An Act To Ensure the Rights of Host Communities Regarding the Construction and Operation of State-owned Solid Waste Disposal Facilities
Maine Legislature, Session 121, LD 0803
Committee: Natural Resources
Sponsors: HATCH, CARR
Amends: 38 MRSA §1310-N, 38 MRSA §2156-A

Legislative Document 
No. 803 
S.P.282 
In Senate, February 20, 2003 
An Act To Ensure the Rights of Host Communities Regarding the 
Construction and Operation of State-owned Solid Waste Disposal 
Facilities 
Reference to the Committee on Natural Resources suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Senator HATCH of Somerset. 
Cosponsored by Representative HATCH of Skowhegan and 
Representative: CARR of Lincoln. 
Printed on recycled paper 
JOY J. O'BRIEN 
Secretary of the Senate 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 38 MRSA §1310-N. sub-§9, as enacted by PL 1995, c. 
465, Pt. A, §16 and affected by Ft. C, §2, is amended to read: 
9. 
Host 
conununi ty 
apply to an application 
waste disposal facility. 
agreements. 
The 
following provisions 
for a license for a 
commercial solid 
A. 
The department may not issue a license for a commercial 
solid waste 
disposal 
facility 
unless 
the 
applicant 
has 
demonstrated that it has: 
(1) 
Complied with municipal ordinances requiring host 
community benefits; 
(2) 
Negotiated in good faith, 
as 
determined 
by 
a 
neutral arbitrator agreeable to both sides who has been 
present during the negotiations, 
with the municipality 
in which the facility is proposed to be located to 
formulate a host community agreement; 
(3) 
Developed 
and will 
implement 
a 
host 
community 
agreement: or 
(4) 
Renegotiated, 
if appropriate, 
the 
terms 
of 
an 
existing host community agreement. 
B. 
Based upon the nature, size and projected impacts of the 
proposed 
facility, 
host 
community 
agreements 
must, 
when 
applicable, include provisions regarding: 
(1) 
Improvement, maintenance and repair of local roads 
directly affected by traffic to and from the facility 
and of other infrastructural elements directly affected 
by the facility; 
(2) 
Development 
and 
maintenance 
of 
adequate 
local 
emergency response capacity to accommodate the facility; 
(3) 
Financial support to the municipality in the form 
of tipping fees in the amount egual to the fees charged 
by the department in chapter 24, subchapter 7, article 
to be placed in a trust fund established by the 
municipality, of which 50% of the proceeds must be used 
for environmental testing and monitoring, including for 
personnel 
or 
other 
means 
to 
provide 
technical 
assistance to the municipality in testing, monitoring 
or interpreting data and to advise the municipality on 
other 
technical 
issues 
concerning 
the 
facility 
and 
administrative costs related to the application for and 
presence of 
a 
solid waste disposal facility located 
wi thin the municipality. 
The balance of the proceeds 
in trust must 
be 
kept 
as 
a 
reserve in case of 
a 
potential 
accident 
or 
failure 
of 
the 
solid 
waste 
disposal facility; and 
(4) 
Other issues determined on a case-specific basis 
by the applicant and municipality to be appropriate 
given the nature of the proposed facility. 
The department shall adopt rules concerning the expenditure 
of 
funds 
made 
available 
to 
a 
municipality 
under 
the 
provisions of subparagraph (3) 
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Sec. 2. 38 MRSA §2156-A. sub-§2~ as amended by PL 1999, c. 
736, §l, is further amended to read: 
2. 
Reconunendation for development. 
When the office finds 
that the licensed and available disposal capacity within the 
State 
for 
municipal 
solid 
waste 
or 
special 
waste 
resides 
primarily in one facility or that 4 years or less of licensed and 
available disposal capacity for municipal solid waste or special 
waste 
remains 
within 
the 
State, 
it shall 
submit 
a 
report 
recommending 
the 
construction 
and operation of 
a 
state-owned 
solid waste disposal facility for the disposal of the type of 
waste 
for 
which 
capacity 
is 
needed 
to 
the 
joint 
standing 
committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over natural 
resource matters. 
The report must recommend which state agency 
or department will own the facility and how it will be operated. 
The report must also include a review of disposal options outside 
of the State; 
a 
review of existing efforts to reduce, 
reuse, 
recycle, 
compost 
and 
incinerate 
the affected municipal 
solid 
waste and special waste streams and the impact of these efforts 
on capacity requirements; 
a 
thorough economic analysis of the 
facility's 
expected 
costs; 
and 
commitments 
from 
entities 
to 
utilize the facility and projected revenues. 
It is the intent of 
the 
Legislature 
that 
the 
facility 
be 
operated by 
a 
private 
contractor. 
A state-owned solid waste disposal facility may not 
be 
constructed 
or 
operated 
unless 
authorized 
by 
legislation 
pursuant to subsection 3. 
Sec. 3. State Planning Office search and report. 
The Executive 
Department, State Planning Office shall search for geographically 
sui table sites in the State, in addition to the Carpenter Ridge 
facility, for additional capacity for disposal of municipal solid 
waste 
or 
special 
waste 
that 
do 
not 
adversely 
affect local communities. 
The State Planning Office shall submit 
a report of its search and recommendations to the Joint Standing 
Committee on Natural Resources within 180 days of the effective 
date of this legislation. 
SUMMARY 
This bill does the fOllowing: 
1. 
Requires 
municipalities and 
for good faith by a 
that 
host 
community 
agreements 
between 
solid waste facility operators be monitored 
neutral arbitrator; 
2. 
Requires 
that host 
community 
agreements 
provide 
for 
tipping fees to be paid to the municipality into a trust fund to 
help pay for monitoring, 
testing and administrative costs of 
solid waste facilities and in case of accidents or failures with 
the facility; 
3. 
Requires the Executive Department, State Planning Office 
to report to the Legislature when there is only one facility in 
the State to handle the required disposal demand or when the 
available capacity will be used up within 4 years; and 
4. 
Requires the State Planning Office to conduct a search 
and report on other suitable disposal sites in the State.