Highlighted Laws of
the Final 122nd Session
The signing of LD 235 (Rep. Tuttle
— the governor’s bill) raises the state’s minimum wage to $7.00.
The governor’s Pine Tree Zone expansions:
LD 192 (Rep. Moody) establishes a Pine Tree recreation zone
for everything north and east of the Androscoggin River. Provides for loans and grants to
assist small recreation-based businesses, to expand their businesses.
LD 1944 implements recommendations of the Washington County
Economic Development Task Force. The bill appropriates $75,000 for local economic
development priorities as well as creating Pine Tree Zone pilot programs for seasonal
businesses, tourism, and resort development in Cutler.
LD 1955, an Act to Provide Emergency Regional Economic
Development Assistance for Brunswick Naval Air Station. A Pine Tree Zone, known as The
Military Redevelopment Zone, will be established for the Brunswick area to assist local
businesses with the transition of BNAS’s closure. “The Military Redevelopment
Zone will be the cornerstone of the economic redevelopment effort,” — Governor
Baldacci. The zone will provide tax incentives to encourage relocation and growth of
companies in the Midcoast region. “To have the area become a PTZ will save us
tremendously in electricity costs alone,” said Martin Grimes of Harbor Technologies
in Brunswick.
More business initiatives:
LD 1518 — Speaker Richardson’s law creates a
specialized court to expedite business and consumer cases. By appointing judges to
business and consumer cases, it frees up resources in the courts for criminal, family, and
other cases, which remain a priority.
LD 169 — Rep. Moody makes it easier for small
businesses to get resale certificates, and eliminates the requirement for yearly renewal
by lowering the threshold for resale certificates to $3,000 of sales, down from $10,000 of
sales. Small businesses had expressed their concerns about the resale certificates and
this law addresses their worries.
High-speed internet expansion in rural areas of the state
for economic development — LD 2080 (Rep. Pingree – the governor’s bill).
The law designates ConnectME zones in areas unserved and underserved for broadband and
wireless services. Allows reimbursement for taxes paid on the purchase of machinery and
equipment to develop an advanced communications technology infrastructure in those zones.
ConnectME is a program started by the governor last year to “connect all of
Maine” by providing comprehensive cell phone connections — eliminating
“dead zones” as well as improving access to the information superhighway.
LD 2056 phases out the Business Equipment Tax Reimbursement
Program (BETR), making Maine more desirable for investment and small-business expansion.
“In one of the last acts of the
session, I signed into law LD 1021, a bill which will aid law enforcement officers and
firefighters in paying their health insurance. This will help the people who put their
lives on the line every day for each one of us,” said Governor Baldacci
Health care:
LD 1991 (Sen. President Edmonds) proposes that the state
increase the rate of reimbursement to personal care assistants (PCAs) who provide services
under the state’s consumer-directed personal care program for persons with
disabilities who would otherwise be in nursing homes or other facilities.
Give consumers more health care information — LD 1987
(Rep. Makas). Chain pharmacies must provide retail prices of the 20 most-distributed
prescription drugs in Maine and the retail price charged for a generic equivalent of that
drug. The director of the Office of Health Policy is required to posts the list to a Web
site.
LD 1021 — Assistant Majority Leader Duplessie’s
bill will allow firefighters and police officers to buy into the Maine State Retirement
System. The law also requires the state to contribute to the costs of the retirees’
health benefits.
Collecting Information about Employer-Based Health Coverage
— LD 1927 (Sen. President Edmonds) — provides for detailed information from the
Department of Health and Human Services on working people who qualify for MaineCare.
Requires large employers to report to the Department of Labor the percentage of wages they
spend on health care for their employees. The law begins the data collection of businesses
that are taking advantage of Maine’s health-care system.
“I am very pleased this resolve has passed and has
appropriate funding to begin a process toward fair solutions for health care in Maine. We
need to understand how the employer health-care plan model might not be extending benefits
as it has in the past.” Senator Edmonds concluded, “Good public policy requires
good information, and we can begin to get some of that information with this bill.”
Encourage energy independence for Maine:
With gasoline prices hovering near $3 per gallon and energy
a front-burner issue, the governor’s bill to encourage conservation and renewable
energy passed with praise. The governor’s bill 2041 seeks a one-year reduction in
Maine’s sales and use tax on biofuels such as ethanol and other fuels derived from
living and renewable sources.
“LD 2041 is the most
comprehensive, progressive energy, legislation that Maine has enacted in well over a
decade. The bill will make Maine more energy independent, it will help to stabilize and
reduce Maine homeowner’s and businesses’ energy bills, and it will help to
address the looming threat of catastrophic global climate change,” said Governor
Baldacci.
It gives a higher priority to conservation and energy
efficiency when the Public Utilities Commission requests bids from companies to supply
power for the standard offer for electricity users.
The legislation also sets a goal of increasing by 10
percent the state’s renewable power generation by 2017. The law creates a Maine
Energy Council, which would study whether electricity industry restructuring is working.
Education:
Increasing Teachers’ Salaries — LD 1381 (Sen.
Mitchell — the governor’s bill). Teachers’ starting salary in statute was
set in 1987 at $15,500. The new law provides that the minimum is annually updated to
reflect increases in the CPI.
“We have made great strides in supporting our teachers
in a meaningful way that will bring new teachers to the table with increasing minimum
salaries for starting teachers to $30,000 a year,” said Governor Baldacci.
The governor and legislators listened to students when
proposed increases to their tuition hit the news. As a result a proposal to increase state
spending on colleges and universities sailed through the Legislature — which amounts
to $4.2 million to the university system and $1.6 million to the community colleges.
The Governor signs “Tina’s
Law,” which installs graduated periods of license suspension for persons with
multiple license suspensions. The law helps to make Maine's roads safer.
Protecting the people of Maine:
LD 1804 (Sen. Sullivan), the law requires out-of-state
attorneys whose practices involve collections from Maine consumers to obtain a Maine debt
collector license.
LD 1996, an Act To Prevent Unauthorized Practice of
Immigration and Nationality Law (House Majority Leader Cummings). This measure seeks to
inform immigrants in Maine communities of their rights and urges caution in seeking
unqualified assistance in immigration and nationality law.
LD 2038 (Rep. Brautigam) makes it a crime to sell private
consumer cell phone records, including information like text messages and contacts stored
on phones. Maine is one of the first states in the country to close the federal loophole
for cell phones.
LD 1778 (Sen. Perry), “The problem was brought to my
attention when a child was abused by the boyfriend of a constituent who lived with the
child,” said Perry. The law protects children by allowing the court to prohibit
residence or contact with a parent who lives with a convicted sex offender.
LD 1938 requires the police to alert the victim that the
abuser tried to buy a gun and was denied. FBI statistics from 2004 indicate 47 gun
purchases were denied in Maine because the person was under an abuse order. That number
was up from 23 the previous year.
“Jessica’s Law” (Rep. Gerzofsky), as the
bill has been entitled, changes sentencing laws to recommend a 20-year prison sentence for
first-time child sex offenders. The bill also mandates probation for life.
LD 1906 (Sen. Diamond), “Tina’s Law,”
installs graduated periods of license suspension for persons with multiple license
suspensions. Proposes graduated jail terms for persons who drive while their licenses are
suspended, making our highways safer.
LD 2028 (Sen. Diamond) establishes a Computer Crimes Task
Force. “Police were seizing the computers, but the evidence wasn’t being
extracted. Consequently the most dangerous child pornographers were not being successfully
prosecuted,” explained Senator Diamond. When a computer hard drive is confiscated by
the police, it is taken to the Computer Crimes Task Force to be downloaded and have the
evidence removed for prosecution. As of January, the task force had 80 hard drives waiting
to be downloaded. By March, that number was up to 112.
“The most frustrating part is that without the
necessary staff, the evidence literally sits 20 feet away from an empty desk,”
commented Sen.Diamond. The Computer Crimes Unit will consist of six full-time positions.
"Katahdin Lake will be one of
Baxter State Park's most visited spots," said Governor Baldacci at the signing of a
law he spearheaded to expand Baxter State Park - LD 2015. He gave the first pen to the
daughter of a Rep, "this is for your future."
Protecting Our Environment:
LD 2015 — “This remarkable endorsement by
Maine’s legislators represents an important step forward in the effort to conserve
Katahdin Lake, fulfilling Gov. Baxter’s vision.”
The $14 million Katahdin Lake purchase involves no public
money, but legislation was needed because it involves the transfer of state-managed lots
to the logging company that’s selling the Katahdin Lake land. The deal is designed to
attach about 4,000 acres surrounding Katahdin Lake to Baxter State Park. Another 2,000
acres, where hunting and snowmobiling will be allowed, will be managed by the Maine
Department of Conservation.
LD 1058 (Sen. Cowger) expands the requirements for labeling
and disposal of mercury-containing items to button-cell batteries and batteries in certain
novelty items.
LD 1792 (Sen. Martin) holds manufacturers accountable for
introducing mercury thermometers into Maine and requires manufacturers to pay at least $5
for each mercury thermometer brought to a state collection site.
LD 1840 (Rep. Babbidge), is to improve the effectiveness of
cell phone recycling. As a first step, the law directs the Department of Environmental
Protection to report to the Legislature on the effectiveness of current cellular telephone
recycling collection programs in the state.
LD 2043 (Sen. Cowger) reduces the existing mercury emission
standard from 50 pounds per year to 35 pounds per year after January 1, 2007, and to 25
pounds per year after January 1, 2010. |
