Good Morning from Augusta,
I apologize for the late legislative update this week, but let’s just say things were quite busy last week with a full legislative schedule and the PLC’s 28th Annual Meeting on Thursday and Friday. That said, that’s no excuse but this week’s legislative update will be a little abbreviated.
A full update on last week’s activity is below, along with the bills that are up for public hearing and/or work session this week.
Two bills to bring to your attention for public hearing on Monday, May 15th are LD 1849 An Act to Ensure Fair and Timely Payment in the Harvesting of Forest Products and LD 1874, An Act to Support Maine Loggers' and Truckers' Right to Work in Maine by Improving Labor Standards. Both bills as you might expect are late session submissions by Senate President Troy Jackson. LD 1849 would mandate the Department of Ag., Conservation and Forestry conduct random inspections to ensure service contractors are being paid timely and LD 1849 attempts to disallow the Bureau of Public Lands from holding land certification if the certification system doesn’t support labor standards. Our belief is that LD 1849 is an attempt to remove SFI from state lands. The PLC will submit written statements of support on both bills but will not testify in person.
As we approach the middle of May, the reference of new bills seems to be slowing down. 1,906 of the expected 2,000 bills have now progressed on the path to legislation, transitioning from an LR# (Legislative Reference - bill request) to an LD# (Legislative Document - bill reviewed and approved by the Revisor's Office) and have been referred to committees of jurisdiction by both the Senate and the House of Representatives.
I have updated our bill tracking spreadsheet so you can see the bills and the related language.
Last Week’s Legislative Activity May 1 – May 5, 2023
Tuesday, May 2, 2023
Public Hearing, Labor and Housing Committee, LD 1803, An Act to Improve the Maine Workers’ Compensation Act of 1992. This bill, which is being presented by the Maine Workers’ Comp. Board, seeks to clarify some pieces of the pre-determination process for independent contractors who seek an exemption from Workers Comp. because they are sole proprietors. The PLC has reviewed the proposed changes and has discussed them with the Workers’ Comp. Board and has no issue with the legislation. The PLC testified in support of the bill.
Work Session, Taxation Committee, LD 1303, An Act to Exempt Boats and All-terrain Vehicles Purchased for Qualified Commercial Fishing or Commercial Farming from State Sales Tax This bill, sponsored by Rep. Faulkingham (R-Winter Harbor), exempts from sales tax sales of boats and all-terrain vehicles used directly and exclusively in commercial fishing or commercial agricultural production to a qualified purchaser. The bill defines "qualified purchaser" to mean a purchaser who, pursuant to the law governing the refund of sales tax on depreciable machinery and equipment purchases, has obtained a certificate from the State Tax Assessor stating that the purchaser is engaged in commercial fishing or commercial agricultural production. It also requires the seller to obtain from the purchaser an affidavit as prescribed by the assessor attesting to the qualification of the purchase for exemption. The PLC testified in support of this bill and the sponsor presented an amendment to allow timber harvesting companies to qualify. The Committee tabled the bill after discussion on the difference between ATV’s and UTV’s. The Committee asked for more information on the cost and investment of UTV’s.
Wednesday, May 3, 2023
Work Session, Energy, Utilities and Technology Committee, LD 1431, An Act Requiring the Public Utilities Commission to Adopt Rules Promoting Renewable Energy. Twenty four hours before hearing on this bill, the sponsor distributed an amended version of the bill, The amendment is confusing, contradictory and could be extremely damaging to biomass generators in Maine. It appears to eliminate biomass as an eligible resource under Maine's Renewable Portfolio Standard by creating a new definitional category, "naturally regenerative or certified green", that excludes biomass. The amendment also directs the PUC to conduct a study of biomass with a report back to the committee early next year. The PLC testified in adamant opposition. The Committee voted 11-2 ONTP and the bill should die when it gets to the floor.
Thursday, May 4, 2023
Work Session, Environment and Natural Resources Committee, LD 1411, An Act to Require the Adoption of Sector-specific Greenhouse Gas Emissions Limits, This bill, sponsored by Rep. Doudera (D-Camden), requires the Department of Environmental Protection to adopt rules setting sector-specific biennial limits on greenhouse gas emissions from energy sources in the commercial sector, industrial sector, residential sector and transportation sector and for electricity and combined heat and power plants whose primary business is to sell electricity or electricity and heat to the public. The bill also requires the Department of Transportation to adopt rules as necessary to ensure compliance with the State's greenhouse gas emissions levels. The PLC testified in opposition to the bill, as did the Mills Administration, so it is likely that this bill will be killed in Committee. The bill was tabled as the Committee didn’t have time to deal with it.
Next Week’s Legislative Activity May 8 – May 12, 2023
Tuesday, May 9, 2023
Public Hearing, Labor and Housing Committee, 1 pm, LD 1368, An Act to Ensure Fairness in Unemployment Benefits by Clarifying Laws Regarding Labor Organizations, This bill, sponsored by Rep. Amy Roeder (D-Bangor) establishes that a claimant for unemployment benefits who is a member of a bona fide labor union is considered to meet the requirement to actively seek work to maintain eligibility for unemployment benefits if that claimant uses and complies with the placement services of the union hiring hall in seeking employment. It also adds consideration of whether fringe benefits are substantially less favorable than those prevailing for similar work in the locality in determining whether work is suitable for purposes of the unemployment insurance program. Finally, it provides that work is unsuitable for a claimant if acceptance of that work would prevent that claimant from maintaining membership in a bona fide labor organization. The PLC will testify in opposition to the bill as it creates special treatment for labor unions.
Work Session, Energy, Utilities and Technology Committee, 2 pm LD 1606, An Act to Finance Clean Energy and Infrastructure in Maine, This bill, sponsored by Senator Daughtry (D-Brunswick) directs the Maine Clean Energy and Sustainability Accelerator to establish a dedicated grant program to finance energy audits and feasibility studies for renewable energy or energy efficiency retrofit projects in public elementary and secondary schools. It also directs the Efficiency Maine Trust to establish a pilot project to provide bridge funding for up to 2 years, in the form of zero-interest loans, for public elementary and secondary schools to finance the upfront costs of distributed generation solar or energy efficiency retrofit projects. The PLC testified in conditional support of the bill, but requested that it be amended to allow biomass projects to be eligible for funding in the two year bridge funding program for schools.
Wednesday, May 10, 2023
Work Session, Environment and Natural Resources Committee, 1 pm LD 1411, An Act to Require the Adoption of Sector-specific Greenhouse Gas Emissions Limits, This bill, sponsored by Rep. Doudera (D-Camden), requires the Department of Environmental Protection to adopt rules setting sector-specific biennial limits on greenhouse gas emissions from energy sources in the commercial sector, industrial sector, residential sector and transportation sector and for electricity and combined heat and power plants whose primary business is to sell electricity or electricity and heat to the public. The bill also requires the Department of Transportation to adopt rules as necessary to ensure compliance with the State's greenhouse gas emissions levels. The PLC testified in opposition to the bill, as did the Mills Administration, so it is likely that this bill will be killed in Committee.
Work Session, Labor and Housing Committee, 10 am, LD 827, An Act to Allow Employees to Request Flexible Work Schedules, This bill, sponsored by Rep. Amy Roeder (D-Bangor), provides that an employee of a public or private employer may request a flexible work schedule for up to 6 months at a time and that the employer may not discipline an employee who requests a flexible work schedule. The bill provides that the flexible work schedule continues in 6-month increments unless the employer provides written notice to the employee. The PLC testified in opposition to this bill.
Work Session, Labor and Housing Committee, 10 am LD 1803, An Act to Improve the Maine Workers’ Compensation Act of 1992. This bill, which is being presented by the Maine Workers’ Comp. Board, seeks to clarify some pieces of the pre-determination process for independent contractors who seek an exemption from Workers Comp. because they are sole proprietors. The PLC has reviewed the proposed changes and has discussed them with the Workers’ Comp. Board and has no issue with the legislation. The PLC testified in support of the bill.
Work Session, Taxation Committee, 1 pm, LD 1303, An Act to Exempt Boats and All-terrain Vehicles Purchased for Qualified Commercial Fishing or Commercial Farming from State Sales Tax This bill, sponsored by Rep. Faulkingham (R-Winter Harbor), exempts from sales tax sales of boats and all-terrain vehicles used directly and exclusively in commercial fishing or commercial agricultural production to a qualified purchaser. The bill defines "qualified purchaser" to mean a purchaser who, pursuant to the law governing the refund of sales tax on depreciable machinery and equipment purchases, has obtained a certificate from the State Tax Assessor stating that the purchaser is engaged in commercial fishing or commercial agricultural production. It also requires the seller to obtain from the purchaser an affidavit as prescribed by the assessor attesting to the qualification of the purchase for exemption. The PLC testified in support of this bill and the sponsor presented an amendment to allow timber harvesting companies to qualify. The Committee tabled the bill after discussion on the difference between ATV’s and UTV’s. The Committee asked for more information on the cost and investment of UTV’s.
Work Session, Taxation Committee, 1 pm, LD 1486, An Act to Exempt Tractor Trailer Trucks from the Excise Tax, This bill, sponsored by Senator Stewart (R-Presque Isle) exempts trucks and truck tractors registered for more than 26,000 pounds from the excise tax. The PLC testified in support of this legislation as it aligns with what we are trying to do with the Federal Excise Tax. The Mills Administration and Maine Municipal Association testified in opposition so it is unlikely that this legislation will move forward.
Contact Your Representative or Senator
Don’t know who your Representative or Senator is? A complete roster, sortable by town, is available here: House Members Senators
In your message, clearly state the bill(s) you support and why each one is important to Loggers in Maine. Introduce yourself and/or company.
- Identify the town you live in or where your business is located. If you work in multiple towns, please identify those towns (we need to show that harvesting occurs across the state);
- # employees (gross pay roll figure would be good);
- # of subcontractors your business supports (e.g. how much you spend for repairs, fuel, how many logging crews you keep busy, etc.),
- Volume of wood you move annually;
Conclude your message by thanking the Representatives for their service to the state and asking them to support these bills.
Have a great weekend and please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.
Best,
Dana