An Act To Create a Fair Process for Energy Service Companies Contracting with Maine Schools
Maine Legislature, Session 125, LD 0776
Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs
Sponsors: RICHARDSON, JOHNSON, LANGLEY
Amends: 20-A MRSA §15915

Legislative Document 
No. 776 
H.P. 583 
House of Representatives, March 1, 2011 
An Act To Create a Fair Process for Energy Service Companies 
Contracting with Maine Schools 
Reference to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed. 
HEATHER J.R. PRIEST 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative RICHARDSON of Carmel. 
Cosponsored by Representative: JOHNSON of Greenville, Senator: LANGLEY of Hancock. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  20-A MRSA §15915, sub-§1, as amended by PL 2005, c. 499, §1, is 
further amended to read: 
1.  Initial agreement. Any school administrative unit may enter into an agreement of 
up to 15 years with a private party, such as an energy service or 3rd-party financing 
company, for the design, installation, operation, maintenance and financing of energy 
conservation or combined energy conservation and air quality improvements at existing 
school administrative unit facilities.  The school administrative unit's costs to enter into 
such an agreement are not applicable to the unit's school construction project costs, the 
debt service on which is eligible for subsidy purposes under section 15907.  Such an 
agreement is deemed to be a professional service, which is not subject to the competitive 
bidding requirements of Title 5, section 1743-A, if the agreement: 
A.    Provides for operation or maintenance of the improvement for at least 5 years or 
the entire term of the financing agreement if longer than 5 years; 
B.    Requires a guaranty by the contractor that the improvement will meet 
performance criteria set forth in the agreement for at least 5 years or for the entire 
term of the financing agreement if longer than 5 years; and 
C.    Has a total contract cost, excluding interest and operating and maintenance costs, 
of less than $2,000,000 for any school building. 
A school administrative unit may shall select contractors for these professional services 
on the basis of a request for qualifications or a request for proposals and it is not required 
to use using a competitive method set forth in this chapter and Title 5, section 1743-A 
and Private and Special Law 1999, chapter 79.  The selection process must include at a 
minimum a request for qualifications or a request for proposals that is advertised in a 
newspaper of general circulation in the school administrative unit and a newspaper of 
general circulation in the City of Augusta.  The school administrative unit shall interview 
not fewer than 3 service providers unless a smaller number of service providers responds 
to the request for qualifications or requests for proposals ensure that all qualified 
contractors are allowed to compete fairly on the basis of their qualifications.  The Unless 
the school administrative unit uses a model contract developed by the Department of 
Administrative and Financial Services, Bureau of General Services, the performance 
criteria in the agreement is subject to approval unit's solicitation for bids and any contract 
for services must be approved by the Department of Administrative and Financial 
Services, Bureau of General Services bureau.  A request for qualifications or proposals 
The school administrative unit may not contain terms that require service providers to 
have more than 3 years of experience in the energy conservation field or the use of 
equipment that is not generally available to service providers or impose other terms that 
are otherwise included for the purpose of bias or favoritism toward a particular service 
provider.  Objections to the terms of a request for qualifications or proposals under this 
subsection are deemed waived if not delivered in writing to the office of the 
superintendent of schools in that school administrative unit within 21 days of the last 
publication of the newspaper advertisement By January 1, 2012, the bureau shall adopt by 
rule a model contract for services under this section that establishes performance criteria 
and other terms and conditions that are fair, nondiscriminatory and appropriate to meet 
the purposes of this subsection. Rules adopted by the bureau under this subsection are 
routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A. 
SUMMARY 
This bill removes provisions of law that allow school administrative units to use a 
process other than a competitive bid process in selecting energy service providers for the 
design, installation, operation, maintenance and financing of energy conservation or 
combined energy conservation and air quality improvements. This bill requires the 
Department of Administrative and Financial Services, Bureau of General Services to 
adopt by rule a model contract for these services.