An Act To Implement the Recommendations of the Working Group To Study Landlord and Tenant Issues
Maine Legislature, Session 124, LD 1790
Committee Amendment CA_A_H719 (House)

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "ft" to H.P. 1278, L.D. 1790, Bill, "An Act To 
Implement the Recommendations of the Working Group To Study Landlord and Tenant 
Issues" 
Amend the bill in section 7 in §60 13 by striking out all of subsection 5 (page 3, lines 
to 21 in L.D.) and inserting the following: 
'5. 
Conditional release; sale or disposal. 
A landlord shall comply with the 
following. 
A. If the tenant makes an oral or written claim for the propelty with in 14 days after 
the date the notice described in subsection 2 is sent, the landlord may not condition 
the release of the propelty to the tenant upon the tenant's payment of any rental 
arrearages, damages and costs of storage as long as the tenant makes arrangements to 
retrieve the propelty by the 24th day after the notice described in subsection 2 is sent. 
B. If the tenant makes the claim as set forth in paragraph A but fails to retrieve the 
propelty by the 24th day, the landlord may employ one or more of the remedies 
described in paragraph D. 
C. If the tenant does not make an oral or written claim for the propelty within 14 
days after the notice described in subsection 2 is sent, the landlord may employ one 
or more of the remedies described in paragraph D. 
D. 
With regard to any propelty that remains unclaimed by the tenant in accordance 
with this subsection, the landlord may take one or more of the following actions: 
(1) Condition the release of the propelty to the tenant upon the tenant's payment 
of all rental arrearages, damages and costs of storage; 
(2) Sell any property for a reasonable fair market price and apply all proceeds to 
rental arrearages, damages and costs of storage and sale. All remaining balances 
must be forwarded to the Treasurer of State; or 
(3) Dispose of any propelty that has no reasonable fair market value.' 
Page I - 124LR2590(02)-1 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT"~" to H.P. 1278, L.D. 1790 
Amend the bill in section 8 in §6021-A in subsection 2 in paragraph C in the 3rd line 
(page 3, line 35 in L.D.) by insel1ing after the following: "current" the following: 
'liability' 
Amend the bill in section 8 in §6021-A in subsection 2 in paragraph F by striking out 
all of the last sentence (page 4, lines 7 to 11 in L.D.) and inserting the following: 'After 
first disclosing what the cost of the tenant's compliance with requested bedbug inspection 
or control measures may be, a l~l.I1dlord may charge the tenant a reasonable amount for 
any such assistance, subject to a reasonable repayment schedule, not to exceed 6 months, 
unless an extension is otherwise agreed to by the landlord and the tenant.' 
Amend the bill in section 8 in §6021-A in subsection 3 in paragraph B by striking out 
all of the first and 2nd sentences (page 4, lines 15 to 19 in L.D.) and inserting the 
following: 'Upon receiving reasonable notice as set f0\1h in section 6025, including 
reasons for and scope of the request for access to the prem ises, a tenant shall grant the 
landlord of the dwelling unit, the landlord's agent or the landlord's pest control agent and 
its employees access to the unit for purposes of an inspection for or control of the 
infestation of bedbugs. The initial inspection may include only a visual inspection and 
manual inspection of the tenant's bedding and upholstered furniture.' 
Amend the bill in section 14 by striking out all of subsection 10 (page 6, lines 36 to 
and page 7, lines 1 to 5 in L.D.) and inserting the following: 
'10. Foreclosure. For tenancies in buildings in which a foreclosure action brought 
pursuant to section 6203-A or 6321 has been filed and is currently pending, or in which a 
foreclosure judgment has been entered, if the landlord fails to maintain the premises in 
compliance with the standards in subsection 1, a tenant may exercise the tenant's rights 
pursuant to this section without regard to the cost of compliance limitations set forth in 
subsection 2, except that the reasonable costs of compliance may not be more than the 
equivalent of 2 months' rent. 
A tenant who exercises the tenant's rights under this 
subsection and who thereafter seeks assistance pursuant to Title 22, chapter 1161 may not 
have any amounts expended under this subsection counted as income pursuant to Title 22, 
section 4301, subsection 7.' 
Amend the bill in section 15 in §6026-A in the first indented paragraph in the next to 
the last line (page 7, line 14 in L.D.) by striking out the following: "or tenant" 
Amend the bill in section 24 in §6038 in subsection 2 in the 2nd line (page 12, line 38 
in L.D.) by inserting after the following: "recover" the following: 'from the landlord' 
SUMMARY 
This amendment does the following. 
1. It clarifies the duty of a landlord with regard to the conditional release, sale or 
disposal of unclaimed propeliy of a tenant. 
2. It clarifies that a pest control agent employed by a landlord to control a bedbug 
infestation must carry liability insurance. 
3. It clarifies that a landlord must disclose to a tenant the tenant's costs of compliance 
for requested bedbug inspection or control measures. 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
) 
) 
') 
t, 
'\ 
( 
/ 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A "to I·-!.P. 1278, L.D. 1790 
4. It requires that a landlord must notifY a tenant of the reasons for and scope of the 
request for access to premises to inspect for or control an infestation of bedbugs. 
5. It amends the provision allowing a tenant to make necessary repairs to a property 
in foreclosure and deduct those costs from monthly rent to remove language referring to a 
successor to the interest of a landlord and to restrict the amount a tenant may deduct for 
repair costs from rent to the equivalent of2 months' rent. 
6. It amends the definition of "basic necessities" to clarifY that a municipality would 
not have authority to obtain a lien against a landlord for the costs of basic necessities that 
are the responsibility of a tenant. 
7. It clarifies that a tenant has the ability to recover damages from the landlord for a 
violation of the security deposit laws. 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT