The Legislature’s Education Committee is expected Monday to discuss rule changes that direct Maine’s Child Development Services, putting them more in line with federal regulations but setting off alarms with parents and providers for preschool children with special needs. The legislative committee is considering adding its opinion on the issue, and could be helpful if it issued clear guidelines for what it expected and established a review process to make sure it got them.

Of the many rule changes proposed by the department, two are particularly contentious: the department would alter the calendar from year-round to a school-year model, and one of the measures by which children qualify for services would be calibrated to a higher standard. Department officials believe that this latter change would affect only a handful of children who could still get access to services through two other measures.

Parents and providers have reason not to embrace these changes because they push CDS closer to an academic system – a system that is not well suited to 3-year-olds. The department feels pressure from a couple of areas. The feds expected states to have their rules completed by now. And since 1994, the number of children being provided with CDS services in Maine has risen 68 percent, with a corresponding increase in costs. Both sides of this debate are trying to serve these young children well, given the limit in resources, but have a strong and heartfelt disagreement over the best way to proceed.

Lawmakers aren’t going to change minds on either side, but they still can be helpful. A committee letter that stresses the importance of not turning CDS into an extension of the public-school model is essential – it is clear that, despite federal wishes, children are best served when their whole lives are taken into account. With that in mind, the department should first ensure that its changes dovetail with the changes in children’s services at the Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services.

Education Committee members also should not want these changes to go forward without the opportunity for a formal review of their effect. There is a surprising absence of more solid numbers on, for instance, the number of children who could receive services. Lawmakers should establish a one-year review of the rule changes to determine how many children were cut off from services, how well CDS incorporated the changes and how parents perceive their children’s progress under the new rules.

Depending on these results, federal waivers are possible and Maine can craft an efficient system that best serves its very young children.