Amend the bill in section 1 in §652 in subsection 1 in the last line (page 1, line 12 in L.D.) by striking out the following: " be submitted on white 20-pound paper" and inserting the following: ' the plan must be submitted on white paper with a minimum weight of 20 pounds'

Amend the bill in section 1 in §652 in the 3rd indented paragraph in the 4th line (page 1, line 25 in L.D.) by striking out the following: " permanently file the original and" and inserting the following: 'permanently file the original , create a digital image of the plan at a minimum of 300 dots per inch or 300 pixels per inch and'

Amend the bill in section 1 in §652 by striking out all of the last paragraph (page 1, lines 33 to 37 in L.D.) and inserting the following:

SUMMARY

This amendment sets the 20-pound weight for paper as the minimum weight for recording plans at the county registries of deeds. The amendment requires that a digital image be at least 300 dots per inch or 300 pixels per inch. The amendment retains the last paragraph of the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 33, section 652 in current law, which regards standards for the reproduction of copies.

The fiscal note on the amendment identifies certain clerical changes in this bill as amended as a potential state mandate. In order to be a mandate pursuant to the Constitution of Maine, a provision must require a local unit of government to expand or modify its activities so as to necessitate additional expenditures from local revenue. The committee finds that certain changes in this legislation, such as the size of the register's block and the minimum weight of paper, do not require a registry of deeds to expand or modify its activities. The committee finds that these changes and others in this legislation, such as the minimum size of plans, do not apply to the activities of a registry of deeds but to members of the public. The committee finds that the changes to the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 33, section 652, subsection 5 that remove microfiche and microfilm as options for public copies while retaining the option of paper or digital copies do not necessitate additional expenditures from local revenue. Microfiche and microfilm copies require use of separate equipment and a physical storage space. Digital copies do not require either of these and are, therefore, likely to result in savings for a registry of deeds. The committee finds that the requirement that a registry of deeds microfilm each plan for archival purposes conforms to current archival practice as established by the State Archivist and is not a new requirement.