An Act To Anthorizea General Fund Bond Issue To Weatherize and Upgrade the Energy Efficiency of Maine Homes and Businesses and To Provide a Trained Workforce ,Reference to the Committee on Appropriations and Financial Affairs suggested and ordered printed.
Maine Legislature, Session 124, LD 0709
Committee: Appropriations and Financial Affairs
Sponsors: HINCK, BLISS, BERRY, BLANCHARD, FITTS, FLAHERTY, TREAT, WEBSTER, SHERMAN

MAINE STATE LEGISLATURE 
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124th MAl E LEGISLATURE 
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Legislative Document 
No; 709 
H.P.492 
House of Representatives, February 24,2009 
An Act To Anthorizea General Fund Bond Issue To Weatherize 
and Upgrade the Energy Efficiency of Maine Homes and Businesses 
and To Provide a Trained Workforce 
,Reference to the Committee on Appropriations and Financial Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed. 
Presented by Representative HINCK ofPoitland. 
Cosponsored by Senator BLISS of Cumberland and 
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1J1.77!tiC~{ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
, Clerk 
Representatives: BERRY of Bowdoinham, BLANCHARD of Old Town, FITTS of Pittsfield, 
FLAHERTY of Scarborough; MARTIN of Eagle Lake, TREAT of Hallowell, WEBSTER of 
Freeport, Senator: SHERMAN of Aroostook. 
Printed on recycled paper 
Preamble. Two thirds of both Houses of the Legislature deelning it necessary in 
accordance with the Constitution of Maine, Article IX, Section 14 to authorize the 
issuance of bonds on behalf of the State of Maine to provide funds as described in this 
Act, 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. Authorization of bonds. The Treasurer' of State is authorized, under the 
direction of the Governor, to issue bonds in the name and on behalf of the State in an 
amount not exceeding $60,000,000 for the purposes described in section 6 of this Act. 
The bonds are a pledge of the full faith and credit of the State. The bonds m~y not run for' 
a period longer than 10 years from the date of the original issue of the bonds. At the, 
discretion of the Treasurer of State, with the approval of the Governor, any issuanc'e of 
bonds may contain a call feature. 
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Sec. 2. Records of bonds issued kept by Treasurer of State. The Treasurer 
of State shall keep an account of each bond showing the number of the bond, the name of 
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the successful bidder to whom sold, the amount received for the bond, the date of sale and 
the date when payable. 
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Sec. 3. Sale; how negotiated; proceeds appropriated. The Treasurer of State' 
may negotiate the sale of the bonds by direction of the Governor, but no bond may be 
loaned, pledged or hypothecated on behalf of the State> The proceeds of the sale of the 
bonds, which must be held by the Treasurer of State and paid by the Treasurer of State 
upon warrants drawn by the State Controller, are appropriated solely for the purposes set 
forth in this Act. Any unencumbered balances remaining at the completion of the proj ect 
in this Act lapse to the debt service account established for the retirement of these bonds. 
Sec. 4. Interest and debt retirement. The Treasurer of State shall pay interest 
due or accruing on any bonds issued under this Act and all sums coming due for payment 
of bonds at maturity. 
Sec. 5. Disbursement of bond proceeds. The proceeds of the bonds must be 
expended as set out in this Act under the' direction and supervision of the Finance 
Authority of Maine, Maine State Housing Authority, Department of Labor and 
Department of Economic and Community Development. 
Sec. 6., Allocations from General Fund bond issue. The proceeds of the sale 
of the bonds authorized under this Act must be expended as designated in the following 
schedule. 
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FINANCE AUTHORiTY OF'MAINE 
Provides funds to a grant or loan program 
$15,000,000 
at the Finance Authority of Maine 
designated as incentives to increase 
electrical and thermal energy efficiencies in 
the public and private sectors, including 
industrial users, businesses, hospitals, jails, 
schools and other large power consllmers, 
for minimum efficiency gains of 20% 
through upgrades involving waste heat 
recovery, district heating, cogeneration, 
installation of variable speed drives and 
demand control ventilation systems. 
MAINE STATE HOUSING 
AUTHORITY. 
Provides funds to implement the Maine 
$20,000,000 
State Housing Authority's existing plans for 
weatherizing low-income Maine housing. 
MAINE STATE HOUSING 
AUTHORITY 
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. Provides funds to create a home revolving 
$10,000,000 
weatherization fund for below-market loans 
. through local financial institutions, 
agencies, community development 
corporations, counties and municipalities to 
homeowners, owners of rental properties 
and small business owners for required 
energy audits and weatherization or other 
major energy efficiency improvements. If 
made through a municipality or county, 
loans are to be repaid through property tax 
bill add-ons with the.1ien priority accorded 
those taxes. Loans would otherwise be 
secured by a lien with priority over present 
and future mortgages, based on a 
legislative finding of public need and 
benefit to the property from energy 
savings. All loans and related liens would 
run with the property and be assumed by 
any purchaser of the improved property. 
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 
Provides funds for green-energy workforce 
development. Provides funds for the 
Department of Labor in collaboration with 
the Maine Development Foundation, the 
Department of Economic and Community 
Development, workforce investment 
boards, career centers, the University of 
Maine System and the Maine Community 
College System to conduct labor market I 
research to analyze the current market and 
projected job growth in the green economy 
and emerging industries and technologies, 
recruitment and skill requirements, wage 
and benefits ranges and the education and 
training requirements of workers in those 
industries. Provides funds for the 
Department of Labor in collaboration with 
the Maine State Housing Authority to train 
workers for weatherization services 
including by directing funds through the 
Competitive Skills Scholarship Program, . 
federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998 
programs and the ASPIRE-T ANF program. 
Provides funds for the Department of Labor 
in collaboration with the University of 
Maine System and the Maine Community 
College System to distribute grants on a 
competitive basis, using labor market and 
industry analysis, to supplement other 
public or private funds for eligible uses 
including basic and remedial education and 
. transitional jobs strategies for dislocated 
workers and new workers to be trained for 
occupations in high-demand green 
industries, based on current and proj ected 
job creation and their strategic importance 
to the development of the State's future 
economy. 
$10,000,000 
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DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC AND 
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT 
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Provides community development furids 
for energy efficiency by making available a 
combination oflow-interest and no-interest 
loans and grants for weatherization and 
other energy efficiency proj ects for homes, 
businesses and community meeting places, 
such as grange haps, community houses 
and other traditional public areas for 
gathering in a community. 
$5,000,000 
Sec. 7. Contingent upon ratification of bond issue. Sections 1 to 6 do not 
become effective unless the people of the State ratify the issuance of the bonds as set 
forth in this Act. 
Sec. 8. , Appropriation balances at year-end. At the end of each fiscal year, all 
unencumbered appropriation balances representing state money carry forward. 
Bond 
proceeds that have not been expended within 10 years after the date of the sale of the 
bonds lapse to G~neral Fund debt service. 
Sec. 9. Bonds authorized but not issued. Any bonds authorized but not issued, 
or for which bond anticipation notes are not issued within 5 years of ratification of this 
Act, are deauthorized and may not be issued, except that the Legislature may, within 2 
, years after the expiration of that 5-year period, extend the period for, issuing any 
remaining unissued bonds or bond anticipation notes for an additional amount of time not 
to exceed 5 years. 
Sec. 10. Referendum for ratification; submission at election; form of 
question; effective date. This Act must be submitted to the legal voters of the State at 
a statewide election held in the month of November following passage of this Act. The 
, municipal officers of this State shall notify the inhabitants of their respective cities, towns 
and plantations to meet, in the manner prescribed by law for holding a statewide election, 
to vote on the acceptance or rejection of this Act by voting on the following question: 
"Do you favor a $60,000,000 bond issue for weatherization and 
upgrading the energy efficiency of Maine horries and businesses and to 
provide a trained workforce?" 
The legal voters of each city, town and plantation shall vote by ballot on this question 
, and designate their choice by a cross or check mark placed within a corresponding square 
below the word "Yes" or "No." The ballots must be received, sorted, counted and 
declared in open ward, town and,plantation meetings and returns made to the Secretary of 
State in the same manner ,as votes for members of the Legislature. The Governor shall 
review the returns. If a majority of the legal votes are cast in favor of this Act, the 
Governor shall proclaim the result without delay and this Act becomes effective 30 days 
after the date of the proclamation. 
The Secretary of State shall prepare and furnish to each city, town and plantation all 
ballots, returns and copies of this Act necessary to carry out the purposes of this 
referendum. 
SUMMARY 
The funds provided by this bond issue, in the amount of $60,000,000, will be used to 
support weatherization and other energy efficiency improvements for Maine homes, 
businesses and public buildings. Funds are also provided to expand the workforce for 
weatherization and energy efficiency services and other parts of the economy. 
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