An Act To Modify the County Budget Procedures for Sagadahoc County
Maine Legislature, Session 121, LD 0211
Committee: State and Local Government
Sponsors: LESSARD, EARLE, GERZOFSKY, GROSE, HUTTON, PINEAU, WATSON, BRYANT, TREAT
Amends: 30-A MRSA §881, 30-A MRSA §882, 30-A MRSA §883

Legislative Document 
No. 211 
H.P.170 
House of Representatives, January 21, 2003 
An Act To Modify the County Budget Procedures for Sagadahoc 
County 
Reference to the Committee on State and Local Government suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Representative LESSARD of Topsham. 
7J1~/J1.11/~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Cosponsored by Representatives: EARLE of Damariscotta, GERZOFSKY of Brunswick, 
GROSE of Woolwich, HUTTON of Bowdoinham, PINEAU of Jay, WATSON of Bath, 
Senators: BRYANT of Oxford, TREAT of Kennebec. 
Printed on recycled paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 30-A MRSA c. 3, sub-c. 1, art. 10 is amended by repealing 
the article headnote and enacting the following in its place: 
Article 10 
SAGADAHOC COUNTY BUDGET CQMMIT.I'EE 
Sec. 2. 30-A MRSA §881, as enacted by PL 1991, c. 513, is 
repealed and the following enacted in its place: 
SSSI. Budget; apprQpriations; approval 
This article establishes a method of appropriating money for 
county expenditures in Sagadahoc County, according to a budget, 
which must first receive approval of a budget committee. 
This 
article amends the statutory method in sections 2, 701 and 702 by 
transferring the authority of the Sagadahoc County legislative 
delegation and the Legislature to approve the Sagadahoc County 
budget to a committee composed of Sagadahoc County and municipal 
officials established pursuant to section 883. 
This article 
applies only to Sagadahoc County. 
Sec. 3. 30-A MRSA §882, as enacted by PL 1991, c. 513, is 
repealed. 
Sec. 4. 30-A MRSA §883, as amended by PL 2001, c. 143, §1 and 
affected by §4 and c. 499, §1, is further amended to read: 
§SS3. Budget committee 
There is established a 
Sagadahoc 
County 
Budget 
Aavis9~y 
Commi ttee, referred to in this article as "the budget committee," 
as provided in this section. 
1. 
Budget committee membership. 
The municipal officers 
from each county commissioner district shall choose the budget 
aavis9FY committee members by the following procedure. 
A. 
The budget aaviseFY committee consists of 9 members: 
two 
municipal 
officers 
from 
each 
of 
the 
county 
commissioner districts and one representative of the general 
public from each of the 3 county commissioner districts. 
Budget 
aaviseFY committee members 
serve staggered 3-year 
termsT--eHeept--~eF--the--iRitial--memaeFs--wRese--teFms--aFe 
pFeviaea-iR-SQaseetieR-6T-paFa~FapR-H. 
If a budget aavis9~y 
committee 
member 
who 
is elected as 
a 
municipal officer 
ceases 
to 
be 
a 
municipal 
officer 
during 
the 
term 
of 
membership, that committee member shall vacate membership. 
Page l-LR0389(l) 
(1) 
If 
a 
budget 
aavis9~y committee 
member 
who 
is 
elected as a municipal officer vacates, resigns or is 
unable to complete the term of office to which that 
member 
was 
elected, 
the next district caucus shall 
elect a municipal officer to serve for the remainder of 
the unexpired term. 
(2) 
If a budget 
aavis9~y committee member who is a 
representative of the general public 
resigns 
or is 
unable to complete the term of office to which that 
member 
was 
elected, 
the next district caucus shall 
elect a representative of the general public to serve 
for the remainder of the unexpired term. 
B. 
The budget 
aavis9~y committee shall select annually one 
of its members to chair the committee. 
2. 
Election. 
~he-~~-~-9~ In 2004, and thereafter, at 
least 90 days before the end of every fiscal year the budget 
aavis9~y committee members is--as--f.G.l-l-ews must be elected by the 
following procedures: 
A. 
ge~9~e--J?e.&F-b\-aF-y--1-~th--04:---e-v-e-£y--yea.£7--t;he ~ county 
commissioners shall notify all municipal officers in the 
county to 
caucus 
by county 
commissioner districts at 
a 
specified date, time and place for the purpose of electing 
the membership of the 
county budget 
aavis9~y committee. 
Whenever a public member of the budget 
aavis9~y committee 
will 
be elected, 
the 
county commissioners 
must 
issue 
a 
public notice of that fact that includes the date, time and 
place of the caucus. 
The county commissioner shall serve as 
nonvoting 
moderator 
for 
that 
commissioner's 
district 
caucus. 
Nominations must be received from the floor. 
The 
nominee receiving the most votes is approved as a budget 
aavise~y committee member 
and serves 
a 
term of 
yearsr 
e*eept;-as-p~9viaea-iH-pa~a~~aph-S. 
ST--~~-~1-r-eaea-€a~€~£-~1-1-~1-&9~-~-~~~-t;e~ms 
a~e-aS-~9J,J,9WST 
~1}--~-~--t;he-~r~-~-is-~-~~~~--9~~iee~ 
shall-se~ve-aH-iHit;iaJ,-t;e~m-9~-9He-yea~T 
f6f--~-~--t;he-~~-~-is-~-~~~~--e~~iee~ 
shall-se~ve-aH-iHit;ial-t;e~m-e~-6-yea~sT 
~~}--~£e-~-~-i&-a-~~~~~~-04:--~he-~eHe~al 
p~Blie-shall-se~ve-aH-iHit;ial-t;e~m-e~-~-yea~sT 
Sec. 5. 30-A MRS A §884, as amended by PL 2001, c. 143, §2 and 
affected by §4 and c. 499, §l, is repealed. 
Sec. 6. 30-A MRSA §§884-A to 884-C are enacted to read: 
§884-A. Budget committee organization 
The budget committee shall conduct its meetings in public at 
the county courthouse. 
The county commissioners shall direct the 
county clerk to call an organizational meeting of the budget 
commi ttee no later than 60 days before the end of the county's 
fiscal 
year. 
The 
county 
commissioners 
shall 
provide 
the 
committee with necessary clerical assistance. office expenses and 
suitable meeting space. as well as access to county files and 
information. 
The budget committee shall adopt its own rules or 
procedures and bylaws. 
§884-B. Budget procedures 
1. 
Proposed budget. 
The county commissioners shall submit 
an itemized budget estimate. as described in sections 701 and 
702. to the budget committee in a timely fashion. no later than 
days before the end of the county's fiscal year. 
2. 
Budget 
review process. 
The 
budget 
committee 
shall 
review 
the 
proposed 
itemized 
budget 
prepared 
by 
the 
county 
commissioners. together with anJ:, supplementary material prepared 
by 
the 
head 
of 
each 
county 
department 
or 
provided 
by 
any 
independent board or institution or another governmental agency. 
The budget committee may increase, decrease, alter or revise the 
proposed budget, if: 
A. 
The 
budget 
committee 
enters 
into 
its 
minutes 
an 
explanation for any change in the estimated expenditures and 
revenues as initially presented by the county commissioners; 
and 
B. 
The total estimated revenues, together with the amount 
of county tax to be levied, 
equals the total estimated 
expenditures. 
3. 
Public hearing. 
The 
budget 
committee shall hold 
a 
public hearing at least once in each of the 
commissioner 
districts on the proposed budget before the end of the county's 
fiscal year and before the final adoption of the budget. 
Notice 
of the hearing must be given at least 10 days before the hearing 
in a newspaper of general circulation within the county. 
Written 
notice 
and 
a 
copy 
of 
the 
proposed budget 
must 
be 
sent 
by 
registered or certified mail with return receipt requested. or 
delivered in person, with proof received of the delivery. to the 
clerk of each municipality in the county. 
The municipal clerk 
shall notify the municipal officers of the proposed budget. 
4. 
Adoption of budget. 
After the public hearings 
are 
completed, the budget committee may further increase, decrease, 
alter and revise the proposed itemized budget, subject to the 
condi tions 
and 
restrictions 
imposed 
l.n 
subsection 
2. 
The 
proposed itemized budget must be finally adopted by a majority 
vote of the budget committee at a duly called meeting not later 
than the end of the county's fiscal year. 
The approved budget is 
the final authorization for the assessment of county taxes. 
The 
budget must be sent to the county commissioners and the county 
tax authorized must be apportioned and collected in accordance 
with section 706. 
5. 
Interim budget. 
If the budget is not approved before 
the start of a fiscal year, until a budget is finally adopted, 
the county shall operate on an interim budget that may not exceed 
the previous year's budget. 
6. 
Transfer 
of 
funds. 
The 
county 
commissioners 
may 
transfer funds as provided in section 922. 
§884-C. Budget amendments 
The 
approved budget must govern the expenditures of the 
county during the fiscal year. 
Expenses may not be incurred in 
excess of those shown in the approved budget, but the budget may 
be revised from time to time by the preparation and submission of 
a 
proposed amended budget by the county commissioners to the 
budget committee. 
The budget committee shall render, not less 
than 15 calendar days, except in emergencies, nor more than 30 
days after the submission to it, a decision on any such revised 
budget. 
An approved revised budget must be transmitted to the 
State Auditor within 15 days of the budget committee's action. 
Sec. 7. 30·A MRSA §885, as enacted by PL 1991, c. 513, is 
amended to read: 
§UU5. Final budget: filing 
A 
copy 
of 
the 
final 
budget 
eSEimaEes 
and 
subsequent 
amendments must be filed, on forms approved by the Department of 
Audit, with the State Auditor, who shall retain them for 3 years. 
Sec. 8. Continuation of service. 
Any member of the Sagadahoc 
County Budget Advisory Committee on the effective date of this 
Act continues to serve on the Sagadahoc County Budget Committee 
for the remainder of the term to which the member was elected. 
SUMMARY 
This bill amends the procedures for adopting a budget for 
Sagadahoc County. 
Under current law, 
the county commissioners 
submit 
a 
budget estimate to an advisory committee that makes 
recommendations back to the commissioners; 
but the budget is 
adopted by a majority vote of the county commissioners. 
Under 
the bill, the county commissioners will submit a budget estimate 
to 
a 
budget committee that will conduct at least one public 
hearing in each of the 3 commissioner districts and the budget 
committee is responsible for final adoption of the county budget 
and any later amendments to it. 
The bill retains the same make 
up of the advisory committee for the budget committee; that is, 
from each commissioner district, 
elected municipal officials 
and one public member. 
The bill provides that members currently 
serving on 
the 
advisory 
committee will 
serve 
on 
the 
budget 
committee until the terms for which they were elected expire.