An Act To Provide a Rebate for Clean Energy Geothermal Heating Units
Maine Legislature, Session 123, LD 1942
Committee: Utilities and Energy
Sponsors: CARTER, SHERMAN, LUNDEEN, MAREAN, PIEH, PIOTTI, PRATT, NUTTING
Amends: 35-A MRSA §3211-D

Legislative Document 
No. 1942 
H.P.1376 
House of Representatives, December 12, 2007 
An Act To Provide a Rebate for Clean Energy Geothermal Heating 
Units 
Approved for introduction by a majority of the Legislative Council pursuant to Joint Rule 
203. 
Recei ved by the Clerk of the House on December 11, 2007. Referred to the Committee on 
Utilities and Energy pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed pursuant to Joint Rule 
401. 
Presented by Representative CARTER of Bethel. 
Cosponsored by Senator SHERMAN of Aroostook and 
'7J'l~ 1J7. 77l~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: LUNDEEN of Mars Hill, MAREAN of Hollis, PIEH of Bremen, PIOTTI of 
Unity, PRATT of Eddington, Senator: NUTTING of Androscoggin. 
Printed on recycled paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 35-A MRSA §3211-D is enacted to read: 
§3211-D. Geothermal energy rebate program; fund 
1. Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, 
"geothennal system" means a mechanism or series of mechanisms designed to heat air or 
water by a method that extracts or converts the heat energy naturally occurring beneath 
the earth's surface. 
2. Geothermal energy rebate program. To the extent that funds are available in 
the fund established in subsection 3, an owner or tenant of residential or commercial 
property located in the State is entitled to a rebate for a geothennal system that is installed 
in accordance with this subsection after July 1, 2008 and connected to the electrical grid. 
A. A geothennal system designed to heat water qualifies for a rebate of 25% of the 
cost of the system, including installation, or $1.250, whichever is less, if the system is 
installed by a licensed plumber who has been certified by the commission to install 
such systems or by a licensed plumber working in conjunction with a person who has 
been certified by the commission to install such systems. 
B. A geothennal system designed to heat air qualifies for a rebate of 25% of the cost 
of the system, including installation, or $1,250, whichever is less. 
In the case of a newly constructed residence, the rebate must be available to the original 
owner or occupant. 
3. Funding level; fund. The commission shall assess transmission and distribution 
utilities to collect funds for the geothennal energy rebate program in accordance with this 
subsection. The amount of all assessments by the commission under this subsection must 
result in total program expenditures by each transmission and distribution utility that do 
not exceed 0.005 cent per kilowatt-hour. To the extent practicable, the commission shall 
establish and collect the assessment in a manner that is consistent with the assessment 
made under section 321 I-A. The commission shall establish a geothennal energy rebate 
program fund to be used solely for the purposes of this section. All assessments made 
under this subsection must be deposited in the fund. Any interest on funds in the fund 
must be credited to the fund. Funds not spent in any fiscal year remain in the fund to be 
used for the purposes of this section. 
4. Rules. The commission shall adopt rules necessary to implement the provisions 
of this section, including procedures and standards for demonstrating qualification for a 
rebate under this section. Rules adopted under this subsection are routine technical rules 
as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A. 
5. Report. The commission shall report by December 1 st of each year to the joint 
standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over utilities and energy 
matters a description of actions taken by the commission pursuant to this section during 
the prior 12 months. 
6. Limitation to residents of State. Participation in the geothennal energy rebate 
program and fund established in this section is limited to residents of the State. 
Sec. 2. Standards. The Public Utilities Commission in establishing procedures 
and standards for demonstrating qualification for a rebate under the Maine Revised 
Statutes, Title 35-A, section 3211-D shall allow a person to demonstrate the date a system 
was installed by the date of a net metering arrangement with a transmission and 
distribution utility or a dated bill of sale for the system. 
SUMMARY 
This bill provides for rebates for the installation of geothennal heating systems for 
residential or commercial property owners or tenants.