An Act Relating to the Calculation of Population for Purposes of the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code and Public Safety Answering Point Assessments

Emergency preamble. Whereas,  acts and resolves of the Legislature do not become effective until 90 days after adjournment unless enacted as emergencies; and

Whereas,  beginning July 1, 2012, municipalities with more than 4,000 residents are required to enforce the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code; and

Whereas,  it is necessary to change the method of calculating the number of residents in a municipality for the purpose of enforcement before that date to avoid undue burdens and confusion; and

Whereas,  in the judgment of the Legislature, these facts create an emergency within the meaning of the Constitution of Maine and require the following legislation as immediately necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health and safety; now, therefore,

Sec. 1. 10 MRSA §9724, sub-§1-B  is enacted to read:

Sec. 2. 25 MRSA §1535, sub-§3  is enacted to read:

Sec. 3. 25 MRSA §2923-A,  as enacted by PL 2007, c. 622, §2, is amended to read:

§ 2923-A. Requirements of municipalities

Each municipality that does not have a public safety answering point shall contract with an entity that does have a public safety answering point, which may be the department, for receiving 9-1-1 calls and, as appropriate, directly dispatching emergency services or, through transfer routing or relay routing, passing 9-1-1 calls to public or private safety agencies that dispatch emergency services. If a municipality without a public safety answering point does not enter into such an agreement, the department shall serve as the public safety answering point for that municipality and the municipality shall pay the department for the provision of those services. Fees received by the department pursuant to this section must be deposited in the Consolidated Emergency Communications Fund established in section 1534. If a fee assessed to a municipality for services provided pursuant to an agreement under this section or by the department is based in whole or in part on population, the population of the municipality may not include persons held at a correctional facility, as defined in Title 34-A, section 1001, subsection 6, within the municipality.

Emergency clause. In view of the emergency cited in the preamble, this legislation takes effect when approved.

summary

This bill provides that the residents of a correctional facility in a municipality are not included when calculating population for purposes of the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code or in the assessment of public safety answering point fees.