Sec. 1. 24-A MRSA §2808-B, sub-§1, ¶D, as repealed and replaced by PL 1997, c. 445, §12 and affected by §32, is amended to read:

D. "Eligible group" means any person, firm, corporation, partnership, association or subgroup engaged actively in a business that employed an average of 50 or fewer eligible employees during the preceding calendar year, more of whom are employed within this State than in any other state.

(1) If an employer was not in existence throughout the preceding calendar year, the determination must be based on the average number of employees that the employer is reasonably expected to employ on business days in the current calendar year.

(2) In determining the number of eligible employees, companies that are affiliated companies or that are eligible to file a combined tax return for purposes of state taxation are considered one employer.

(3) An employer qualifies as an eligible group for 2- person coverage if the employer provides a carrier with the following information:

(a) Documentation showing the existence of a commercial checking account for the business, separate from a personal checking account of the business owner;

(b) If the 2nd employee does not receive a paycheck, a notarized affidavit from the employer that the employee works a minimum of 10 hours per week for at least 26 weeks per year, except that the weeks worked do not have to be consecutive;

(c) A notarized affidavit from the employee not receiving a paycheck that the employee meets the requirement of division (b), that the employee is not defrauding the carrier and that the employee is aware of the consequences of committing fraud or making a material misrepresentation to the carrier, including a loss of coverage and benefits; and

(d) A statement from the employer's insurance producer affirming the producer's belief that the