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Good Morning from Augusta,
On Thursday, there was a public hearing held on one of the PLC’s priority bills for the legislative session, LD 195, An Act to Create the Small Business Capital Savings Account Program.
The bill, sponsored by Senator Trey Stewart (R-Aroostook), creates a pilot program for businesses in the farming, fishing, and forestry industries to set aside revenue tax-free, up to $250,000 at one time in a savings account to be used in the future for capital expenditures. By creating these accounts, your business can save and later re-invest without paying state income taxes and not be forced to spend that money all in the same tax year.
The PLC testified in strong support and we were very fortunate to have members of the PLC Board of Directors in attendance to testify in support of the bill, as well as PLC member, Derek Madden, who testified over Zoom. Their individual stories on how the bill will have an impact on their businesses were invaluable for the committee to hear. As a result, the members of the committee were engaged and interested to hear from the contractors in the room. Other organizations were also in support of our bill, including the Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association, the Maine Farm Bureau, and the Maine Jobs Council.
Thank you to all the PLC members who were interested and took time out of their day to support this effort. It really makes a difference with the committee members as they can hear specific examples from loggers and the struggles they are facing. We remain hopeful to have this bill pass this year, given the new make-up of the legislature and being in front of a new committee this time around.
The work session for LD 195 has been scheduled for 1:30pm on Thursday, February 13th.
Please do not hesitate to reach out to us with your questions or concerns. You can follow along this session with our most recent bill tracker that can be found here. If there are issues affecting your businesses, big or small, we want to hear about them.
Best Regards,
Dana
Last Week’s Legislative Activity – February 3rd – February 7th
Tuesday, February 4th
LD 192, “An Act to Exempt from State Sales Tax Utility Vehicles Purchased for Use in Commercial Fishing, Agricultural Production, Aquacultural Production and Wood Harvesting”, (Rep. Billy Bob Faulkingham (R-Winter Harbor)) Public Hearing, Taxation Committee. (Support)
This bill provides that utility vehicles, as defined in the bill, are eligible for the refund of sales tax on depreciable machinery and equipment used in commercial agricultural production, commercial fishing, commercial aquacultural production and commercial wood harvesting.
The PLC testified in support of this bill. Rep. Faulkingham introduced this bill to the legislature last session and was passed in the House and Senate but ended up not being funded by the Appropriations Committee.
LD 39, “An Act to Require Forest Landowners to Report the Registration or Sale of Their Forest Carbon Credits”, (Rep. Bill Pluecker (I-Warren)) Work Session, Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee. (Monitor)
This bill requires a forest landowner or forest carbon project developer to report the registration or sale of a forest carbon credit to the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, Bureau of Forestry.
While we didn’t weigh in on this legislation, there is concern within the industry that large landowners will tie up their land in carbon sequestration. It will be important to keep an eye on this going forward to try and ensure that the land that is registered in this program remains a working forest. LD 39 was voted out of committee with unanimous support.
LD 88, “An Act Regarding Penalties for Violating the Laws Governing Agriculture and Animals and the Maine Weights and Measures Law”, (Rep. Bill Pluecker (I-Warren)) Work Session, Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee. (Support with Amendment)
Tuesday, January 28th, the PLC testified in support of LD 88. This bill, which is sponsored by Rep. Bill Pluecker (I-Warren) on behalf of the Department of Agriculture Conservation and Forestry (ACF), authorizes the Commissioner of ACF to assess administrative penalties for violations of the laws governing agriculture and animals and certain provisions of the Maine Weights and Measures Law. Under the bill, penalties may not exceed $5,000 for each occurrence and may not exceed $50,000 in total.
In our testimony, we advocated to the ACF Committee that the penalties within the bill should be broadened to cover violations of Title 10, Chapter 235, Section 1500-Q, Payment for Harvesting Wood. If added, this would provide a penalty system for an addition to statute that was added in 2023 to ensure logging contractors who are hired to harvest wood are paid for their services within 30 days of the wood landing roadside.
The bill was tabled in committee after a short discussion with the Department of ACF staff regarding how the fines would be assessed. There will be another work session soon, but there will need to be some language changed in order for it to move forward. We are having discussions on how to incorporate our amendment into the bill.
LD 209, “An Act to Make Supplemental Appropriations and Allocations from the General Fund and Other Funds for the Expenditures of State Government and to Change Certain Provisions of the Law Necessary to the Proper Operations of State Government for the Fthe Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 2025,” (Rep. Drew Gattine (D-Westbrook)), Work Sessions, Appropriations Committee
This bill is the Governor’s Supplemental Budget. The ACF Committee held a work session on the Supplemental Budget on January 23rd and the members of the committee were unanimous on all parts of the ACF portion except Part U. The two chairs, Senator Rachel Talbot Ross (D-Cumberland), Representative Bill Pluecker (I-Warren), and a new committee member, Representative Sharon Frost (I-Belgrade) were in opposition to the $2 million in funding, and wanted it reduced to $1 million. They thought that the large landowners needed to provide more resources to aid the prevention of Spruce Budworm. The Appropriations Committee voted on the bill in the early hours of Wednesday morning and $2 million in Spruce Budworm funding was included.
Wednesday, February 5th
LD 60, “An Act to Allow Employees to Request Flexible Work Schedules”, (Rep. Amy Roeder (D-Bangor)) Public Hearing, Labor Committee. (Oppose)
This bill does the following:
- It allows an employee to request in writing, including by electronic means, a flexible work schedule.
- It requires an employer, which may be a private employer or public employer, to consider an employee's request for a flexible work schedule and whether the request may be granted in a manner that is not inconsistent with employer operations.
- It specifies that an employer and an employee must mutually agree on the duration of time and terms of a flexible work schedule.
- It allows an employer to rescind a flexible work schedule with as much notice to an employee as is practicable.
- It prohibits an employer from retaliating against an employee for exercising rights given by the bill.
- It specifies that a collective bargaining agreement may provide an employee with rights more expansive than rights established by the bill.
The PLC testified in opposition to LD 60. This is an unnecessary piece of legislation as there is nothing in the bill that cannot already done. It is just increasing administrative work for a small business.
LD 61, “An Act to Regulate Employer Surveillance to Protect Workers”,(Rep. Amy Roeder (D-Bangor)) Public Hearing, Labor Committee. (Oppose)
This bill specifies that an employer may use employer surveillance only if the employer informs the employee before beginning employer surveillance. It prohibits an employer from using audiovisual monitoring in an employee's residence or personal vehicle or on the employee's property and provides that an employee can decline a request by an employer to install data collection or transmission applications on the employee's personal electronic devices for the purposes of employer surveillance. It requires that an employer notify a prospective employee during the interview process that the employer engages in employer surveillance. It gives rule-making authority to the Department of Labor. It also creates a private right of action for persons aggrieved by a violation by an employer.
The PLC Testified in Opposition to LD 61. The sponsor’s intention is to have this only apply to personal devices, but the language remained unclear. We are advocating that telematics, GPS, and audio/visual surveillance for safety purposes be explicitly excluded.
Thursday, February 6th
LD 195, “An Act to Create the Small Business Capital Savings Account Program”, (Sen. Trey Stewart (R-Aroostook)) Public Hearing, Housing and Economic Development. (Support)
More information on this bill is above.
Next Week’s Legislative Activity – February 10th – February 14th
Tuesday, February 11th
LD 261, “An Act Regarding the Authority of Municipalities to Regulate Timber Harvesting”, (Rep. Stephen Bunker (D-Farmington)) Public Hearing, 1pm – Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry Committee. (Support)
This bill clarifies that the definition of "timber harvesting activities" under the forest practices laws does not include activities that result, within 5 years of the completion of such activities, in a change of land use.
The bill provides that a municipal timber harvesting ordinance must adopt definitions for forestry terms that are consistent with definitions in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 12, section 8868 and with forestry terms adopted by the Commissioner of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry pursuant to Title 12, chapter 805, subchapter 3-A.
The bill provides that municipal ordinances subject to review by the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, Bureau of Forestry are limited to ordinances that regulate timber harvesting activities. The bill provides that a timber harvesting ordinance adopted on or after September 1, 1990 and prior to January 1, 2026 must meet the requirements of Title 12, section 8869, subsection 8 by June 30, 2029.
The bill provides that a municipal timber harvesting ordinance may be adopted only after certification by the bureau that the municipality adopted the timber harvesting ordinance in accordance with Title 12, section 8869, subsection 8. The bill also requires a municipal timber harvesting ordinance to be pursuant to and consistent with a comprehensive plan adopted by the municipal legislative body.
The bill clarifies that the centralized listing of municipal ordinances maintained by the bureau applies to ordinances that specifically apply to timber harvesting activities and updates certain requirements of the clerk of a municipality to report timber harvesting ordinances to the bureau.
Thursday, February 13th
LD 195, “An Act to Create the Small Business Capital Savings Account Program”, (Sen. Trey Stewart (R-Aroostook)) Work Session – 1:30pm, Housing and Economic Development. (Support)
More information on this bill is above.