An Act To Reorganize the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority
Maine Legislature, Session 122, LD 1233
Committee: Transportation
Sponsors: GERZOFSKY, EDMONDS, ASH, FISCHER, FISHER, HUTTON, PELLETIER-SIMPSON, RICHARDSON, WEBSTER, WHEELER
Amends: 23 MRSA §8002, 23 MRSA §8006, 23 MRSA §8112, 23 MRSA §8114, 23 MRSA §8120

Legislative Document 
No. 1233 
H.P.851 
House of Representatives, March 10,2005 
An Act To Reorganize the Northern New England Passenger Rail 
Authority 
Reference to the Committee on Transportation suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Representative GERZOFSKY of Brunswick. 
Cosponsored by President EDMONDS of Cumberland and 
1Y/~/J7.~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: ASH of Belfast, FISCHER of Presque Isle, FISHER of Brewer, HUTTON of 
Bowdoinham, PELLETIER-SIMPSON of Auburn, Speaker RICHARDSON of Brunswick, 
WEBSTER of Freeport, WHEELER of Kittery. 
Printed on recycled paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 23 MRSA §8002, sub-§§l-A and I-B are enacted to read: 
I-A. 
Co_issioner. 
"Commissioner" means the Commissioner 
of Transportation. 
1-8. 
DeRartment. 
"Department" 
means 
the 
Department 
of 
Transportation. 
Sec. 2. 23 MRSA §8006, as enacted by PL 1995, c. 374, §3, is 
repealed and the following enacted in its place: 
58006. Additional funding 
The authority is directed to use any revenues it receives 
from the operation of the passenger rail service established 
pursuant to this chapter as follows. 
I. 
Qperational expenses. 
The authority is directed to pay 
the operational expenses 
of that service. 
The 
authority is 
directed to seek and use funds necessary to pay all operational 
expenses of the passenger rail service that are not met by fares 
and 
other 
funds 
or 
revenues. 
For 
the 
purposes 
of 
this 
subsection, "operational expenses" includes, but is not limited 
to, all additional capital expenses necessary to maintain the 
passenger rail service. 
2. 
Expansion of existing rail service. 
In addition to the 
funds that the authority is to seek and use pursuant to section 
8005, the authority is directed to seek and use funds in the 
amounts necessary for the expansion of now existing passenger 
rail service between Portland and Boston, Massachusetts northward 
from Portland to Brunswick with such expanded service to be 
placed in operation no later than January 1, 2007. 
3. 
Connecting passenger rail service. 
The 
au tho r i ty is 
directed to seek and use 
funds 
in the amounts necessary to 
provide connecting passenger rail service between Brunswick ano. 
Rockland with such connecting service to be placed in operation 
no later than January 1, 2007. 
Sec. 3. 23 MRSA §8112, sub-§ 1, as enac ted by PL 1995, c. 374 I 
§3, is repealed and the following enacted in its place: 
1. 
Board of directors. 
The authority consists of a board 
of 7 directors, 6 of whom are appointed by the Governor subject 
to review and confirmation by the joint standing committee of the 
Legislature haying jurisdiction over transportation matters. 
One 
of those 6 must be a representative of a passenger rail advocacy 
organization. 
The 
7th 
must 
be 
the 
commissioner 
or 
the 
commissioner's designee. 
Each director appointed by the Governor 
serves for 
years. 
Immediately after the appointments, 
the 
directors of the authority shall enter upon their duties. 
The 
commissioner or the commissioner's designee shall serve as chair 
of the authority. 
The directors shall elect a treasurer and a 
secretary, who need not be directors of the authority, and any 
other officers as the board of directors from time to time 
considers necessary. 
Any vacancy of a director appointed by the 
Governor must be filled for the unexpired term by the Governor 
and confirmed by the joint standing committee of the Legislature 
having jurisdiction over transportation matters. 
A vacancy in 
the authority does not impair the right of a 
quorum of the 
directors to exercise all the rights and perform all the duties 
of the authority. 
The Governor may remove an appointed director 
from the authority for misconduct. 
Sec. 4. 23 MRSA §8114, sub-§4, as enacted by PL 1995, c. 374, 
§3, is amended to read: 
4. 
Employees. 
gffip~ey--s~e~ Utilize 
staff, 
assistants, 
attorneys, 
experts, 
inspectors 
and 
s~e~ other 
employees 
and 
consultants as provided to the authority by the department. to 
the 
extent that 
the 
aut:QQriJ;,~;p.d the 
depart~ considers 
necessary or desirable for ~~s the authority's purposes; 
Sec. 5. 23 MRSA §8120. as enacted by PL 1999, c. 152, Pt. E, 
§4, is repealed and the following enacted in its place: 
S8l20. Employees 
1~DepartmeJ!~~Qy,iq~~suPJ!Qrt. 
Beginning July 1. 
2006, 
the 
authority 
may 
not 
employ 
a 
person, 
including 
a 
person 
employed by the authority prior to that date. 
After July 1, 
2006, 
the department shall provide the authority with staff, 
assistants, 
attorneys, 
experts, 
inspectors, 
employees 
and 
consultants 
as 
the 
authority 
and 
the 
department 
considl;!"£ 
necessary or desirable for the purposes of the authority. 
The 
cost for providing staff must be paid by the authority. 
~-,,-~~r.~lIlp~Qyees. 
Per.::i<:}ns 
who 
were~l_Qyees of 
th.€!. 
authority prior 
to 
July 
1, 
2006 
are 
subject 
to 
the 
state 
retirement provisions of Title 5, Part 20 and the state employee 
health insurance program under Title 5, chapter 13, subchapter 2. 
so 
A. 
The Letirement accQunts of s.!&te 
to the authority in its capacity as 
prior to July 1, 
2006 
must 
remain 
plan. 
Persons 
who 
were 
employees 
employees transferred 
an independent agency 
in the state regular 
of 
the authority are 
members of the Maine State Retirement System under the state 
regular plan. 
The authority shall make employer retirement 
plan contributions at the state regular plan rate for all 
employees transferred from the department. 
B. 
The 
accrued 
fringe 
benefits 
of 
state 
employees 
transferred 
to 
the 
authority 
in 
its 
capacity 
as 
an 
independent agency prior to July 1, 2006, including vacation 
and sick leave, health and life insurance and retirement, 
remain with the transferred employees. 
C. 
Employees transferred from the department are entitled 
to receive the Same 
retirement health benefits as state 
employees. 
Sec. 6. Existing board. 
The board of Directors of the New 
England Passenger Rail Authority holding office on the effective 
date of this Act hold office as directors for the terms for which 
they were elected. 
If a vacancy arises, it must be filled for 
the remainder of the unexpired term. 
SUMMARY 
This bill requires the Northern New England Passenger Rail 
Authority to seek and use such funds as are necessary to extend 
the current Downeaster passenger rail service northward 
from 
Portland to Brunswick, with this extension, as well as connecting 
service to Rockland, to be in operation no later than January 1, 
2007. 
This bill increases the size of the board of directors of 
the authority from 
members to 7 members, 
with one of the 
additional members being the Commissioner of Transportation or 
the commissioner's designee and the other additional member being 
appointed to represent a passenger rail advocacy organization by 
the Governor. 
This bill provides that any replacements for the current 5 
members of the authority's board of directors, and any further 
replacements for those directors, are to be appointed by the 
Governor and subject to approval of the joint standing committee 
of 
the 
Legislature 
having 
jurisdiction 
over 
transportation 
matters. 
This bill provides that, after July 1, 2006, the authority 
may not employ any person or hire any consultants or others, but 
that, 
instead, 
on 
and 
after 
that 
date, 
the 
Department 
of 
Transportation shall provide all persons, consultants and others 
as the authority and the department jointly determine necessary 
to carry out the purposes of the authority.