| The Legislature finds that Maine's forest products industry is |
| a vital component of Maine's economy and has a direct |
| relationship to the economic health and welfare of workers, |
| communities and businesses.__Central to the viability of the |
| forest products industry is a stable workforce of loggers and |
| wood haulers available to harvest wood from Maine's forests and |
| bring the wood to mills and other wood-using industry.__The |
| erosion of the logger and wood hauler infrastructure in any major |
| region of the State can have a serious negative effect on wood |
| products manufacturing throughout the State.__The Legislature |
| further finds that, based upon patterns and configurations of |
| forest landownership, the harvesting and hauling of forest |
| products are performed by numerous loggers and truckers who, in |
| many cases, are not able individually to bargain effectively with |
| forest landowners who possess overwhelming market power.__The |
| Legislature finds that such market power exists whenever a forest |
| landowner owns, possesses or acquires economic control over more |
| than 400,000 acres in a labor market area.__Accordingly, the |
| Legislature finds it necessary, in the absence of sufficiently |
| vigorous competitive market forces, to displace competition as |
| provided in this chapter.__The inequity of power in determining |
| compensation and the lack of opportunity to join together in |
| bargaining over compensation can result in unfair contract rates |
| for the services of loggers and wood haulers.__The Legislature |
| finds evidence of unfairness in the fact that contract rates for |
| harvesting and hauling services are considerably lower on the |
| land of such owners.__The Legislature finds that it is in the |
| public interest to ensure a reasonable rate of compensation for |
| harvesting and hauling services and therefore creates in this |
| chapter a process whereby the State__displaces existing market |
| forces and, upon request, sets the rates of compensation for such |
| services. |
