An Act To Protect State Workers from Exposure to Carcinogens”
Maine Legislature, Session 129, LD 1969
Committee Amendment CA_A_H871 (House)
Amends: 5 MRSA §1742-G

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT “      ” to H.P. 1413, L.D. 1969, Bill, “An Act To 
Protect State Workers from Exposure to Carcinogens”
Amend the bill by striking out the title and substituting the following:
'An Act To Protect State Workers from Exposure to Harmful Substances' 
Amend the bill by striking out everything after the enacting clause and inserting the 
following:
'Sec. 1.  5 MRSA §1742-G is enacted to read:
§1742-G.  Bureau of General Services; inventory of asbestos, lead, black mold and 
other substances that may be harmful to human health in state-owned 
and state-leased buildings
1.  Definitions.  As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the 
following terms have the following meanings.
A.  "Bureau" means the Bureau of General Services within the department.
B.  "Department" means the Department of Administrative and Financial Services.
C.  "State-owned building" means a building owned by the State in which persons 
employed by a state agency perform job duties, including, but not limited to, 
maintenance and  repair work.
2.  Initial inventory.  The bureau shall inventory all state-owned buildings to identify 
the presence of asbestos, lead, black mold and other substances that may be harmful to 
human health.  The department shall require property owners of buildings leased to the 
State to conduct a similar inventory and provide the results of the inventory to the bureau 
prior to executing a new lease or renewing or extending an existing lease and, with 
respect to a lease that on the effective date of this subsection has a remaining term of 
more than 2 years, within 12 months of the effective date of this subsection.  The bureau 
shall enter the results of the inventories into the database established and maintained by 
the bureau pursuant to subsection 3.
Date: 
(Filing No. H-          )
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT “      ” to H.P. 1413, L.D. 1969
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
3.  Database.  The bureau shall keep and maintain an electronic database including, 
for each state-owned building or state-leased building:
A.  The results of the inventories completed by the bureau and by the property 
owners of state-leased buildings pursuant to subsection 2;
B.  Detailed plans for the remediation, abatement or containment of asbestos, lead, 
black mold and other substances that may be harmful to human health found in state-
owned buildings and state-leased buildings; and
C.  Data on the completion of planned remediation, abatement or containment.
4.  Access to database.  The database kept and maintained pursuant to subsection 3 
must be readily accessible electronically to:
A.  Collective bargaining agents of employees who work in state-owned buildings or 
state-leased buildings;
B.  State employees whose usual work site is a state-owned building or state-leased 
building that contains asbestos, lead, black mold or other substances that may be 
harmful to human health;
C.  Individuals who perform maintenance, repair and custodial services in state-
owned buildings or state-leased buildings;
D.  Firefighters responsible for providing services to a state-owned building or state-
leased building;
E.  The Department of Labor;
F.  The Department of Health and Human Services, Maine Center for Disease Control 
and Prevention; and
G.  Members of the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction 
over state and local government matters.
5.  Building maintenance or repair.  Prior to any maintenance or repair of a state-
owned building by a person employed by a state agency, the bureau shall review the 
building's records in the database kept and maintained pursuant to subsection 3 or 
inventory the building if the building has not already been inventoried pursuant to 
subsection 2 and add the results of the inventory into the database established and 
maintained pursuant to subsection 3.  If asbestos, lead, black mold or other substances 
that may be harmful to human health are found in the state-owned building to be 
maintained or repaired by a person employed by a state agency, the bureau shall inform 
the person performing the maintenance or repair work and provide appropriate protective 
gear.
6.  Monitoring, abatement and remediation.  To promote a safe and healthy 
environment in state-owned buildings, the bureau's division of safety and environmental 
services shall:
A.  Provide statewide monitoring of state-owned buildings to continuously identify 
the presence of health hazards in the buildings, including, but not limited to, asbestos, 
lead, black mold and other substances that may be harmful to human health;
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT “      ” to H.P. 1413, L.D. 1969
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
B.  Conduct routine building inventories and testing as appropriate to discover and 
assess the presence of health hazards in state-owned buildings, including, but not 
limited to, asbestos, lead, black mold and other substances that may be harmful to 
human health;
C.  Identify any abatement, remediation, containment and maintenance necessary to 
address and prevent potential health hazards in state-owned buildings, including, but 
not limited to, asbestos, lead, black mold and other substances that may be harmful to 
human health; and
D.  Work with state departments and state agencies to develop safety protocols and 
train state employees on safety protocols.
7.  Biennial report.  The department shall submit a report to the joint standing 
committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over state and local government matters 
that describes the conditions of state-owned buildings and state-leased buildings and 
areas of concern by February 1st of every odd-numbered year.
8.  Rules.  The department may adopt rules to implement this section.  Rules adopted  
pursuant to this subsection are routine technical rules pursuant to chapter 375, subchapter 
2-A.
Sec. 2.  Safety education; black mold standards; safety committees. The 
Department of Administrative and Financial Services and the Department of Labor shall 
work together with collective bargaining organizations representing state employees to 
promote health and safety education of state employees, identify appropriate standards for 
black mold prevention and remediation in state-owned buildings and state-leased 
buildings similar to the standards recommended by the United States Environmental 
Protection Agency and develop a framework for regionally based safety committees.
Sec. 3.  Appropriations and allocations.  The following appropriations and 
allocations are made.
ADMINISTRATIVE AND FINANCIAL SERVICES, DEPARTMENT OF
Buildings and Grounds Operations 0080
Initiative: Establishes 2 Engineering Technician IV positions to carry out the 
requirements of this bill.
' 
Amend the bill by relettering or renumbering any nonconsecutive Part letter or 
section number to read consecutively.
GENERAL FUND
2019-20
2020-21
POSITIONS - LEGISLATIVE COUNT
0.000
2.000
Personal Services
$0
$95,243
GENERAL FUND TOTAL
$0
$95,243
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT “      ” to H.P. 1413, L.D. 1969
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
SUMMARY
This amendment is the majority report of the committee.  It replaces the bill, which is 
a concept draft.  It requires the Department of Administrative and Financial Services, 
Bureau of General Services to inventory all state-owned buildings where state employees 
perform job duties to determine the presence of asbestos, lead, black mold or other 
substances that may be harmful to human health.  It requires property owners of buildings 
leased to the State to conduct a similar inventory and report the results to the bureau. The 
amendment requires the bureau to establish and maintain a database containing the results 
of the inventories and make the database easily accessible electronically to employee 
collective bargaining agents, employees working in state office buildings with asbestos, 
lead, black mold or other substances that may be harmful to human health, individuals 
who perform maintenance, repair or custodial services, firefighters, the Department of 
Labor, the Department of Health and Human Services, Maine Center for Disease Control 
and Prevention and members of the joint standing committee of the Legislature having 
jurisdiction over state and local government matters.  It requires the database to be 
consulted before maintenance of or repair to a state-owned building by a state employee 
and the provision of protective gear to the employee if appropriate.  The department is 
required to submit a biennial report and may adopt rules to implement these requirements.
The amendment also provides funding for personnel in the bureau to carry out the 
requirements of this legislation.
FISCAL NOTE REQUIRED
(See attached)
Approved: 08/06/20
LD 1969
LR 2816(02)
FY 2019-20
FY 2020-21
Projections 
FY 2021-22
Projections 
FY 2022-23
Net Cost (Savings)
General Fund
$0
$95,243
$197,344
$204,448
Appropriations/Allocations
General Fund
$0
$95,243
$197,344
$204,448
Fiscal Detail and Notes
The bill requires the Department of Administrative and Financial Services (DAFS) to inventory all state-owned 
buildings where state employees work for the presence of harmful substances. It also requires DAFS to establish and 
maintain a database of the results from this inventory and make that inventory available to multiple different state 
departments and agencies as well as organizations. DAFS has indicated it will require two full time positions to meet 
these requirements. The bill establishes two full time Engineering Technician IV positions and provides a General 
Fund appropriation in fiscal year 2020-21 of $95,243 for these positions, assuming a start date of January 1, 2021. 
Fiscal Note
An Act To Protect State Workers from Exposure to Carcinogens
Fiscal Note for Bill as Amended by Committee Amendment " "
Committee: State and Local Government
Fiscal Note Required: Yes
LR2816(02) - Fiscal Note - Page 1 of 1