An Act To Amend the Laws Governing the Maine State Library
Maine Legislature, Session 126, LD 0532
Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs
Sponsors: NADEAU, LACHOWICZ, CASSIDY, CHENETTE, FOWLE, GRAHAM, PEASE, SCHNECK, COLLINS
Amends: 27 MRSA §31, 27 MRSA §34, 27 MRSA §37, 27 MRSA §66, 27 MRSA §69, 27 MRSA §108, 27 MRSA §116, 27 MRSA §117, 27 MRSA §119, 27 MRSA §121

Legislative Document 
No. 532 
H.P. 351 
House of Representatives, February 19, 2013 
An Act To Amend the Laws Governing the Maine State Library 
Reference to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed. 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative NADEAU of Winslow. 
Cosponsored by Senator LACHOWICZ of Kennebec and 
Representatives: CASSIDY of Lubec, CHENETTE of Saco, FOWLE of Vassalboro, 
GRAHAM of North Yarmouth, NADEAU of Fort Kent, PEASE of Morrill, SCHNECK of 
Bangor, Senator: COLLINS of York. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  27 MRSA §31, as amended by PL 1973, c. 626, §1, is further amended to 
read: 
§31.  Library hours 
The State Librarian shall keep the library open at least 35 hours per week. Neither the 
State Director of Public Improvements nor any of the state employees under his 
jurisdiction shall admit anyone A person may not be admitted to the library rooms out of 
library hours or permit take any book to be taken therefrom or other material from the 
library without the consent of the librarian. 
Sec. 2.  27 MRSA §34, first ¶, as repealed and replaced by PL 1989, c. 700, Pt. B, 
§17, is amended to read: 
The Department of Education shall maintain a school library media section in 
cooperation with the Maine State Library that must carry on.  The State Librarian shall 
assist the school library media section with the following activities: 
Sec. 3.  27 MRSA §34, sub-§9, as enacted by PL 1989, c. 700, Pt. B, §17, is 
repealed. 
Sec. 4.  27 MRSA §34, sub-§10, as enacted by PL 1989, c. 700, Pt. B, §17, is 
amended to read: 
10.  Related activities.  Related activities in cooperation with the Maine State 
Cultural Affairs Council.; and 
Sec. 5.  27 MRSA §34, sub-§11 is enacted to read: 
11.  Electronic resources and database library.  Maintaining and providing an 
electronic library service as well as a database library for use by elementary and 
secondary schools. 
Sec. 6.  27 MRSA §37, as amended by PL 1973, c. 626, §4, is repealed. 
Sec. 7.  27 MRSA §66 is amended to read: 
§66.  Reports of departments and institutions 
The State Librarian shall distribute reports of the departments and institutions of the 
State and other books and documents published or purchased by the State in such manner 
as the law may direct. He The State Librarian may transmit one copy of each published 
report of each department of the State Government to each library in the State and to the 
libraries of other states and territories, and make such other and further distribution as in 
his the State Librarian's judgment seems proper. He The State Librarian shall maintain a 
document room in which shall must be stored all department reports and other 
publications of the State intended for distribution and shall keep an accurate account of 
all books and documents received.  
Sec. 8.  27 MRSA §69, as amended by PL 2005, c. 683, Pt. A, §45, is further 
amended to read: 
§69.  Purchase of Maine histories 
1.  Purchase. The State Librarian shall purchase at least 25 2 copies, and may 
purchase up to 200 copies, of every town history or other book concerning the history of 
this State that is published in Maine. He shall purchase, within these limits, the number of 
copies required to meet the distribution requirements of subsection 2. 
2.  Distribution. The State Librarian shall retain sufficient copies of each history 
purchased under subsection 1 for the use of the State Library. The remaining copies shall 
be distributed without charge to all school, state, institutional and public libraries that 
request a copy. The State Librarian shall regularly publish and circulate to all these 
libraries a list of the histories available for distribution. 
3.  Surplus. The State Librarian may sell copies of each history that are not 
distributed under subsection 2. The State Librarian shall fix the price of sale at the retail 
price of the history. The Maine State Museum may sell these copies through its museum 
sales program, except that the proceeds from the sale of these town histories may not be 
used as required under section 89-A.  All proceeds from the sales of these town histories 
must be used to pay the costs of the distribution required under subsection 2, and any 
proceeds beyond these costs must be used to meet the costs of purchase under subsection 
1. 
Sec. 9.  27 MRSA §108 is repealed. 
Sec. 10.  27 MRSA §116, first ¶, as enacted by PL 1973, c. 626, §6, is amended 
to read: 
Research centers may be designated by the commissioner State Librarian with the 
advice of the Maine Library Commission. 
Sec. 11.  27 MRSA §117, first ¶, as repealed and replaced by PL 1977, c. 125, §5, 
is amended to read: 
The State Librarian, with the advice of the district council, shall appoint a staff 
member, or contract with an area reference and resource center, to provide district 
consultant services to one or more districts as determined by the policies established by 
the commissioner. 
Sec. 12.  27 MRSA §119, as amended by PL 1989, c. 700, Pt. B, §33, is further 
amended to read: 
§119.  Distribution of appropriations 
The Maine Library Commission State Librarian is authorized to apportion funds 
appropriated by the Legislature for the support of regional library systems. 
Sec. 13.  27 MRSA §121, as amended by PL 2007, c. 67, §5, is further amended to 
read: 
§121.  Confidentiality of library records 
Records maintained by any public municipal library, the Maine State Library, the 
Law and Legislative Reference Library and libraries of the University of Maine System, 
Maine Community College System and the Maine Maritime Academy that contain 
information relating to the identity of a library patron relative to the patron's use of books 
or other materials at the library are confidential.  Those records may only be released with 
the express written permission of the patron involved or as the result of a court order. 
SUMMARY 
This bill removes maintaining and providing a video tape library from the list of 
activities that the Department of Education must perform in its school library media 
section and adds to the list maintaining and providing an electronic library service and 
database library.  It repeals the provision of law that authorizes the State Librarian to 
provide bookmobile service.  It also repeals the provision of law that requires the State 
Librarian to make a gift of money or provide books to a municipality that is establishing a 
free library. 
The bill decreases the amount of town histories or other books concerning the history 
of the State that the State Librarian must purchase from 25 copies to 2 copies.  It repeals 
the provision that requires the State Librarian to distribute the histories to school, state, 
institutional and public libraries.  It repeals the provision of law that allows the State 
Librarian to sell any surplus of the histories. 
The bill also changes some of the responsibilities of managing the Maine State 
Library from the Commissioner of Education to the State Librarian.