Legislative Update

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

Of the 35 Senators of the 131st Maine Legislature, there are 22 Democrats and 13 Republicans. The Maine House consists of 151 Representatives. Of those, 81 are Democrats, 67 are Republicans, 2 are Independents, and currently 1 Vacancy.

The Democratic Party controls the offices of Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, and both chambers of the state legislature.

The Legislature has yet to adjourn at the time this was printed. The Legislature went home on Tuesday, June 27, and will be called back into session to complete their work on July 6. The Legislature carried over a lot more bill than is typical and were further behind on Committee meetings and voting on bills this session. This is in part due to the volume of bills printed this session. There were over 2,000, partly because the Legislature passed a majority budget in March. The majority budget needed to be passed 90 days prior to the end of the state fiscal year at the end of June for it to become law and avoid a state shutdown. If this hadn't been done, the budget would have needed a 2/3 vote from the Legislature to be an emergency bill and become law immediately upon the Governor's signature.

Due to the Legislature's political landscape, we knew we would be facing a tough first session of the 131st Legislature. MEMA had a lot of our own initiatives, but with our industry facing a lot of scrutiny by the current administration and the pricing, we knew we would be playing a lot of defense besides. MEMA was represented each day during the Legislative session by Megan Diver and Jon Courtney. Sometimes early in the morning until

late hours of the night.

Despite the challenges of the political landscape, MEMA made some historical accomplishments this session. While the Energy Choice bill did not go as we had hoped, many other accomplishments were made. For more information on the Energy Choice bill, please see the following story by

MEMA ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

LD 319 An Act to Amend Maine's Underground Oil Storage Tank Laws

This bill removes the 10-year limitation on underground oil storage tanks, thereby allowing such double-walled tanks to continue in service indefinitely as long as the same testing requirements are satisfied. This bill is now Public Law, Chapter 16, and went into effect on June 30, 2023.

LD 755 An Act to Promote Higher Blends of Biofuel by Regulating the Sale or Transfer of Biofuels

This Law amends definitions applicable to the sale of biodiesel, biomass-based diesel, biomass-based diesel blends, and biodiesel blends according to meet the requirements of the most recent ASTM standards. This bill is now Public Law, Chapter 43, and will go into effect 90 days after the Legislature adjourns.

LD 1479 Resolve, Directing the Public Utilities Commission to Convene a Stakeholder Group Regarding Liquefied Propane Gas Systems and the Socalled Dig Safe Law

This resolve directs the Public Utilities Commission to convene a stakeholder group to discuss the provisions in law related to the "Dig Safe Law" regarding propane gas systems that have an underground tank or pipe, including recent amendments made to the law regarding propane gas systems and reducing the administrative burden on or possible exemption of certain propane gas systems from participation in the "Dig Safe Law." The resolve directs the commission to submit a report summarizing the stakeholder group's discussion and any recommended legislation to the Second Regular Session of the 131st Legislature. This bill is now Resolve, Chapter 47, and will go into affect 90 days after the Legislature adjourns.

LD 105 An Act to Prohibit Minimum Usage or Tank Rental Fees for Certain Propane Customers

This was a BIG defeat for the industry. This bill would have prohibited retail sellers of propane gas from charging customers who purchase propane gas for the sole purpose of powering residential backup power generators a minimum use fee or a tank rental fee based on usage. This would have been detrimental to MEMA's propane members. After a Divided report out of Committee, we prevailed and killed the bill when it came up for a vote in the House and Senate.

MEMA tracked 51 bills during the First Regular Session of the 131st Legislature. Of these bills, 23 are DEAD, 10 are now Public Laws, four are Resolves, eight will be carried over into the Second Legislative session, and six will likely be voted on when the Legislature returns in July. One of these bills is the State Flavor Ban on tobacco products.

If you have any questions about any of the bills MEMA followed this session or would like to see the complete list, please don't hesitate to reach out to Megan Diver at mdiver@maineenergymarketers.com.