An Act Concerning Water Quality in Watersheds
Maine Legislature, Session 124, LD 1399
Committee: Natural Resources
Sponsors: TILTON, TRAHAN, EATON, PERCY, WEAVER, DAMON, RA YE
Amends: 30-A MRSA §4211, 38 MRSA §353-B, 38 MRSA §410-I

Legislative Document 
No. 1399 
H.P.978 
House of Representatives, 
2,2009 
An Act Concerning Water Quality in Watersheds 
Reference to the Committee on Natural Resources suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Representative TILTON of Harrington. 
Cosponsored by Senator TRAHAN of Lincoln and 
77ldl~d:: /J1.1T/t1£;:?}AM4l 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: EATON of Sullivan, PENDLETONofScarborough, PERCY of Phippsburg, 
. PRESCOTT 0 f Topsham, WEAVER of York, Senators: DAMON of Hancock, GERZOFSKY, 
of Cumberland, RA YE of Washington. 
Prilllcd on rccydcd pap~r 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec~ 1. 30-A MRSA §4211, sub-§5, ~, as amended byPL 1999, c. 228, §3, is 
further amended to read: 
D. 
A non engineered subsurface wastewater disposal system fee not to exceed $100 
may'be charged; and a surcharge of$10 must be charged. The surcharge must be paid 
. 
by the municipality to the Treasurer of State, who shall credit the amount to the Clean 
. Shores Fund established under Title 38, seCtion 424-B. 
Sec. 2. 38 MRSA §353-B, sub-§2, Cf[A, as amended by PL 2007, c. 558, §3, is 
further amended to read: 
lOA. The base, annualized license renewal service and. maximum fees that may be 
assessed to categOries of discharge activities are as follows. 
Discharge Group 
Publicly owned· 
treatment 
facilities, 10,000 
gallons per day 
or less 
Publicly owned 
treatment 
facilities, more 
than 10,000 
gallons per day to 
0~1 million 
gallons per day 
Publicly owned 
treatment 
facilities, more 
than 0.1 million 
gallons per day to 
1.0 million 
gallons per day 
Base fee not Maximum Annualized Water quality 
. to exceed 
fee for 
license 
improvement 
individual renewal 
surcharge 
in group 
service fee 
annual fee $67 
none 
$150 
annual fee $219 
none 
$150 
aIlI).ual fee $219 
none 
$225 
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Publicly owned 
annual fee $219 
none 
$450 
n 
treatment 
facilities, more 
than 1.0 million 
. gallons per day to 
5.0 million 
gallons per day 
,.: 
Publicly owned 
annual fee $770 
none 
$650 
treatment 
facilities, greater 
than 5 million 
gallons per day 
or with 
significant 
industrial waste 
Major industrial 
annual fee $1,850 
none 
$650 
facility, process 
wastewater 
(based on EPA 
list of major 
source 
discharges) 
Other industrial 
annual fee $630 
none 
$300 
( 
) 
facility; process 
wastewater 
Food handling or annual fee $315 
$2,100 
$150. 
packaging waste-
water 
Fish rearing 
annual fee $288 
$1,753 
$300 
facility over 0.1 
million gallons 
per day 
Fish rearing 
annual fee $288 
$400 
none 
facility 0.1 
million gallons 
per day or less 
\~\ 
Marine 
annual fee* $288 
none 
aquaculture 
facility 
Noncontact 
annual fee $90 
$7,000 
$60 
cooling water 
Industrial or 
annual fee $115 
$2,100 
$150 
commercial 
sources, 
miscellaneous or 
inCidental non-
process 
wastewater 
Municipal 
annual fee 
$115 
$1,400 
$150 
25% or $350, 
combined sewer 
whichever is less 
overflow 
Sanitary 
annual fee $60 
$1,200 
$300 
wastewater, 
excluding 
overboard 
discharge 
Sanitary 
annual fee $210 
$1,200 
$75 
overboard 
discharge, 
commercial 
sources 
Sanitary 
annual fee 
$175 
$75 
overboard 
discharge, 
residential 
sources 600 
gallons per day 
and less 
(J 
Sanitary 
annual fee $200 
$600 
$75 
overboard 
discharge, 
residential 
sources more 
than 600. gallons 
, 
'-
per day 
Sanitary 
annual fee $210 
$500 
$75 
overboard 
discharge, public 
sources 
Aquatic pesticide annual fee* $200 
$370 
application 
Snow dumps 
annual fee* $125 
$150 
Salt and sand 
annual fee* $150 
$225 
storage pile 
Log storage 
annual fee* $200 
$150 
pennit 
General pennit 
annual fee* $300 
coverage for 
. industrial storm 
water discharges 
(except 
construction) 
General pennit 
annual fee* $125 
none 
coverage for 
marine 
aquaculture 
facility 
General pennit 
annual fee* $100 
$30 
. 
coverage (other) 
Experimental 
license fee* $500 
$225 
discharge license 
L) 
7. 
New or amended flat 'fee* 
$4,000 
mixing zone, in 
addition to other 
applicable fees 
Formation of 
flat fee* 
$300 
sanitary district 
Transfer of 
flat fee* 
$100 
license for 
residential or 
commercial 
sanitary 
wastewater 
*Discharge or license quantity fees do not apply to these categories. 
When a license authorizes multiple discharge points in different categories in the 
same license, the total maximum fee for the license may not exceed the maximum fee 
for the most significant category plus 1/2 of the maximum fee for each of the other ' 
applicable categories. 
. '  
A publicly owned treatment facility shall submit annually in conjunction with its 
annual license fee an amount that represents $2 per every ratepayer served by the 
facility. 
Sec. 3. 38 MRSA §353-B, slllb-§7 is enacted to read: 
7. Revenues derived from surcharge. Revenues derived from a water quality 
improvement surcharge must be paid to the Treasurer of State, who shall credit those 
revenues to the Clean Shores Fund established under section 424-B. 
Sec. 4. 38 MRSA §410-I, sub-§3 is enacted to read: 
3. Annual water quality monitoring arid remediation planning. The department 
shall in coordination with the public health division of the Department of Marine 
Resources create an annual work plan outlining priorities for the monitoring and 
. classification of shellfish growing areas. The work plan must also prioritize remediation 
·33 
projects that will improve water quality within shellfish growing areas. Staff from both 
agencies must be assigned in determining responsibilities of the' work· plan. The 
Department of Marine Resources shall solicit priorities from municipalities with 
approved municipal shellfish programs for work within shellfish growing areas in those 
communities. in order for municipal recommendations to be considered for inclusion in a 
work plan, the municipality must commit to assist in the identification and remediation of 
, 39 
nonpoint source pollution, including failing subsurface wastewater disposal systems, in 
areas affecting the water quality of shellfish growing areas. 
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The agencies 'shall prepare a draft work plan by February 1st of each year and make it 
available for review at a regularly scheduled meeting of the Shellfish Advisory CounCil, 
set out under Title 12, section 6038. 
The agencies shall begin implementing the work plan by March 1 st annually. 
Sec. 5. 38 MRS A §424-B is enacted to read: 
§424-B. Clean Shores Fund 
1. Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the 
following terms have the following meanings. 
A. "Fund" means the Clean Shores Fund established in this section. 
2. Fund established. The Clean Shores Fund is established as a nonlapsing fund 
under the jurisdiction and control of the department. 
3. Sources of the fund. The fund consists of: 
A. Dedicated revenue derived from surcharges in accordance with section 353-B; 
B. 
Dedicated revenue derived from surcharges in accordance with Title 30-A. 
section 4211, subsectioIl5, paragraph D; 
. 
C.Sums that are appropriated by the Legislature or transferred to the fund from time 
to time by the Treasurer of State; 
. 
D. Capitalization grants and awards made to the State or an instrumentality of the 
State by the Federal Government for any of the purposes for which the fund has been 
established; 
. 
E. Interest earned from the investment of fund balances; 
F.Private gifts, bequests and donations made to the State for any of the purposes for 
which the fund has been established; and 
G. Other funds from any public or private source received for use for any of the 
purposes for which the fund has been established. 
4. Distribution. Revenue credited to the fund must be distributed as: 
A. A transfer to fund 3 positions within the Department of Marine Resources in the 
growing area classification program within that department's public health division; 
and 
. 
B. Grants to municipalities or other qualifying applicants for the sole purpose of 
identifying and abating pollution in shellfish growing areas. 
. 
5~ Grants. The department shall establish by rule criteria for the grant application 
process, eligibility for grants and the award and use of grants made under this section .. 
6. Rules. The department shall adopt rules to implement this section. Rules adopted 
pursuant to this subsection are routine technical rules pursuant to Title 5, chapter 375, 
subchapter 2-A. 
Sec. 6. Water quality standards for shellfish harvesting. The Department of 
Environmental Protection shall consider bacteria and viraL standards used by the National 
Shellfish Sanitation Program's model ordinance when issuing waste discharge licenses to 
ensure that shellfish harvesting is protected asa designated use under the Maine Revised 
Statutes, Title 38, section 465-B. 
The Department of Environmental Protection shall review whether the imposition of . 
year-round disinfection requirements at licensed wastewater discharge facilities would 
serve to improve the ability of the Department of Marine Resources to upgrade the 
classification of shellfish growing areas, where such facilities affect classification status. 
The Department of Marine Resources shall identify which facilities affect shellfish 
growing area classification. If the Department of Environmental Protection determines 
that year-round disinfection improves the ability to upgrade the classification of any 
shellfish growing areas, it shall change the license of that facility to require year-round 
disinfection sufficient to improve the classification. 
SUMMARY 
This bill creates the Clean Shores Fund within the Department of EnvironmentaL 
Protection to provide a funding sourc~ for grants to municipalities and other entities to 
identify and abate pollution in shellfish growing areas and to pay the Personal Services 
cost for 3 employees within the Department of Marine Resources in the growing area 
classification program within the public health division. The dedicated revenue for the 
Clean Shores Fund is established through surcharges on the installation of new sewer 
systems and the municipal combined sewer overflow and overboard discharges and on 
sewer utilities based on the number of ratepayers. 
The bill requires the Department of Environmental Protection to work in coordination 
with the Departmeritof Marine Resourc·es to establish an annual work plan to prioritize 
monitoring and classification of shellfish growing areas and remediation projects within 
those areas. The process of developing the work plan must include input from 
municipalities with approved municipal shellfish programs. 
The bill also requires the Department of Environmental Protection to consider 
bacteria and viral standards when issuing waste discharge licenses to ensure that shellfish 
harvesting is protected as a designated use under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 38, 
section 465-B. The. department shall also review whether disinfection· requirements at 
licensed wastewater discharge facilities would improve the ability of the Department of 
Marine Resources to upgrade classifications of shellfish growing areas and may change 
license requirements based on the outcome of the review. 
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