Resolve, the City' of Old
Maine Legislature, Session 121, LD 1626
Committee Amendment CA_A_H563 (House)

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "/1,, to H.P. 1205, L.D. 
To Authorize the State To Purchase a Landfill in 
Town" 
1626, "Resolve, 
the City' of Old 
Amend the resolve by striking out everything after the title 
and before the summary and inserting in its place the following: 
, Sec. 1. Acquisition of landfill authorized. Resolved: 
Tha t, 
notwithstanding anything in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 5, 
section 1825-B, subsection 1, Title 38, section 1310-X and Title 
38, chapter 24 to the contrary, the following provisions apply. 
1. 
The 
Executive 
Department, 
State 
Planning 
Office, 
referred to in this section as "the office," may acquire, own and 
cause to be operated an existing, Department of Environmental 
Protection-licensed 
and 
generator-owned 
solid 
waste 
disposal 
facility in the City of Old Town known as the West Old Town 
Landfill, referred to in this resolve as "the disposal facility," 
under such terms and conditions as are revenue-neutral to the 
State and as the office determines are advisable and in the 
public interest. 
The acquisition may be subject to a possibility 
of reverter to the seller. 
2. 
The office may establish the terms and conditions of, 
and execute and deliver, in the name of and on behalf of the 
State, all contracts the office determines are necessary or 
appropriate 
to effect the acquisition 
and operation of 
the 
disposal 
facility 
and 
to 
undertake 
all 
actions 
the 
office 
determines 
necessary 
or 
appropriate 
to 
fully 
perform 
all 
obligations established under the contracts. 
The acquisition 
agreement must provide that the current owner of the disposal 
Page l-LR2164(2) 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
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COMMITTEE AMENnMENT ,,~, to H,P, 1205, L,D, 1626 
facility is responsible for environmental liability associated 
with the operation of the disposal facility prior to acquisition 
by 
the office 
and that 
a 
baseline must 
be 
established by 
agreement of the current owner of the disposal facility and the 
office for determining the existing ground and surface water 
conditions surrounding the disposal facility as of the date of 
acquisition. 
3. 
Any agreement for the operation of the disposal facility 
must be established by the office through a competitive bidding 
process and must require the operator to indemnify the office for 
liabilities 
and 
costs 
associated 
with 
the 
acquisition, 
development and operation of the disposal facility. 
All persons 
submitting proposals in response to the request for proposals to 
operate the disposal facility are required to include with their 
bids up to a $20,000 nonrefundable deposit, as determined by the 
office, 
to 
offset 
the 
office's 
costs 
associated 
with 
the 
transactiops authorized under this resolve and the cost to the 
City of Old Town and the Town of Alton to establish a joint 
citizen advisory committee authorized under this resolve. 
4. 
Nothing in this resolve permits 
the abrogation of, 
abrogates or intends to abrogate the sovereign immunity of the 
State with respect to the acquisition agreement authorized under 
this resolve. 
5. 
Notwithstanding the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 38, 
section 13l0-U, the municipality in which the disposal facility 
is located may not regulate the operation, expansion or any other 
aspect of the disposal faci.lity as provided in Title 38, section 
2173 
or 
by 
means 
of 
any municipal 
ordinances, 
regulations, 
licenses or permits. 
The municipal officers of the City of Old 
Town 
and the Town of Alton shall establish a 
joint citizen 
advisory committee consisting of 7 members, of which 5 must be 
from the City of Old Town and 2 from the Town of Alton. 
In 
appointing members to the commit~ee, the municipal officers shall 
use Title 
38, 
section 
2171, 
subsection 
as 
guidance. 
The 
commi ttee shall meet as soon as practical following appointment 
of its members and shall select a chair from among its members. 
The 
committee shall establish procedures for the conduct of 
meetings. 
The committee may: 
A. 
Review proposed contracts, site analyses, applications 
and other documents relating to the construction, permitting 
and operation of the disposal facility; 
B. 
Hold periodic public meetings to solicit the opinions of 
residents concerning the d·isposal facility and any permit 
applications, contracts or other provisions relating to the 
disposal facility; 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
t.. •• 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT ,,#, to H.P. 1205, L.D. 1626 
C. 
Provide the disposal facility operator and office with 
any 
alternative 
contract 
prov~s~ons, 
permit 
conditions, 
plans or procedures the committee considers appropriate-; and 
D. 
Serve as 
a 
liaison between the communities 
and the 
disposal facility operator or 
the office to facilitate 
communications during the development and operation of the 
disposal 
facility 
and 
provide 
residents 
with 
updated 
information 
about 
the 
project, 
including 
providing 
explanations of any technical terms; and be it further 
Sec. 2. Report. Resolved: 
That, by February 15, 
2004, the 
Executive Department, State Planning Office shall submit a report 
to the Joint Standing Committee on Natural Resources on the 
acquisition of the 
di~posal facility authorized under section 1 
and a review of the operations related to that disposal facility.' 
SUMMARY 
This 
amendment 
replaces the resolve. 
It authorizes the 
Executive Department, State Planning Office to acquire, subject 
to a possibility of reverter to the seller, own and cause to be 
operated 
an 
existing, 
Department 
of 
Environmental 
Protection-licensed 
and 
generator-owned 
solid 
waste 
disposal 
facility located in Old Town under terms and conditions that are 
revenue-neutral to the State. 
The amendment authorizes the State 
Planning Office to enter into such contracts 
as 
the office 
determines are necessary or appropriate. 
The amendment requires 
that the acquisition agreement provide that the current owner is 
responsible 
for 
environmental 
liability associated 
with 
the 
operation - of the disposal facility prior to acquisition by the 
office. 
The 
amendment 
requires that 
the 
agreement 
for 
the 
operation 
of 
the 
disposal 
facility 
be 
established 
through 
competitive ,bidding and that the operator must indemnify the 
office for liabilities and costs of the office resulting from the 
acquisition, development and operation of the disposal facility.-
The 
amendment 
requires the State Planning Office to require 
persons submitting proposals to submit a nonrefundable deposit to 
offset the office's costs associated with the transactions and 
the cost to the City of Old Town and the Town of Alton to 
establish a 
joint citizen advisory committee. 
The 
amendment 
provides 
that 
the 
resolve 
does 
not 
abrogate 
the 
sovereign 
immunity of the State with respect to the acquisition. 
The 
amendment provides that the City of Old Town may not regulate the 
disposal facility. 
However, the amendment requires the City of 
Old Town and the Town of Alton to establish a joint citizen 
advisory committee with the same host community responsibilities 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "~,, to H.P. 1205, L.D. 1626 
as currently provided in state law. 
The amendment also requires 
the State Planning Office to submit 
a 
report to the Joint 
Standing 
Committee 
on 
Natural 
Resources 
on 
the 
process 
of 
acquiring the disposal facility and reviewing the facility's 
operation. 
FISCAL NOTE REQUIRED 
(See attached) 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
Fiscal Detail and Notes 
Approved: 06/09/03 fraC!. 
Office of Fiscal and Program Review 
LD 1626 
Resolve, To Authorize the State To Purchase a Landflll in the City of Old 
Town 
LR 2164(02) 
Fiscal Note for Bill as Amended by Committee Amendment" " 
Committee: Natural Resources 
Fiscal Note Required: Yes 
Fiscal Note 
Minor cost increase - Other Special Revenue Funds 
The additional costs associated 'With negotiating the revenue neutral terms and conditions of the acquisition of the 
landfill as well as the report requirement can be absorbed by the State Planning Office utilizing existing budgeted 
resources. 
LR2164(2) - Fiscal Note - Page 1 of 1