An Act To Improve Home and Commercial Building Ener~ Efficiency
Maine Legislature, Session 123, LD 1655
Committee: Utilities and Energy
Sponsors: HINCK, BARTLETI, BEAULIEU, BERRY, BROMLEY, HOBBINS
Amends: 10 MRSA §1413, 10 MRSA §1415-C, 35-A MRSA §121

Legislative Document 
~o. 1655 
H.P.1164 
House of Representatives. ~1arch .2.2 . .2007 
An Act To Improve Home and Commercial Building Ener~' 
Efficiency 
Reference to the Committee on Utilities and Energy suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Representative HINCK of Portland. 
Cosponsored by Senator BARTLETI of Cumberland and 
--;r/~vd: 1/]· ~ 
MILLICENT M. \lacFARL\ND 
Clerk 
Representatives: BEAULIEU of Auburn, BERRY of Bowdoinham. BLISS of South Portland. 
BRAUTIGAM of Falmouth. FLETCHER of Winslow. SAMSON of Auburn. Senators: 
BROMLEY of Cumberland, HOBBINS of York. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 10 MRSA §1413, sub-§17 is enacted to read: 
17. Transmission and distribution utility. "Transmission and distribution utility" 
has the same meaning as set forth in Title 35-A, section 10, subsection 20-A. 
Sec. 2. 10 MRS A §1415-C, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2005, c. 350, §7 and 
affected by § 16, is repealed. 
Sec. 3. 10 MRSA §1415-C, sub-§3-A is enacted to read: 
3-A. Residential buildings. Beginning January 1, 2008, any new construction or 
renovation of any residential building must conform to the model building energy code 
developed by the commission pursuant to Title 35-A, section 121. 
Sec. 4. 10 MRSA §1415-C, sub-§3-B is enacted to read: 
3-D. Exemptions. The requirements of subsection 3-A do not apply to: 
A. Log homes; 
B. Modular housing. For purposes of this paragraph, "modular housing" means the 
IS 
type of manufactured housing described in section 9002, subsection 7, paragraph B; 
or 
C. Single-family owner-built residential buildings. For purposes of this paragraph, 
"owner-built residential building" means a residential building that is constructed by 
a person who will use the building as that person's residence. For purposes of this 
paragraph, a person who supervises the construction of a single-family residence or 
contracts with a person to supervise the construction of a single-family residence is 
not considered to have constructed the residence. 
Sec. 5. 10 MRSA §1415-C, sub-§4, as amended by PL 2005, c. 350, §8 and 
affected by § 16, is further amended to read: 
4. Waiver. A waiver from subsection ~ 3-A may be granted by the commission on a 
case-by-case basis for instances of renovation as defined by section 1413, subsection IS. 
In regards to the renovation of historic buildings, a waiver is granted when the Executive 
Director of the State Historic Preservation Commission determines that adherence to the 
energy building standards would result in irreparable damage to the historic character of a 
building on the National Register of Historic Places, eligible for nomination to the 
national register or designated as a historic building by a certified municipal historic 
preservation ordinance. In other instances, such as the rebuilding of a structure damaged 
by fire or a historic preservation project when maintaining historic character is not an 
issue, the Public Utilities Commission may grant a waiver when it can be shown that the 
additional cost of meeting the energy building standards would make the building 
renovation economically infeasible. 
Sec. 6. 10 MRS A §141S-J is enacted to read: 
§141S-J. Certificate of compliance 
1. Certificate required. Before installing permanent service to a residential or 
commercial building, a transmission and distribution utility shall obtain from the owner 
of the building or from the owner's legal agent, on a form provided by the utility, 
certification signed by the owner of the building or the owner's legal agent that the 
building complies with the requirements of this chapter. 
A copy of the signed 
certification must be provided by the transmission and distribution utility to the 
commIssIon. 
2. 
Penalties. 
A transmISSIOn and distribution utility that knowingly violates 
subsection I commits a civil violation for which a fine of not less than $100 nor more 
II 
than $500 may be adjudged. An owner of a building who falsely certifies that the 
building complies with the standards established under this chapter commits a civil 
violation for which a fine of not less than $100 and not more than 5% of the value of the 
construction may be adjudged. 
3. 
Rules. 
The commission shall adopt rules to implement this section. 
Rules 
adopted pursuant to this subsection are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, 
chapter 375, subchapter 2-A. 
Sec. 7. 35-A MRSA §121, sub-§l, as enacted by PL 2003, c. 645, §6, is amended 
to read: 
1. 
Development; rules. The commission shall adopt by rule a model building 
energy code, including a ventilation code, that is consistent with any other model building 
codes adopted by the State and with the building energy standards established in Title 10, 
section 1415-C, subsection 3- 3-A and section 1415-D. The commission shall ensure that 
the model code is not inconsistent with any other applicable state code or standard, 
including, but not limited to, any fire safety code, plumbing code, oil and solid fu,ifl 
equipment standard, propane and natural gas equipment standard or boiler and pressure 
vessel standard. 
Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection are major substantive rules as defined in Title 
5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A. 
Sec. 8. Effective date. This Act takes effect January 1,2008. 
SUMMARY 
Currently, Maine law requires that all commercial new construction and renovation 
and multifamily residential construction must comply with the standards set forth in the 
Energy Efficiency Building Performance Standards Act. 
This bill requires that any new construction or renovation of any residential building 
must conform to the model building energy code developed by the Public Utilities 
Commission pursuant to the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 35-A, section 121. This bill 
also establishes an enforcement mechanism for ensuring compliance with the mandatory 
standards established for both residential and commercial construction. 
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