An Act To Amend the Military Bureau Laws and Veterans Service Laws
Maine Legislature, Session 128, LD 1278
Committee: Veterans and Legal Affairs
Sponsors: FARRIN, MASON, DILLINGHAM, HANINGTON, LUCHINI
Amends: 37-B MRSA §3, 37-B MRSA §102, 37-B MRSA §152, 37-B MRSA §153, 37-B MRSA §190, 37-B MRSA §505, 37-B MRSA §508

Legislative Document
No. 1278
H.P. 891
House of Representatives, April 4, 2017
An Act To Amend the Military Bureau Laws and Veterans Service 
Laws
Submitted by the Department of Defense, Veterans and Emergency Management pursuant 
to Joint Rule 204.
Reference to the Committee on Veterans and Legal Affairs suggested and ordered printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative FARRIN of Norridgewock.
Cosponsored by Senator MASON of Androscoggin and
Representatives: DILLINGHAM of Oxford, HANINGTON of Lincoln, LUCHINI of 
Ellsworth.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  37-B MRSA §3, sub-§1, ¶D, as amended by PL 2015, c. 465, Pt. A, §1, is 
further amended to read: 
D.  Have the following powers and duties. 
(1)  The Adjutant General shall administer the department subordinate only to the 
Governor. 
(2)  The Adjutant General shall establish methods of administration consistent 
with the law necessary for the efficient operation of the department. 
(3)  The Adjutant General may prepare a budget for the department. 
(4)  The Adjutant General may transfer personnel from one bureau to another 
within the department. 
(5)  The Adjutant General shall supervise the preparation of all state 
informational reports required by the federal military establishment. 
(6)  The Adjutant General shall keep an accurate account of expenses incurred 
and, in accordance with Title 5, sections 43 to 46, make a full report to the 
Governor as to the condition of the military forces, and as to all business 
transactions of the Military Bureau, including detailed statements of expenditures 
for military purposes. 
(7)  The Adjutant General is responsible for the custody, care and repair of all 
military property belonging to or issued to the State for the military forces and 
shall dispose of military property belonging to the State that is unserviceable.  
The Adjutant General shall account for and deposit the proceeds from that 
disposal with the Treasurer of State, who shall credit them to the Capital Repair, 
Maintenance, Construction and Acquisition Account of the Military Bureau. 
(8)  The Adjutant General may sell for cash to officers of the state military forces, 
for their official use, and to organizations of the state military forces, any military 
or naval property that is the property of the State.  The Adjutant General shall, 
with an annual report, render to the Governor an accurate account of the sales and 
deposit the proceeds of the sales with the Treasurer of State, who shall credit 
them to the General Fund. 
(9)  The Adjutant General shall represent the state military forces for the purpose 
of establishing the relationship between the federal military establishment and the 
various state military staff departments. 
(10)  The Adjutant General shall accept, receive and administer federal funds for 
and on behalf of the State that are available for military purposes or that would 
further the intent and specific purposes of this chapter and chapter 3.  The 
Adjutant General shall provide the personnel, supplies, services and matching 
funds required by a federal cost-sharing arrangement pursuant to 31 United States 
Code, Chapters 63 and 65 (2013); 32 United States Code (2013); and National 
Guard Regulation 5-1 (2010).  The Adjutant General shall receive funds and 
property and an accounting for all expenditures and property acquired through 
such a federal cost-sharing arrangement and make returns and reports concerning 
those expenditures and that property as required by such a federal cost-sharing 
arrangement. 
(11)  The Adjutant General shall acquire, construct, operate and maintain military 
facilities necessary to comply with this Title and Title 32 of the United States 
Code and shall operate and maintain facilities now within or hereafter coming 
within the jurisdiction of the Military Bureau. 
(12)  The Adjutant General may adopt rules pertaining to compliance with state 
and federal contracting requirements, subject to Title 5, chapter 375.  Those rules 
must provide for approval of contracts by the appropriate state agency. 
(13)  The Adjutant General shall allocate and supervise any funds made available 
by the Legislature to the Civil Air Patrol. 
(14)  The Adjutant General shall report at the beginning of each biennium to the 
joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over veterans' 
affairs on any recommended changes or modifications to the laws governing 
veterans' affairs, particularly as those changes or modifications relate to changes 
in federal veterans' laws.  The report must include information on the status of 
communications with the United States Department of Veterans Affairs regarding 
the potential health risks to and the potential disabilities of veterans who as 
members of the Maine National Guard were exposed to environmental hazards at 
the Canadian military support base in Gagetown, New Brunswick, Canada. 
(15)  The Adjutant General may receive personal property from the United States 
Department of Defense that the Secretary of Defense has determined is suitable 
for use by agencies in law enforcement activities, including counter-drug 
activities, and in excess of the needs of the Department of Defense pursuant to 10 
United States Code, Section 2576a, and transfer ownership of that personal 
property 
to 
state, 
county 
and 
municipal 
law 
enforcement 
agencies 
notwithstanding any other provision of law.  The Adjutant General may receive 
excess personal property from the United States Department of Defense for use 
by the department, notwithstanding any other provision of law. 
(16)  The Adjutant General may establish a science, mathematics and technology 
education improvement program for schoolchildren known as the STARBASE 
Program.  The Adjutant General may accept financial assistance and in-kind 
assistance, advances, grants, gifts, contributions and other forms of financial 
assistance from the Federal Government or other public body or from other 
sources, public or private, to implement the STARBASE Program.  The Adjutant 
General may employ a director and other employees, permanent or temporary, to 
operate the STARBASE Program. 
(17)  The Adjutant General shall establish a system, to be administered by the 
Director of the Bureau of Maine Veterans' Services, to express formally 
condolence and appreciation to the closest surviving family members of members 
of the United States Armed Forces who, since September 11, 2001, are killed in 
action or die as a consequence of injuries that result in the award of a Purple 
Heart medal.  In accordance with the existing criteria of the department for the 
awarding of gold star medals, this system must provide for the Adjutant General 
to issue up to 3 gold star medals to family members who reside in the State, one 
to the spouse of the deceased service member and one to the parents of the 
service member.  If the parents of the service member are divorced, the Adjutant 
General may issue one medal to each parent.  If the service member has no 
surviving spouse or parents or if they live outside of the State, the Adjutant 
General may issue a gold star medal to the service member's next of kin, as 
reported to the department, who resides in the State. 
(18)  The Adjutant General may establish a National Guard Youth Challenge 
Program consistent with 32 United States Code, Section 509 (1990).  The 
Adjutant General may accept financial assistance from the Federal Government 
or other public body or from other sources, public and private, to implement the 
National Guard Youth Challenge Program.  The Adjutant General may employ a 
director and other employees, permanent or temporary, to operate the program. 
(19)  The Adjutant General may execute cooperative agreements for purposes 
described or defined by this Title and other arrangements necessary to operate the 
department. 
(20)  The Adjutant General shall act as the Governor's homeland security advisor. 
(21)  The Adjutant General shall implement a program to identify residents of the 
State who are not considered veterans but are military retirees or former members 
of the Maine Army National Guard or Maine Air National Guard who 
successfully completed service. 
(22)  The Adjutant General may negotiate and execute agreements to provide 
state military forces to or accept military forces from other states in support of 
federally funded National Guard missions. 
Sec. 2.  37-B MRSA §102, sub-§1, ¶A, as amended by PL 2003, c. 342, §2, is 
further amended to read: 
A.  The Maine Army National Guard and the Maine Air National Guard, referred to 
in this Title as the "National Guard," when either or both are not in federal service 
and state military forces provided under section 3, subsection 1, paragraph D, 
subparagraph (22), but not the Maine Military Authority; and 
Sec. 3.  37-B MRSA §152, as amended by PL 2015, c. 465, Pt. D, §1, is further 
amended to read: 
§152.  Armory Rental Fund; authority to rent armories, readiness centers and other 
real property 
1.  Fund established.  The Armory Rental Fund is established in the Military Bureau 
as a nonlapsing fund to assist in defraying the operation and maintenance expenses of the 
Military Bureau's state-owned facilities.  Funds in the Armory Rental Fund are in 
addition to appropriations for these purposes made to the Military Fund. 
2.  Rental proceeds.  Except as provided in section 353-A, rental proceeds from the 
rental of armories, readiness centers and other real property under this section must be 
paid into the State Treasury and credited to the Armory Rental Fund to be used for 
operation and maintenance expenses at the various state-owned facilities of the Military 
Bureau and for pay and allowances for members called to active state service under 
section 181-A, subsection 4.  Rental proceeds credited to the Armory Rental Fund are in 
addition to the appropriations made for operation and maintenance expenses included for 
that purpose in the Military Fund. 
3.  Waiver of rental fees.  The Adjutant General or the Adjutant General's designee 
may waive rental fees under this section for certain youth and charitable organizations 
under 32 United States Code, Section 508 or as otherwise designated by the Adjutant 
General. 
Sec. 4.  37-B MRSA §153, as enacted by PL 1995, c. 684, §2, is amended to read: 
§153.  Authority to rent armories, readiness centers and other real property 
The Military Bureau may rent armories, readiness centers and other real property for 
activities that do not conflict with the military training mission. 
Sec. 5.  37-B MRSA §190 is enacted to read: 
§190.  State military provost marshal; security 
1.  Appointment of a provost marshal.  The Adjutant General may appoint a 
provost marshal to oversee security at National Guard military facilities and real property 
consistent with federal regulations governing similar federally owned facilities located in 
Maine. 
2.  Designation of military facilities.  For purposes of this section, the Adjutant 
General may designate all or portions of department facilities or real property as military 
facilities. 
3.  Funding.  Modifications of facilities, protocols or procedures or actions otherwise 
authorized by this section are limited to those that are without cost or are federally funded 
either directly or indirectly through a cooperative agreement. 
Sec. 6.  37-B MRSA §505, sub-§2, ¶A, as amended by PL 2007, c. 521, §3, is 
further amended to read: 
A.  As used in this subsection, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following 
terms have the following meanings.  
(1)  "Child" means a natural child whose mother or father is or was a veteran or a 
child who was adopted prior to turning 18 years of age and whose adoptive 
mother or father is or was a veteran and who:  
(a)  Is at least 16 years of age;  
(b)  Has graduated from high school; and  
(c)  Enrolled in a degree program and was awarded benefits under this 
subsection prior to the child's 22nd birthday.  If the child is unable to enroll 
in a degree program prior to turning 22 years of age due to service in the 
United States Armed Forces, then the child may apply to begin this benefit 
until reaching 26 years of age.  Other requirements must be met as described 
in paragraph F. 
"Child" also means includes a stepchild who is a member of a veteran's 
household either at the time of application or, in the event of the veteran's death, 
at the time of death, and who continues as a member of the household after the 
death of the veteran. At least 5 years must have elapsed since the veteran married 
the parent of the stepchild before the stepchild is eligible for educational benefits, 
and the biological parent of the stepchild must reside in the veteran's household 
while the stepchild receives educational benefits whose parent is married to an 
eligible veteran for at least 5 years and remains married to the veteran during the 
period for which benefits are received. 
(2)  "Spouse" means the person currently legally married to a living veteran or 
the unremarried widow or widower of a deceased veteran, not previously 
divorced from that veteran. 
Awards under the educational benefits program are authorized to provide benefits 
to only one spouse per veteran. 
(3)  "Veteran" means any person who served in the military or naval forces of the 
United States and entered the service from this State or has been a resident of this 
State for 5 years immediately preceding application for aid and, if living, 
continues to reside in this State throughout the duration of benefits administered 
under the educational benefits program and who: 
(a)  Has a total permanent disability resulting from a service-connected 
disability as a result of service; 
(b)  Was killed in action; 
(c)  Died from a service-connected disability as a result of service; 
(d)  At the time of death was totally and permanently disabled due to service-
connected disability, but whose death was not related to the service-
connected disability; or 
(e)  Is a member of the Armed Forces on active duty who has been listed for 
more than 90 days as missing in action, captured or forcibly detained or 
interned in the line of duty by a foreign government or power. 
The continuous residency requirement of this subparagraph does not apply to a 
person who is receiving educational benefits under this chapter on or before 
January 1, 2006. 
Sec. 7.  37-B MRSA §508, as amended by PL 2013, c. 569, §4, is further amended 
by adding at the end a new paragraph to read: 
A veteran service officer may not knowingly present or prosecute a fraudulent claim 
against the United States or knowingly provide false information to the United States; 
demand or accept unlawful compensation for preparing, presenting or prosecuting a claim 
or advising or consulting concerning a claim; or knowingly present to the United States 
Department of Veterans Affairs a frivolous claim, issue or argument. A claim, issue or 
argument is frivolous if the veteran service officer is unable to make a good faith 
argument on the merits of the position taken or to support the position taken by a good 
faith argument for an extension, modification or reversal of existing law. 
SUMMARY 
This bill allows the Adjutant General to provide to or accept military forces from 
other states in support of federally funded National Guard missions.  It provides the 
Adjutant General the authority to appoint a provost marshal to oversee security at 
National Guard military facilities and certain real property.  It allows the Military Bureau 
to rent its readiness centers and other real property in addition to armories and allows the 
Adjutant General to waive fees for certain rentals.  It changes the description of a 
stepchild who is eligible to receive certain educational benefits.  It prohibits a veteran 
service officer from knowingly presenting or prosecuting a fraudulent or frivolous claim.