Maine Legislature, Session 122, LD 1902
Committee Amendment CA_A_H791 (House)
Amends: 20-A MRSA §15915

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT ,A" to H.P. 1343, L.D. 1902, Bill, "An 
Act Concerning Energy Conservation in Schools" 
Amend the bill by striking out everything after the enacting 
clause and before the summary and inserting in its place the 
following: 
'Sec. 1. 20-A MRSA §15915, sub-§l, as amended by PL 2001, c. 
376, §l, is further amended to read: 
1. 
Initial aqreement. Any school administrative unit may 
enter into an agreement of up to 69 ~ years with a private 
party, such as an energy service or 3rd-party financing company, 
for 
the 
design, 
installation, 
operation, 
maintenance 
and 
financing of energy conservation or combined energy conservation 
and air quality improvements at existing school administrative 
unit facilities. 
The school administrative unit's costs to enter 
into such an agreement are not 
apglicabl~ to the unit's school 
construction project costs, the debt service on which is eligible 
for subsidy purposes under section 15907. 
Such an agreement is 
deemed to be a professional service, which is not subject to the 
competitive bidding requirements of Title 5, section l743-A, if 
the agreement: 
A. 
Provides for operation or maintenance of the improvement 
for at least 5 years or the entire term of the financing 
agreement if longer than 5 years; 
Page l-LR2917(2) 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT .. A 
.. to H.P. 1343, L.D. 1902 
B. 
Requires 
a 
guaranty 
by 
the 
contractor 
that 
the 
improvement will meet performance criteria set forth in the 
agreement for at least 5 years or for the entire term of the 
financing agreement if longer than 5 years; and 
C. 
Has 
a 
total 
contract cost, 
operating and maintenance costs, 
$2,000,000 for any school building. 
excluding interest and 
of less than 
$lTQQQTQQQ 
A school administrative unit may select contractors for these 
professional 
services 
on 
the 
basis 
of 
a 
request 
for 
qualifications or a request for proposals and it is not required 
to use a competitive method set forth in this chapter and Title 
5, section 1743-11. and Private and Special Law 1999, chapter 79. 
The selection process must il1clude at a minimum a request for 
qualifications or a request for proposals that is advertised in a 
newspaper of general circulation in the school administrative 
unit and a 
newspaper of general circulation in the City of 
Augusta. 
The school administrative unit shall interview not less 
fewer than 3 service providers unless a smaller number of service 
providers responds to the request for qualifications or requests 
for proposals. 
The performance criteria in the agreement is 
subject to approval 
by the Department of Administrative 
and 
Financial Services, Bureau of General Services. 
A request for 
qualifications or proposals may not contain terms that require 
service providers to have more than 3 years of experience in the 
energy conservation field or the use of equipment that is not 
generally available to 
service providers 
or 
terms 
that are 
otherwise included for the purpose of bias or favoritism toward a 
particular service provider. 
Objections 
to 
the 
terms 
of 
a 
request for qualifications or proposals under this subsection are 
deemed waived if not delivered in writing to the office of the 
superintendent of schools in that school administrative unit 
within 
days 
of 
the 
last 
publication 
of 
the 
newspaper 
advertisement. ' 
SUMMARY 
This amendment retains the provision in the bill that raises 
the allowable contract cost for making school energy conservation 
or combined energy conservation and air quality improvements from 
$1,000,000 
to $2,000,000. 
The 
amendment 
also decreases 
the 
length of the allowable contract from 20 years to 15 years and 
clarifies that a school administrative unit may enter into such 
an 
improvement 
contract 
only 
for 
an 
existing 
school 
administrative unit facility. 
It further provides that a school 
administrative unit's costs for entering into such an improvement 
contract are not applicable to school construction project costs, 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A· to H.P. 1343, L.D. 1902 
the debt service on which is eligible for subsidy purposes under 
the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 20-A, section 15907. 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT