State review · Data version 2026.10.19.5 · October 2026

Maine

K-8 standards only

Maine's Chapter 132 rule requires publicly supported schools' programming to be aligned to the Maine Learning Results, whose social studies standards include a Personal Finance & Economics strand with expectations from kindergarten through grade 8, but no statute or rule read requires personal finance instruction in a named K-8 course or grade. State law also requires personal finance within the social studies and history credits for a high school diploma.

Statuses come from published law and standards and an automated second check, not a lawyer. Last verified: 2026-10-19. Report a correction

What the law says

Requirement coverage

Earliest grade covered: Grade 9
Grade range: grades 9-12

Describes the instruction requirement found in law, not the standards. It may reach at least one grade before ninth (the earliest grade is shown, and some start only in grade 6 or 7), no grade at all (not specified), or high school only. \u201cOffer courses\u201d means the law says districts must offer the courses or instruction, not that every student must receive it.

Grades K-8

Grades where K-8 content was confirmed: K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Standards document: Maine Learning Results: Social Studies, Personal Finance & Economics strand (Rule Chapter 132) (2019)
Required by law: No
Delivery: Not stated
Assessed: Not determined
Funded: Not determined

The mandate is rule-based: Chapter 132 says elementary, middle and high school programming in publicly supported schools must be aligned to the Learning Results (20-A M.R.S. 6209 requires public schools to participate in the system of learning results). The Personal Finance & Economics strand has grade-level expectations for K-5 and grade-span expectations for 6-8. Local units develop their own curriculum and no minutes or stand-alone course are specified; no K-8 assessment of personal finance was found. This is a judgement that alignment to a standards strand counts as a requirement to teach it; the 7-year review under 6209(4) began in 2025-2026 and could change the standards.

Grades 9-12

Graduation requirement: Yes
Course length: Personal finance is part of the 2 years (or equivalent in standards achievement) of social studies and history; no stand-alone course specified
Effective date: Not stated

20-A M.R.S. 4722(2)(B); 254(13) directs technical assistance for an integrated secondary model.

What’s missing for K-8

State standards name personal-finance concepts at two or more K-8 grade levels, but the sources reviewed did not show a requirement to teach them.

Pending bills

No pending bills were identified. This is not an exhaustive legislative search.

How to read the status

Status key

Requirement before grade 9: A statute or rule requires financial education and reaches at least one grade before ninth. Some start only in grade 6 or 7; the earliest grade is shown with the label.
Requirement, grades not specified: A statute or rule says students shall receive financial-literacy instruction but names no grade, so it is not confirmed to reach K-8.
K-8 standards only: State standards name a personal-finance concept at two or more K-8 grade levels, but no requirement to teach it was found.
No K-8 personal-finance standards found: A high school requirement exists, but no requirement for any grade before ninth and no K-8 standards naming a personal-finance concept at two or more grade levels were found. This describes what was found, not proof that none exist.
Study or pilot only: A task force, study, pilot, or unfunded permission exists, without a requirement.
None found: No state-level requirement or standards were found. The searches run are recorded.
Under review: Not yet confirmed. Sources found so far are shown and no status is stated.
Research in progress: This state has not been researched yet.

Sources

Maine Legislature, Maine Revised Statutes. 20-A M.R.S. 4722, sub-1 paragraph B (PL 2019, c. 202). Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-19.
“Social studies and history, including American history, government, civics and personal finance--2 years or the equivalent in standards achievement;”
Maine Legislature, Maine Revised Statutes. 20-A M.R.S. 254, sub-13. Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-19.
“encourages school administrative units to implement an integrated model for instruction in personal finance that may be used in secondary schools”
Maine Legislature, Maine Revised Statutes. 20-A M.R.S. 6209 (system of learning results). Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-19.
“The department shall establish parameters for essential instruction in English language arts; mathematics; science and technology; social studies;”
Maine Legislature, Maine Revised Statutes. 20-A M.R.S. 6209, sub-4 (7-year review cycle beginning 2025-2026). Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-19.
“content area of social studies, including student achievement of proficiency in personal finance, must be included in the commissioner's review”
Maine Secretary of State, Code of Maine Rules (Internet Archive copy of the rule file). Maine DOE Rule Chapter 132 (05-071), Learning Results: Parameters for Essential Instruction, Summary. Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-19. Archived copy captured 2025-02-15; original agency address: https://www1.maine.gov/sos/cec/rules/05/071/071c132.docx.
“programming in Maine’s publicly supported schools must be aligned to the knowledge and skills described in the Maine Learning Results”
Maine Secretary of State, Code of Maine Rules (Internet Archive copy of the rule file). Maine DOE Rule Chapter 132, Social Studies, Personal Finance & Economics strand, Kindergarten performance expectation. Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-19. Archived copy captured 2025-02-15; original agency address: https://www1.maine.gov/sos/cec/rules/05/071/071c132.docx.
“by describing how money has value and can be traded for goods and services.”
Maine Secretary of State, Code of Maine Rules (Internet Archive copy of the rule file). Maine DOE Rule Chapter 132, Social Studies, Personal Finance & Economics strand, grades 6-8 (D1). Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-19. Archived copy captured 2025-02-15; original agency address: https://www1.maine.gov/sos/cec/rules/05/071/071c132.docx.
“Using a process for making spending and savings decisions based on work, wages, income, expenses, and budgets”
Maine Department of Education (Internet Archive copy of the PDF). Maine Learning Results: Social Studies, Personal Finance & Economics, Grade 1. Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-19. Archived copy captured 2026-03-07; original agency address: https://www.maine.gov/doe/sites/maine.gov.doe/files/inline-files/Social%20Studies%20-%20MLR%20Social%20Studies%20%28Personal%20Finance%20%26%20Economics%29%202019%20-%2010.9.2025.pdf.
“describing how spending, saving, and sharing are ways to use money.”
Maine Department of Education (Internet Archive copy of the PDF). Maine Learning Results: Social Studies, Personal Finance & Economics, Grade 2. Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-19. Archived copy captured 2026-03-07; original agency address: https://www.maine.gov/doe/sites/maine.gov.doe/files/inline-files/Social%20Studies%20-%20MLR%20Social%20Studies%20%28Personal%20Finance%20%26%20Economics%29%202019%20-%2010.9.2025.pdf.
“describing how planning for the future is important to managing money.”
Maine Legislature, Maine Revised Statutes. 20-A M.R.S. 6209(4). Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-19.
“for the content area of social studies, including student achievement of proficiency in personal finance, must be included in the commissioner's review”
Maine Legislature, Maine Revised Statutes. 20-A M.R.S. 6209(2) (lists social studies; personal finance not named). Primary source. Retrieved 2026-10-19.
“shall ensure sufficient opportunity and capacity through multiple pathways for all students to study in the areas of”

Open items are being reviewed.

Statute text of 4722, 254 and 6209 was re-read on legislature.maine.gov today and prior excerpts are verbatim. The Champlain College fact sheet was dropped as a source (secondary). Standards and rule text were read from Internet Archive copies of the official maine.gov files (the archive's robots.txt allowed the fetch); the standards PDF carries K through 8 grade levels. The 2026-04-03 Chapter 132 file named in search results (maine.gov) could not be read. Coded standards only, consistent with Alabama, Arkansas and Georgia, where the K-8 standards are also required to be followed but no rule requires personal finance instruction itself. The rule and standards were read from archived copies of the agency files, because maine.gov blocks automated access.

Suggested citation
CENTS. Maine: K-8 financial education. State-by-state review, v2026.10.19.5, October 2026. https://www.centscampaign.org/states/me