Sec. A-3. Carrying balances - Inland Fisheries and Wildlife program. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, $100,000 is transferred from the Carrying Balances - Inland Fisheries and Wildlife program to the fish hatchery maintenance fund established in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 12, section 7671-A to be used for the purposes specified in that section. This transfer must be made not later than 30 days after the effective date of this Act.

Sec. A-4. Appropriation. The following funds are appropriated from the General Fund to carry out the purposes of this Part.

2000-01

INLAND FISHERIES AND WILDLIFE,

DEPARTMENT OF

Fisheries and Hatcheries Operations

All Other ($182,000)

Deappropriates $182,000 in fiscal year 2000-01 originally appropriated by Public Law 1999, chapter 731 for engineering design and assessments of fish hatchery facilities.

DEPARTMENT OF INLAND FISHERIES

AND WILDLIFE __________

TOTAL ($182,000)

LEGISLATURE

Commission to Study the Needs and

Opportunities Associated with the

Production of Salmonid Sport Fish

in Maine

All Other $182,000

Appropriates $182,000 to the Commission to Study the Needs and Opportunities Associated with the Production of Salmonid Sport Fish in Maine to hire consulting engineers to assist in the fish hatchery engineering analysis and design and assessment of statewide fish hatchery production and distribution needs and for the per diem expenses of 4 annual meetings of the commission.

LEGISLATURE ________

TOTAL $182,000

________

TOTAL APPROPRIATIONS

PART B

Sec. B-1. Commission established. The Commission to Study the Needs and Opportunities Associated with the Production of Salmonid Sport Fish in Maine, referred to in this Part as the "commission," is established.

Sec. B-2. Commission membership; appointed ad hoc and ex officio members. The commission consists of appointed members as follows:

1. Except as otherwise provided in this section, all members appointed pursuant to Resolve 1999, chapter 82, including legislative members, whether or not members of the 120th Legislature, are members of this commission;

2. The President of the Senate shall appoint 2 members of the Senate to the commission. The first Senator appointed pursuant to this subsection is the Senate chair of the commission. When making these appointments, the President of the Senate shall give preference to a Senate member of the Joint Standing Committee on Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and a Senate member of the Joint Standing Committee on Natural Resources; and

3. The Governor shall appoint one person to replace one of the persons appointed by the Governor under Resolve 1999, chapter 82, section 2, subsection 6 and one person to replace the person appointed by the Governor under Resolve 1999, chapter 82, section 2, subsection 9.

Sec. B-3. Duties. The commission shall complete all duties prescribed in Resolve 1999, chapter 82 and shall provide oversight and policy guidance to the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife with respect to the expenditure of funds appropriated by the 119th Legislature in Public Law 1999, chapter

731, Part A, section 1 and Part HHHH, section 1, for engineering design for the Embden Hatchery and a statewide assessment of all other hatchery facilities. In addition, the commission shall:

1. Continue to work with the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and the department's consultant to continue the work of evaluating the effluent characteristics of fish hatcheries, including private fish hatcheries, with the purpose of ensuring that the state fish hatcheries will be able to comply with licensed effluent discharge standards within 3 years and to obtain information relevant to discussions of discharge license standards for unlicensed private fish hatcheries;

2. Set statewide production goals for the number, size and species mix of recreational sport fish over a 15- to 20-year planning horizon;

3. Determine how to meet those production goals in the most cost-effective manner by evaluating all production options, including options for investing in cost-effective upgrades to existing state-owned facilities to produce more fish, closing noneconomic state-owned facilities and building new capacity in other locations in the State and purchasing fish from privately owned hatcheries; and

4. Within existing budgeted resources, undertake any studies or other activities as are necessary to complete the tasks outlined in this section.

Sec. B-4. Staff assistance. The commission shall request staffing assistance from the Legislative Council.

Sec. B-5. Compensation. The legislative members and ad hoc members are entitled to the legislative per diem, as defined in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 3, section 2, and reimbursement for necessary expenses incurred for their attendance at authorized meetings of the commission that occur on days the Legislature is not in session. Other members of the commission who are not otherwise compensated by their employers or other entities that they represent are entitled to receive reimbursement of necessary expenses incurred for their attendance at authorized meetings.

Sec. B-6. Report. The commission shall submit an interim report to the Joint Standing Committee on Inland Fisheries and Wildlife no later than December 1, 2001 and a final report to that same committee no later than October 31, 2002.

Sec. B-7. Unexpended balances carried forward. Unexpended funds appropriated by Public Law 1999, chapter 731, Part A,

section 1 and Part HHHH, section 1, to the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, Fisheries and Hatcheries Operations, are carried forward to fiscal year 2001-02 and must be used for the purposes originally appropriated. Those funds may not be encumbered for any purpose without prior consultation with the commission.

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

SUMMARY

Part A of this bill creates a fish hatchery maintenance fund within the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife to be used by the Commissioner of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife to fund or assist in funding maintenance, repair or capital improvements at fish hatcheries and feeding stations owned by the State. The fund may not be used to fund personnel services costs or general operating costs of a fish hatchery. The fund is initially capitalized by a $100,000 transfer from the department's carrying account. The commissioner is directed to report back to the Joint Standing Committee on Inland Fisheries and Wildlife by January 15, 2002 with recommendations on mechanisms to raise revenue for the fund.

Part A also reallocates $182,000 from the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife to the fish hatchery study commission to allow the commission to hire consulting engineers to assist in the design and assessment of statewide fish hatchery production and distribution needs and for the per diem expenses of 4 annual meetings of the commission. Those funds are part of a $500,000 appropriation originally made to the department in 2000 for similar purposes.

Part B of this bill authorizes for an additional 2 years a study commission originally established by the 119th Legislature by Resolve 1999, chapter 82. The purpose of this commission is to study the needs and opportunities associated with the production of salmonid sport fish in this State.

Part B appoints all the members of the commission originally appointed in 1999, except that it requires the President of the Senate to appoint 2 additional members of the Senate and requires the Governor to fill 2 vacancies among public members appointed by the Governor in 1999.

Part B also carries forward into fiscal year 2001-02 all unexpended balances appropriated to the Department of Inland

Fisheries and Wildlife for fiscal year 2000-01 for fish hatchery engineering work.