raise the number of drills. These counts cover lockdown and evacuation drills together; the rule sets no separate minimum number of lockdown drills.

What about fire drills?

The State Fire Marshal's rule on fire safety in buildings adopts the NFPA 101 Life Safety Code, 2018 edition, by reference. Under NFPA 101 (2018), which Maine adopts in 16-219 C.M.R. ch. 20, schools must hold at least one emergency egress drill (a practice evacuation) every month they are in session. The same rule appears in the code's chapter for new school buildings (§ 14.7.2.3) and its chapter for existing ones (§ 15.7.2.3). The monthly drills may be deferred only when both conditions are met: the school is in a climate where the weather is severe, and it still holds the required number of drills, with at least four held before any are deferred. Under that rule, fire drills in portable classrooms must be held together with drills in the main school buildings.

What else does the rule require?

Drill results must be recorded, with any problems noted and fixed, using local code compliance forms. School staff must get a yearly orientation on drill requirements. Written evacuation drill procedures must be posted in all buildings; written lockdown drill procedures must not be posted. Each school administrative unit (SAU) must develop and maintain a Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan that the school board approves. By statute, each school board must approve a comprehensive health, safety and emergency management plan every year; the statute itself names no drill counts.

What about school bus drills?

Each student who rides a school bus must take part in supervised bus emergency evacuation drills at least once each semester, two times a year. SAUs must keep records of these drills, and must give their transportation safety records, with a statement of compliance, to the Department when it asks.

Who is covered?

Chapter 125 covers public schools: schools governed by an SAU school board, including authorized public charter schools, career and technical education regions, schools in the Unorganized Territory and magnet schools. For private schools, the Department of Education's approval questions under 20-A M.R.S. §2951(6) (emergency management) ask whether the school conducts lockdown drills and emergency evacuation drills. The requirements of that subsection apply only to a private school that enrolls 60% or more publicly funded students, apart from one listed exception (paragraph D).

Must parents be told, and who else takes part?

The drill section of Chapter 125 (§5.17) sets no requirement to notify parents before or after drills. It sets no limits on how realistic a drill may be, such as simulated gunfire, role-played attackers or props. It sets no role for law enforcement in drills; the only outside official it names is the local fire chief, who may increase the number of drills.

Can parents opt students out of active shooter drills?

A 2023 resolve (Resolve 2023, ch. 115) directs the Department of Education to amend the rule so parents can opt their children out of active shooter drills. The latest amendment listed in the Secretary of State's published Chapter 125 is dated June 10, 2022, and that list shows no opt-out change to the drill section. The same resolve directs the Maine School Safety Center to convene a stakeholder group on best practices for lockdown and active shooter drills that reduce trauma for students and staff.

How did the rule get here?

A 2015 resolve directed the Department to add lockdown drills to the rule while keeping the total number of required drills the same. In 2023 testimony, the Department said Chapter 125 sets the number of drills, while the details of each plan are local decisions. It also said that, at that time, neither statute nor rule set common standards or best practices for these drills.