Amend the bill in Part B by striking out all of section 5 and inserting the following:
‘Sec. B-5. Disbursement of bond proceeds. The Department of Economic and Community Development, in consultation with the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, the Department of Marine Resources and the Maine Technology Institute, shall oversee the disbursement of bond proceeds and matching funds authorized pursuant to this Part in accordance with this section, except as otherwise provided. Awards of bond proceeds and matching funds must be made on a competitive basis following a request for proposal process.
1. Successful applicants may include the following entities:
A. A marine-based research program at a private or public university or a nonprofit research institution;
B. Commercial fishing or aquaculture interests;
C. Community-based organizations committed to the growth of the local economy;
D. Private sector businesses; and
E. Biomedical research institutions.
2. A successful application must also demonstrate potential for job creation and economic growth in one of the following areas:
A. Traditional agricultural or commercial fishing interests;
B. Marine-based or land-based aquaculture industry;
C. Value-added processing of marine resources or agricultural products;
D. Market development for Maine-based products; and
E. Market development of life sciences products.
’
Amend the amendment in Part D in section 5 in subsection 1 by striking out all of paragraph B (page 10, lines 14 to 22 in L.D.) and inserting the following:
‘
B. Payment from bond proceeds for acquisitions of community conservation projects, as defined in Title 5, section 6201, subsection 1-B, may be made directly to cooperating entities as defined in Title 5, section 6201, subsection 2 for acquisition of land and interest in land by cooperating entities, subject to terms and conditions enforceable by the State to ensure its use for the purposes of this Part.
’
Amend the bill in Part D in section 5 in subsection 1 in paragraph C in the 2nd line (page 10, line 24 in L.D.) by inserting after the following: "farmland" the following: ', community conservation projects'
Amend the bill in Part D by striking out all of section 6 and inserting the following:
‘Sec. D-6. Allocations from General Fund bond issue. The proceeds of the sale of the bonds authorized under this Part must be expended as designated in the following schedule.
| AGRICULTURE, CONSERVATION AND FORESTRY, DEPARTMENT OF |
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| Land for Maine's Future Board |
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Provides funds in order to leverage $30,000,000 in matching contributions from public and private sources to be used for the acquisition of land and interest in land for conservation; water access; wildlife or fish habitat including deer wintering areas; outdoor recreation, including hunting and fishing; and working farmland preservation and working waterfront preservation. No more than $10,000,000 may be issued in the first year by the Land for Maine's Future Board and no more than $10,000,000 may be issued by the Land for Maine's Future Board in each of the 2 subsequent years, except that any unused balance may be added to the specified amount in subsequent years.
| ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, DEPARTMENT OF |
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| Uncontrolled hazardous substance site program |
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Provides funds for state match on federal superfund sites, uncontrolled hazardous substance site investigation and remediation and response actions at sites contaminated with emerging pollutants like perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, at dry-cleaner sites and at brownfield sites.
| ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, DEPARTMENT OF |
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| Wastewater treatment facility planning and construction grants |
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Provides funds for wastewater treatment facility planning, construction grants and hydrographic modeling, prioritizing areas with high-value shellfish resources.
| EFFICIENCY MAINE TRUST |
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| Municipal Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Program |
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Provides funds to purchase solar arrays, high-efficiency ductless heat pumps and high-efficiency modern wood heating systems for buildings and property owned by municipalities and school administrative units or funds for solar arrays providing energy only to municipalities and school administrative units pursuant to agreements.
| EFFICIENCY MAINE TRUST |
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| Heating Fuels Efficiency and Weatherization Fund |
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Provides funds to recapitalize the Heating Fuels Efficiency and Weatherization Fund.
’
Amend the bill in Part E in section 1 in §10124 in subsection 4 in the 4th line (page 14, line 14 in L.D.) by inserting after the following: " systems." the following: ' Grants may also be awarded for a solar array not directly owned by a municipality or school administrative unit if, pursuant to an agreement between the owner of the solar array and a municipality or school administrative unit, the sole user of the energy produced by the solar array is the municipality or school administrative unit that entered into the agreement.'
Amend the bill by inserting after Part E the following:
PART F
‘
Sec. F-1. Investment of bond proceeds for broadband. The ConnectME Authority, as established in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 5, section 12004-G, subsection 33-F, shall establish a process to ensure bond proceeds made available pursuant to Part B, section 6 are used to build broadband Internet service in areas of the State that do not meet the goals for broadband service described under Title 35-A, section 9202-A. The authority shall allow adequate time for existing broadband providers to confirm whether an area is already served or to commit to deploying service. The authority shall:
1. Require a letter of intent from an applicant or bidder that specifically outlines the area of the proposed project to build broadband Internet service by street. A letter of intent under this subsection is public information, and the authority shall publish the letter on its publicly accessible website. The authority shall allow up to 60 days for a provider to provide information certifying that the proposed project area does not meet the definition of an underserved area under the authority’s rules or that the provider has a specific demonstrated plan to build the proposed project within 18 months;
2. Require an applicant or bidder to certify that the applicant or bidder has made contact with any provider of record in the proposed project area to determine whether there is a plan to expand or upgrade the broadband service to meet the goals for broadband service described under Title 35-A, section 9202-A as of June 1, 2019. The authority shall provide to the applicant or bidder the contact information of all applicable providers;
3. Require a matching funding component and incentivize private investment; and
4. Create a tiered scoring model that prioritizes development in areas that are the least developed.
The authority may adopt rules to implement this section. Rules adopted pursuant to this section are routine technical rules pursuant to Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A.
Sec. F-2. Contingent effective date. This Part takes effect only if the General Fund bond issue proposed in Part B is approved by the voters of this State.
PART G
Sec. G-1. 5 MRSA §6201, sub-§1-B is enacted to read:
Sec. G-2. 5 MRSA §6201, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 1987, c. 506, §§1 and 4, is amended to read:
Sec. G-3. 5 MRSA §6203, sub-§3, ¶A, as amended by PL 1999, c. 769, §1, is further amended to read:
A. Acquire property or an interest in property that is determined by the board to be of state significance or for a community conservation project under the guidelines of this chapter;
Sec. G-4. 5 MRSA §6207, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2011, c. 381, §1, is further amended to read:
Sec. G-5. Contingent effective date. This Part takes effect only if the General Fund bond issue proposed in Part D is approved by the voters of this State.’
SUMMARY
This amendment is the majority report of the committee. It amends Part B to allow biomedical research institutions to apply for bond proceeds and adds market development of life sciences products as an area within which a successful application must demonstrate potential for job creation and economic growth.
It amends Part D to reduce bond funds allocated to the Efficiency Maine Trust's Municipal Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Program from $15,000,000 to $10,000,000 and allocates $5,000,000 to the trust's Heating Fuels Efficiency and Weatherization Fund to recapitalize that fund. It also changes the language regarding disbursement of bond proceeds to provide that payment from bond proceeds for acquisitions to community conservation projects may be made directly to cooperating entities and removes the requirement that the Land for Maine's Future Board give preference to acquisitions that achieve benefits for multiple towns and address regional conservation needs. It also includes community conservation projects in the expenditures for which bond funds must be matched with at least $30,000,000 in public and private contributions.
It amends Part E to allow the trust to award grant funding under the Municipal Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Program for a solar array that is not directly owned by a municipality or school administrative unit if, pursuant to an agreement between the owner of the solar array and a municipality or school administrative unit, the sole user of the energy produced by the solar array is the municipality or school administrative unit that entered into the agreement.
It adds Part F, which requires the ConnectME Authority to establish a process to ensure state funds made available pursuant to the bond issue under Part B are used to build broadband Internet service in areas of the State that do not meet the goals for broadband service described under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 35-A, section 9202-A.
It also adds Part G, which allows proceeds of the Land for Maine's Future Fund to be spent on property that is determined by the Land for Maine's Future Board to be for a community conservation project, defines "community conservation project," includes Maine Indian tribes under the definition of "cooperative entities" and sets helping the State’s natural ecosystems, wildlife and natural resource-based economies adapt to a changing climate as a priority of the board in making land acquisitions.
FISCAL NOTE REQUIRED
(See attached)