An Act To Modify the Lincoln County Budget Advisory Committee
Maine Legislature, Session 128, LD 0972
Committee: State and Local Government
Sponsors: HAWKE, DOW, BRADSTREET, DEVIN, HANINGTON, HANLEY, MALABY, PIERCE, SANDERSON, SIMMONS
Amends: 30-A MRSA §792, 30-A MRSA §793, 30-A MRSA §795

Legislative Document
No. 972
H.P. 685
House of Representatives, March 9, 2017
An Act To Modify the Lincoln County Budget Advisory Committee
Reference to the Committee on State and Local Government suggested and ordered printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative HAWKE of Boothbay Harbor.
Cosponsored by Senator DOW of Lincoln and Representatives: BRADSTREET of Vassalboro, 
DEVIN of Newcastle, HANINGTON of Lincoln, HANLEY of Pittston, MALABY of 
Hancock, PIERCE of Dresden, SANDERSON of Chelsea, SIMMONS of Waldoboro.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  30-A MRSA §792, as enacted by PL 1989, c. 718, is amended to read: 
§792.  Interim budget 
If the budget is not approved before the start of a fiscal year, until a budget is finally 
adopted, the county shall operate on an interim budget, which may not exceed 80% of the 
previous year's budget. 
Sec. 2.  30-A MRSA §793, as amended by PL 2007, c. 663, §10, is further 
amended to read: 
§793.  Advisory committee 
There is established a Lincoln County Budget Advisory Committee, referred to in this 
article as "the advisory committee," as provided in this section. 
1.  Municipal officers; election; term.  The municipal officers governing bodies 
from each county commissioner district municipality shall choose the budget advisory 
committee members by the following procedure. 
A.  No later than 100 days before the end of the county's fiscal year, the county 
commissioners shall notify all municipal officers governing bodies in the county to 
caucus by county commissioner districts at a specified date, time and place for the 
purpose of electing at least select one municipal officer from each district the 
governing body's municipality as a member of the county budget advisory committee 
except, in 1990, at least 3 municipal officers must be selected from each district.  The 
county commissioner shall serve as nonvoting moderator for that district caucus.  
Nominations must be received from the floor.  The nominee receiving the most votes 
is approved as a budget committee member except, in 1990, each caucus shall elect 3 
members.  The names of those elected by the caucus Each municipal governing body 
must be recorded record and forwarded forward the name of the municipal officer 
from that municipality selected to serve on the advisory committee to the county 
commissioners or, if the municipal governing body declines to have membership on 
the advisory committee, inform the county commissioners that the municipality will 
have no membership on the advisory committee. 
B.  Budget committee members serve 3-year terms except, in 1990, one member from 
each district must be elected for a one-year term, one for a 2-year term and one for a 
3-year term.  If a budget committee member ceases to be a municipal officer during 
the term of membership, the committee member vacates membership and the next 
district caucus shall elect a qualified municipal officer to serve for the remainder of 
the unexpired term. 
2.  Legislative member.  The Lincoln County legislative delegation shall annually 
select one member of the delegation who resides in Lincoln County to serve on the 
budget advisory committee. 
3.  Chair.  The budget advisory committee shall annually select one of its members 
to chair the committee. 
Sec. 3.  30-A MRSA §795, as amended by PL 2007, c. 663, §12, is further 
amended to read: 
§795.  Budget estimate; submission to advisory committee 
The Lincoln County commissioners shall submit a budget estimate to the advisory 
committee no later than 90 days before the end of the county's fiscal year for the coming 
year.  The advisory committee shall review the budget estimate and make 
recommendations adopt a final budget and transmit that budget to the commissioners no 
later than 45 days before the end of the county's fiscal year.  The county commissioners 
shall act on the budget in a timely fashion and, in any event, not later than 15 days before 
the end of the county's fiscal year.  The county commissioners may not further increase, 
decrease, alter or revise the budget adopted by the advisory committee, except by 
unanimous vote of the county commissioners. If the adopted budget is changed by the 
county commissioners, the advisory committee may reject that change by a 2/3 vote of 
the members present. Those actions are final and are not subject to further action by 
either the county commissioners or the advisory committee. 
SUMMARY 
This bill changes the Lincoln County budget procedures in the following ways. 
1.  Current law requires an interim county budget before a final county budget is 
approved to be no more than 80% of the amount of the preceding county budget.  This 
bill raises the level of the interim county budget to no more than the full amount of the 
preceding county budget. 
2.  Current law requires the Lincoln County Budget Advisory Committee to be 
comprised of 3 municipal officers per county commissioner district elected by their 
respective district caucuses and serving staggered 3-year terms.  This bill requires that 
each municipality has the option to have one municipal officer from that municipality 
selected by the municipality’s governing body to serve on the committee for a one-year 
term. 
3.  Current law requires the committee to submit budget recommendations to the 
Lincoln County commissioners, who have the final say on the county budget.  This bill 
gives the committee the authority to submit a budget to the commissioners, who need a 
unanimous vote to make any changes, and the power to veto any change to the budget by 
the commissioners by a 2/3 vote of the committee members present.