An Act Concerning Statewide Communications Interoperability . .
Maine Legislature, Session 124, LD 1700
Committee: Appropriations
Sponsors: CROCKETT, BLISS, BUTTERFIELD, CAIN, CONNOR, MILLER, RUSSELL, CRAVEN, JACKSON
Amends: 5 MRSA §1520

Legislative Document 
No. 1700 
H.P. 1201 
House of Representatives, January 6, 2010 
An Act Concerning Statewide Communications Interoperability 
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Approved for introduction by a majority of the Legislative Council pursuant to Joint Rule 
203. 
Reference to the Committee on Appropriations. and Financial Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed. 
Presented by Representative CROCKETT of Augusta. 
Cosponsored by Senator BLISS of Cumberland and 
IY/~ 
1J7.11!d£~{ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: BUTTERFIELD of Bangor, CAIN of Orono, CONNOR of Kennebunk, 
MILLER of Somerville, RUSSELL of Portland,' SYKES of Harrison, Senators: CRAVEN of 
Androscoggin, JACKSON of Aroostook. 
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Printed on recycl~d pi.lpcr 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 5 MRSA §1520, as amended by PL 2007, c. 240, Pt. PP, § 1, is further 
amended to read: 
§1520. Statewide Radio and Network System Reserve Fund 
1. Fund established. The Statewide Radio and Network System Reserve Fund, 
referred to in this section as the "fund," is established as an intell1al service fund in the 
Department of Administrative and Financial Services, Office of Information Technology, 
referred to in this section as the "office," for the purposes of managing the fund and 
acquiring, expanding, upgrading and replacing a statewide radio and network system for 
use by state agencies and for the purpose of reimbursing county and local govell1ments 
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for necessary radio equipment in accordance with subsection 2. The office may charge a 
fee to agencies using the statewide radio and network system in accordance with an 
. established rate structure. Revenues derived from operations must be used to pay the 
- c'Osts of the lease-purchase to acquire a system, expand, upgrade and replace the system, 
and to manage the fund. 
A. The office shall work closely with all departments and agencies to identify radio 
and network requirements for the statewide system to ensure that agency program 
requirements are met to the maximum extent possible. The office shall: 
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(1) Ensure that the annual costs of the lease or lease-purchase are paid in a 
timely manner and that the financial affairs of the fund are properly managed; 
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(2) Maintain records of ra9io and network system requirements for all agencies 
using the system and make this inforrriation available to state agencies; 
(3) Require state agencies to become part of the. statewide radio and network 
system when replacing their current systems or purchasing new systems; 
(4) Acquire, expand,upgrade or replace the statewide radio and network system 
in accordance with an established replaceme·nt plan; arui 
(5) 
Transfer radio equipment and network infrastructure into the fund froTh 
agencies using the system, purchase, lease, lease-purchase or enter into other 
financing agreements, in accordance with section 1587, for the acquisition, 
expansion, upgrade or replacement of the system or any of its components in 
accordance with paragraph B when it can be demonstrated that any such action or 
agreement provides a clear cost or program advantage to the State7; and 
(6) Ensure that in meeting the purposes set forth in this section: 
(a) The ability of agencies of county and local govell1ment to communicate 
with state agencies is enhanced and in no way diminished; and 
. (b) The cOUlities and local units of govell1ment are not required to replace or 
upgrade their equipment at their own expense solely in order to maintain 
their ability to communicate with state agencies. 
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B. 
The Chief Infonnation Officer, in conjunction with the agencies using the 
statewide radio and network system, operating as a board that may be referred to as 
"the Statewide Radio Network Board," shall establish the following: 
(1) Standards for statewide radio and network system operations; 
(2) Specifications for systems and components to be acquired by the State; and 
(3) 
Standards fOt: the exemption or waiver of state agencies from the 
requirements of this section. 
By January 15, 2002, standards must be developed for statewide radio and network 
system usage by all state agenCies not exempted under subparagraph (3). 
C. 
The office shall establish, through the Department of Administrative and 
Financial Services, Office of the State Controller, the Statewide Radio and Network 
System Reserve Fund account. The funds deposited in the account may include, but 
are not limited to, appropriations made to the account, funds transferred to the 
account from within the Department of Administrative and Financial Services, funds 
received from state departments and agencies using the services provided by the 
office, earnings by the fund from the Treasurer of State's pool and proceeds from the 
. sale of system assets under the administrative control of the fund by the state surplus· 
property program in the Department of Administrative and Financial Services, 
Bureau of General Services in accordance with paragraph B and other provisions of 
law. 
D. The fund may levy charges according to a rate schedule recommended by the 
Chief Information Officer and approved by the Commissioner of Administrative and 
Financial Services against all departments and agencies using the services of the 
statewide radio and network system. 
E. Service charges for the statewide radio and network system must be calculated to 
provide for system acquisition costs, expansion costs, upgrade costs, necessary 
capital investment and fund management costs, replacement costs aI)d sufficient 
working capital for the fund. 
F., Each department or agency using the services of the statewide radio and network 
system must budget adequate funds to pay for costs described in paragraph E. 
2; 
Funding for county and local governments. 
In addition to the purposes 
described in subsection 1, a portion of the fund must be used to reimburse county ~md 
local governments for the purchase of radio equipment necessary for them to 
communicate on a statewide radio and network system used by state agencies. 
SUMMARY 
This bill would require that the Department of Adm.inistrative and Financial Services, 
Office of Information Technology ensure that, in meeting the purposes set forth in the 
law establishing the Statewide Radio and Network System Reserve Fund, the ability of 
state agencies and agencies of county and local government to communicate with one 
another is in no way diminished, and the counties and local units of government are not 
required to replace or upgrade their equipment at their own expense solely in order to 
maintain their ability to communicate with state agencies. This bill would require that a 
portion of the Statewide Radio and Network System Reserve Fund, which is financing the 
statewide radio and network system used by state agencies, is used to reimburse county 
and local governments for the purchase of radio equipment necessary for them to 
communicate onthe new network. 
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