Sec. 1. 23 MRSA §63, as amended by PL 1971, c. 593, §22, is repealed and the following enacted in its place:

§63.__Records of right-of-way division confidential

The records and correspondence of the right-of-way division of the Department of Transportation and the Maine Turnpike Authority relating to negotiations for and appraisals of property, pending the final settlement for all claims on the project to which they relate, and the records and data of the department and the Maine Turnpike Authority relating to engineering estimates of costs on projects to be put out to bid are confidential and may not be open for public inspection.__The records and correspondence of the right-of-way division relating to negotiations for and appraisals of property must be open for public inspection after 9 months following the completion date of the project according to the record of the department.__Records of claims that have been appealed to the Superior Court must be open for public inspection following the award of the court.

SUMMARY

Under existing Maine law, the Maine Turnpike Authority has the same rights and responsibilities as the Department of Transportation regarding the acquisition of land. This bill clarifies that the Maine Turnpike Authority has the same power the Department of Transportation has to keep certain information relating to negotiations for the purchase of property confidential for a limited time.