An Act To Ensure Equitable Payment for E-9-1-1 Services (AFTER DEADLINE)
Maine Legislature, Session 123, LD 2279
Committee: Criminal Justice and Public Safety
Sponsors: MITCHELL, BARTLETT, ADAMS, BERRY, BROWNE, CROCKETT, SILSBY
Amends: 25 MRSA §1532

Legislative Document 
No. 2279 
S.P.905 
March 26, 2008 
An Act To Ensure Equitable Payment for E-9-1-1 Services 
(AFTER DEADLINE) 
(EMERGENCY) 
Approved for introduction by a majority of the Legislative Council pursuant to Joint Rule 
205. 
Reference to the Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety suggested and ordered 
printed. 
Presented by Senator MITCHELL of Kennebec. 
JOY J. O'BRIEN 
Secretary of the Senate 
Cosponsored by Senator: BARTLETT of Cumberland, Representatives: ADAMS of Portland, 
BERRY of Bowdoinham, BROWNE of Vassalboro, CROCKETT of Augusta, SILSBY of 
Augusta. 
Printed on recycled paper 
Emergency preamble. Whereas, acts and resolves of the Legislature do not 
become effective until 90 days after adjournment unless enacted as emergencies; and 
Whereas, E-9-1-1 service is of vital importance to the citizens of the State; and 
Whereas, some municipalities currently do not have a public safety answering 
point, requiring by law the provision of those services by the Department of Public 
Safety; and 
Whereas, in order to meet the demands of those municipalities, the Department of 
Public Safety has had to hire more personnel, resulting in increased costs to the 
department; and 
Whereas, the law is unclear as to the ability of the Department of Public Safety to 
bill municipalities for these services; and 
Whereas, in the judgment of the Legislature, these facts create an emergency within 
the meaning of the Constitution of Maine and require the following legislation as 
immediately necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health and safety; now, 
therefore, 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 25 MRSA §1532, sub-§7 is enacted to read: 
7. Fee setting for public safety answering point services. The board shall adopt 
rules to determine the fees to be charged those municipalities that contract with the 
department for the provision of public safety answering point services pursuant to chapter 
and for those municipalities that fail to contract with another entity for the provision 
of such services pursuant to section 2923-A. Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection 
are routine technical rules pursuant to Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A. 
Sec. 2. 25 MRS A §2923-A is enacted to read: 
§2923-A. Requirements of municipalities 
Each municipality that does not have a public safety answering point shall contract 
with an entity that does have a public safety answering point, which may be the 
department, for receiving 9-1-1 calls and, as appropriate, directly dispatching emergency 
services or, through transfer routing or relay routing, passing 9-1-1 calls to publ ic or 
private safety agencies that dispatch emergency services. If a municipality without a 
public safety answering point does not enter into such an agreement, the department shall 
serve as the public safety answering point for that municipality and the municipality shall 
pay the department for the provision of those services. Fees received by the department 
pursuant to this section must be deposited 
in 
the Consolidated Emergency 
Communications Fund established in section 1534. 
Emergency clause. 
In view of the emergency cited tn the preamble, this 
legislation takes effect when approved. 
Page I - 123LR3585(Ol)-1 
SUMMARY 
Under current law, if a municipality does not have a public safety answering point to 
serve as the facility for receiving 9-1-1 calls and dispatching emergency services, the 
Department of Public Safety serves that function. There is no explicit authority in the law 
that allows the department to bill the municipality for those services, however. 
This bill requires a municipality that does not have a public safety answering point to 
contract with another entity, which may be the Department of Public Safety, for the 
provision of such services. If a municipality fails to contract for these services, the 
department is required to act as the public safety answering point and the municipality is 
required to pay the department for those services. 
This bill also requires the Maine Communications System Policy Board within the 
Department of Public Safety to set by rule the fees to be charged by the department for 
acting as a public safety answering point.