Public Laws

Chapter 39

S.P. 640 - L.D. 1796

PART G

Sec. G-1. Authorization of bonds. The Treasurer of State is authorized, under the direction of the Governor, to issue bonds in the name and on behalf of the State in an amount not exceeding $29,725,000 for the purposes described in section 6 of this Part. The bonds are a pledge of the full faith and credit of the State. The bonds may not run for a period longer than 10 years from the date of the original issue of the bonds. At the discretion of the Treasurer of State, with the approval of the Governor, any issuance of bonds may contain a call feature.

Sec. G-2. Records of bonds issued kept by Treasurer of State. The Treasurer of State shall keep an account of each bond showing the number of the bond, the name of the successful bidder to whom sold, the amount received for the bond, the date of sale and the date when payable.

Sec. G-3. Sale; how negotiated; proceeds appropriated. The Treasurer of State may negotiate the sale of the bonds by direction of the Governor, but no bond may be loaned, pledged or hypothecated on behalf of the State. The proceeds of the sale of the bonds, which must be held by the Treasurer of State and paid by the Treasurer of State upon warrants drawn by the State Controller, are appropriated solely for the purposes set forth in this Part. Any unencumbered balances remaining at the completion of the project in this Part lapse to the debt service account established for the retirement of these bonds.

Sec. G-4. Interest and debt retirement. The Treasurer of State shall pay interest due or accruing on any bonds issued under this Part and all sums coming due for payment of bonds at maturity.

Sec. G-5. Disbursement of bond proceeds. The proceeds of the bonds must be expended as set out in this Part under the direction and supervision of the Department of Environmental Protection, the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and the Department of Transportation.

Sec. G-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.

DEPARTMENT OF INLAND FISHERIES AND WILDLIFE
Dam repair
Provides funds for major rehabilitation of dams.	$300,000
Hatchery rehabilitation
Provides funds for upgrades to fish hatcheries to meet water quality requirements.	$2,000,000
DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
Small community grants
Provides funds to fund the small community grant program, which provides grants to rural communities to address specific water pollution problems.	$1,000,000
Uncontrolled hazardous waste
Provides funds to investigate and clean up uncontrolled hazardous substance contamination at sites posing unacceptable threats to public health and water quality.	$2,000,000
Municipal landfills
Provides funds to identify and address pollution problems at closed landfills under a statutory mandate to monitor and inspect closed municipal facilities. Bonds will repay municipalities that conducted remedial actions such as waterline extensions or landfill gas collection to protect nearby residential property.	$800,000
Industrial landfills
Provides funds to address public health and environmental threats by preventing pollution from abandoned landfills left behind by corporations that went bankrupt.	$300,000
Air quality monitoring
Provides funds to replace aging or obsolete equipment used to monitor air quality for public health concerns. The State can no longer rely on federal funding to support this effort.	$300,000
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Highway and Bridge Improvements	$10,000,000
Ferry and Port Improvements	$500,000
Airports	$200,000
Transit and Bus Improvements	$1,000,000
Pedestrian and Bicycle Trails	$950,000
Passenger and Freight Rail Improvements	$9,675,000
Provides funds for reconstruction of a bulkhead and wharf at the former United States Coast Guard facility in Portland.	$700,000

Sec. G-7. Contingent upon ratification of bond issue. Sections 1 to 6 do not become effective unless the people of the State ratify the issuance of the bonds as set forth in this Part.

Sec. G-8. Appropriation balances at year-end. At the end of each fiscal year, all unencumbered appropriation balances representing state money carry forward. Bond proceeds that have not been expended within 10 years after the date of the sale of the bonds lapse to General Fund debt service.

Sec. G-9. Bonds authorized but not issued. Any bonds authorized but not issued, or for which bond anticipation notes are not issued within 5 years of ratification of this Part, are deauthorized and may not be issued, except that the Legislature may, within 2 years after the expiration of that 5-year period, extend the period for issuing any remaining unissued bonds or bond anticipation notes for an additional amount of time not to exceed 5 years.

Sec. G-10. Referendum for ratification; submission at election; form of question; effective date. This Part must be submitted to the legal voters of the State at a statewide election held in the month of June 2008. The municipal officers of this State shall notify the inhabitants of their respective cities, towns and plantations to meet, in the manner prescribed by law for holding a statewide election, to vote on the acceptance or rejection of this Part by voting on the following question:

"Do you favor a $29,725,000 bond issue for natural resource, agricultural and transportation infrastructure that will leverage $29,780,000 in other funds?"

The legal voters of each city, town and plantation shall vote by ballot on this question and designate their choice by a cross or check mark placed within a corresponding square below the word "Yes" or "No." The ballots must be received, sorted, counted and declared in open ward, town and plantation meetings and returns made to the Secretary of State in the same manner as votes for members of the Legislature. The Governor shall review the returns. If a majority of the legal votes are cast in favor of this Part, the Governor shall proclaim the result without delay and this Part becomes effective 30 days after the date of the proclamation.

The Secretary of State shall prepare and furnish to each city, town and plantation all ballots, returns and copies of this Part necessary to carry out the purposes of this referendum.