An Act To Expand Eligibility of Certain Municipal Landfills To Participate in the State's Remediation and Closure Program ) . . ~I
Maine Legislature, Session 124, LD 1633
Sponsors: JOHNSON, CLARK, DUCHESNE, THOMAS
Amends: 38 MRSA §1310-E, 38 MRSA §1310-F

MAINE STATE LEGISLATURE 
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124th MAIN LEGISLATURE 
Legislative Document 
No. 1633 
H.P. 1161 
House of Representatives, December 2~, 2009 
An Act To Expand Eligibility of Certain Municipal Landfills To 
Participate in the State's Remediation and Closure Program 
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Approved for introduction by a majority of the Legislative Council pursuant to Joint Rule 
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203. 
Received by the Clerk of the House on December 21,2009. Referred to the Committee ort 
Natural Resources pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed pursuant to Joint Rule 401. 
. Presented by Representative JOHNSON of Greenville. 
77ld~ /11. 7l!tU~{ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Cosponsored by Representatives: CLARK of Millinocket, DUCHESNE of Hudson, THOMAS 
of Ripley. 
Printed on recycled pap~r 
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Be it enacted by the People ofthe State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1., 38 MRSA §1310-E-l, sub:..§2, 'iTA, as amended by PL 1999, c. 556, §37, 
is further amended to read: 
A. 
The landfill is a licensed municipal solid waste landfill or the municipality has 
been ordered to close or remediate a landfill pursuant to section 131 O-D, subsection 2 
in which case the landfill must be closed in accordance with subsection 1; and 
Sec. 2. 38 MRSA §1310-F, sub-§l-B, as repealed and replaced by PL 1997, c. 
479, § 1, is amended to read: 
1-B. 
Closure cost-share fraction. 
Subject to the availability of funds, the 
commissiqner shall issue grants or payments for the following percentages of landfill 
closure costs incurred by muniCipalities. 
A, 
The state cost share is 75% of closure costs incurred before July 1, 1994. 
B. 
The state cost share is 50% ~f landfill cover costs and 75% of other closure costs 
incurred on or after July 1, 1994 and before January 1, 1996. 
C. 
The state cost share is 30% of landfill cover costs and 75% of other closure costs 
incurred on or after January 1, 1996 and before January 1,2000. 
D. 
Notwithstanding paragraphs Band C,. the state cost share is 75% of closure 
costs, including landfill cover costs, incurred on or after July I, 1994 and before 
January 1, 2000, if: 
(1) 
The costs are incurred pursuant to a written agreement between the 
municipality and the department executed before July 1, 1994; or 
(2) The commissioner determines that the closure work was delayed for reasons 
beyond the control of the municipality and the costs are identified in and incurred 
pursuant toa written agreement between the municipality and the department. 
E. Notwithstanding paragraphs B, C and D, the state cost share is 75% of closure 
. costs,. including landfill cover costs, incurred on or after July 1, 1994 and before 
December 31, 2014, if: 
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(1) The commissioner issued a license for operation of the landfill and found ' 
that· the landfill met the design requirements and environmental protection 
standards at the time of licensing; and 
(2) The commissioner has since determined that the landfill or portion of the 
landfill must be closed or encapsulated based on the finding that the original 
design no longer meets the environmental protection standards. 
The state cost share is 0% of landfill closure costs incurred on or after January I, 2000, 
except that the commissioner may issue grants or payments as provided in paragraph E or 
for 30% of those costs if incurred pursuant toanalternative closure schedule commitment· 
executed before January I, 2000, and if specifically identified in a department order or 
license, schedule of compliance or consent agreement. 
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As used in this subsection, "landfill cover costs" means the cost of materials and the cost 
of placement'of materials associated with the physical construction of that portion of a 
cover over a landfill that meets the minimum landfill cover permeability of 1 x 10(-
5)cm.lsec.and the thickness standards of 40 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 258, 
Section 258.60(a). 
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SUMMARY 
This bill allows municipal landfills that were allowed to remain in operation after 
January I, 2000 but are subsequently ordered closed or encapsulated by December 31, 
2014 because they do not meet current ellvironmental protection standards to receive 
funding from the State's remediation and closure program for a portion of closure costs if 
funding is available.