An Act To Support and Improve Municipal Recycling Programs and Save Taxpayer Money
Maine Legislature, Session 130, LD 1541
Committee: Environment and Natural Resources
Sponsors: GROHOSKI, BENNETT, HANLEY, KESSLER, PLUECKER, SKOLFIELD, ZEIGLER, BREEN, BRENNER, CARNEY
Amends: 38 MRSA §2146

Legislative Document
No. 1541
H.P. 1146
House of Representatives, April 22, 2021
An Act To Support and Improve Municipal Recycling Programs 
and Save Taxpayer Money
Received by the Clerk of the House on April 20, 2021.  Referred to the Committee on 
Environment and Natural Resources pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed pursuant 
to Joint Rule 401.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative GROHOSKI of Ellsworth.
Cosponsored by Senator BENNETT of Oxford and
Representatives: HANLEY of Pittston, KESSLER of South Portland, PLUECKER of Warren, 
SKOLFIELD of Weld, ZEIGLER of Montville, Senators: BREEN of Cumberland, BRENNER 
of Cumberland, CARNEY of Cumberland.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  38 MRSA §2146 is enacted to read:
§2146.  Stewardship program for packaging
1.  Definitions.     As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the 
following terms have the following meanings.
A.  "Alternative collection program" means a program for the management of 
packaging material that is operated by an individual producer or group of producers 
and that has been approved by the department in accordance with subsection 8.
B.  "Brand" has the same meaning as in section 1771, subsection 1.
C.  "Collection" means the gathering of waste, including the preliminary sorting and 
storage of waste for the purposes of transport to a recycling establishment.
D.  "Franchisee" means a person that is granted a franchise by a franchisor authorizing 
the use of the franchisor's trade name, service mark or related characteristic and the 
sharing of the franchisor's proprietary knowledge or processes pursuant to an oral or 
written arrangement for a definite or indefinite period.
E.  "Franchisor" means a person that grants to a franchisee a franchise authorizing the 
use of the person's trade name, service mark or related characteristic and the sharing of 
the person's proprietary knowledge or processes pursuant to an oral or written 
arrangement for a definite or indefinite period.
F. "Low-volume producer" means a producer that sold, offered for sale or distributed 
for sale in or into the State during the prior calendar year products contained, protected, 
delivered, presented or distributed in or using more than one ton but less than 15 tons 
of packaging material in total.  
G.  "Municipality" means a city, town, county, township, village or plantation; a refuse 
disposal district under chapter 17; or a regional association.
H.  "Packaging material" means a discrete type of material, or a category of material 
that includes multiple discrete types of material with similar management requirements 
and similar commodity values, used for the containment, protection, delivery, 
presentation or distribution of a product, including a product sold over the Internet, at 
the time that the product leaves a point of sale with or is received by the consumer of 
the product.  "Packaging material" does not include a discrete type of material, or a 
category of material that includes multiple discrete types of material, that is:
(1)  Intended to be used for the long-term storage or protection of a durable product 
and that can be expected to be usable for that purpose for a period of at least 5 
years;
(2)  A beverage container, as defined in section 3102, subsection 2, subject to the 
requirements of chapter 33; or
(3)  A container for architectural paint, as defined in section 2144, subsection 1, 
paragraph A, that is collected through a paint stewardship program that is in 
operation and that has been approved by the department pursuant to section 2144, 
as long as the stewardship organization operating that program:
(a)  Has demonstrated to the department's satisfaction that it recycles at least 
90% of the containers of architectural paint collected under the program; or
(b)  Subject to the approval of the department, if unable to satisfy the 
requirements of division (a), has demonstrated to the department's satisfaction 
that it recycles at least 80% of the containers of architectural paint collected 
under the program.
I.  "Packaging stewardship fund" or "fund" means a privately held account established 
and managed by the stewardship organization pursuant to subsection 12.
J.  "Packaging stewardship organization" or "stewardship organization" means the 
entity contracted by the department under subsection 3 to operate the packaging 
stewardship program.
K.  "Packaging stewardship program" or "program" means the program implemented 
under this section by the stewardship organization to assess and collect payments from 
producers based on the weight of packaging material sold, offered for sale or 
distributed for sale in or into the State by each producer and to reimburse participating 
municipalities for certain municipal recycling and waste management costs. 
L.  "Participating municipality" means a municipality that has complied with the 
requirements of subsection 9 and is eligible for reimbursement of certain costs in 
accordance with subsection 10. 
M.  "Post-consumer recycled material" means new material produced using material 
resulting from the recovery, separation, collection and reprocessing of material that 
would otherwise be disposed of or processed as waste and that was originally sold for 
consumption.  "Post-consumer recycled material" does not include post-industrial 
material or pre-consumer material.
N.  "Producer" means a person that:
(1) Has legal ownership of the brand of a product sold, offered for sale or 
distributed for sale in or into the State contained, protected, delivered, presented or 
distributed in or using packaging material; or
(2) Imports into the State for sale, offer for sale or distribution for sale in or into 
the State a product contained, protected, delivered, presented or distributed in or 
using packaging material that is branded by a person that meets the requirements 
of subparagraph (1) and has no physical presence in the United States.
"Producer" includes a low-volume producer and a franchisor of a franchise located in 
the State, but does not include the franchisee operating that franchise.  "Producer" does 
not include a nonprofit organization exempt from taxation under the United States 
Internal Revenue Code, Section 501(c)(3).
O.  "Proprietary information" has the same meaning as in section 1771, subsection 6-A.
P.  "Readily recyclable" means, with respect to a type of packaging material, that the 
type of packaging material, as determined by the department by rule:
(1)  Can be sorted by entities that process recyclable material generated in the State; 
and
(2)  Has a consistent market for purchase.  For the purposes of this subparagraph, 
"consistent market for purchase" means, with respect to a type of packaging 
material, that entities processing recyclable material are willing to purchase full 
bales of that type of fully sorted packaging material in quantities equal to or in 
excess of the supply of that fully sorted packaging material.
"Readily recyclable" does not include types of packaging material that entities that 
process recyclable material generally accept only in small quantities or that such 
entities typically sort out from other recyclable material during processing.
Q.  "Recycling" has the same meaning as in section 1771, subsection 7.
R.  "Reuse" has the same meaning as in section 1771, subsection 8.
S.  "Similar municipalities" means 2 or more municipalities that, as determined by 
department rule in accordance with rules adopted pursuant to subsection 13, paragraph 
A, subparagraph (3), have similar population sizes, geographic locations, proximity to 
resources and regional recycling capacity and other factors determined by the 
department to affect the costs associated with the collection, processing, transportation 
and recycling or disposal of packaging material by municipalities. 
T.  "Toxicity" means, with respect to packaging material, the presence in packaging 
material or the use in the manufacturing, recycling or disposal of packaging material 
of intentionally introduced metals or chemicals regulated pursuant to Title 32, chapter 
26-A; food contact chemicals of high concern or priority food contact chemicals 
regulated pursuant to Title 32, chapter 26-B; or chemicals of concern, chemicals of 
high concern or priority chemicals identified pursuant to chapter 16-D.
2.  Producer exemptions.  Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the 
contrary, a producer is exempt from the requirements and prohibitions of this section in 
any calendar year in which:
A.  The producer realized less than $2,000,000 in total gross revenue during the prior 
calendar year;
B.  The producer sold, offered for sale or distributed for sale in or into the State during 
the prior calendar year products contained, protected, delivered, presented or 
distributed in or using less than one ton of packaging material in total; or
C.  The producer realized more than 50% of its total gross revenue in the prior calendar 
year from the sale of goods it acquired through insurance salvages, closeouts, 
bankruptcies and liquidations. 
A producer claiming an exemption under this subsection shall provide to the department 
sufficient information to demonstrate that the producer meets the requirements for an 
exemption under this subsection within 30 days of receiving a request from the department 
to provide such information.
3.  Selection of stewardship organization; contract.  Consistent with the 
requirements of this subsection, the department shall select and enter into a contract with a 
packaging stewardship organization to operate the packaging stewardship program under 
this section.
A.  No later than May 1, 2022, and consistent with applicable competitive bidding 
requirements under state purchasing laws, the department shall issue a request for 
proposals for the operation of the packaging stewardship program by a packaging 
stewardship organization. The proposals must be required to cover a 10-year operation 
of the packaging stewardship program by the successful bidder and must be required 
to include, at a minimum:
(1)  A description of how the bidder will administer the stewardship organization, 
including:
(a)  The mechanism or process, to be developed with input from producers, by 
which a producer may request and receive assistance from the stewardship 
organization in the reporting of required information and regarding methods 
by which the packaging material used by a producer may be modified so as to 
reduce the producer's payment obligations under subsection 6; and
(b)  The mechanism or process, to be developed with input from municipalities, 
by which a participating municipality may request and receive assistance from 
the stewardship organization in the reporting of required information and 
regarding methods by which a municipality's recycling program may be 
modified so as to increase access to and participation in the program; 
(2)  A description of how the bidder intends to solicit and consider input from 
interested persons, including, but not limited to, producers, municipalities, 
environmental organizations and waste management and recycling establishments, 
regarding the bidder's operation of the packaging stewardship program, if selected;
(3)  A description of how the bidder intends to establish and manage the packaging 
stewardship fund consistent with subsection 12, including, but not limited to: the 
staffing the bidder intends to use for management of the fund; a plan to ensure 
equity of access to the fund for financially challenged or otherwise disadvantaged 
municipalities or communities; a plan for providing technical support to producers 
and municipalities regarding program requirements; and a plan for administering 
payments to and reimbursements from the fund and the financial mechanisms, 
including investment types, if any, the bidder intends to use in managing the fund;
(4)  A proposed financial assurance plan that ensures all funds held in the 
packaging stewardship fund are immediately and exclusively forfeited and 
transferred to or otherwise made immediately available to the department to 
support waste diversion, reuse or recycling programs when the stewardship 
organization's contract with the department is terminated by the department or 
expires, unless the stewardship organization enters into a new contract with the 
department in accordance with paragraph B prior to the expiration of the 
stewardship organization's existing contract;
(5)  A proposed budget outlining the anticipated costs of operating the packaging 
stewardship program, including identification of any start-up costs that will not be 
ongoing and a description of the method by which the bidder intends to determine 
and collect producer payments during the initial start-up period of program 
operation to fund the program's operational costs during that initial start-up period 
and to reimburse or require additional payments by those producers subsequent to 
that initial start-up period based on producer reporting of the actual amount of 
packaging material sold, offered for sale or distributed for sale in or into the State 
by each producer during that initial start-up period. The proposed budget under this 
subparagraph may overestimate the cost of operating the program during its initial 
start-up period of operation but must describe the method and basis for any 
overestimate;
(6)  A certification that the bidder will not share, except with the department, 
information provided to the bidder by a producer that is proprietary information 
and that is identified by the producer as proprietary information. The certification 
must include a description of the methods by which the bidder intends to ensure 
the confidentiality of such information;
(7)  A description of how the bidder will conduct representative audits of recyclable 
material processed and sold by facilities that process recyclable material generated 
in the State, which must include, but is not limited to:
(a)  A description of the sampling techniques to be used in those audits, which 
must include random sampling;
(b)  A description of how those audits, at a minimum, will be designed to solicit 
information regarding the extent to which recyclable material processed and 
sold by those facilities reflects the tons of each type of packaging material 
collected in the State for recycling and the tons of each type of packaging 
material recycled in the State, as well as the ultimate destination of and 
intended use for that recycled material;
(c)  A description of how those audits will be designed so that information 
obtained through the audit of one facility will not be used to infer information 
about a different facility that uses different processing equipment, different 
sorting processes or different staffing levels to conduct such processing; and 
(d)  A description of the process by which a facility will be allowed to request 
and receive an audit if it can credibly demonstrate that an audit result being 
applied to its material output is not representative of its current operations;
(8)  A description of how the bidder will conduct representative audits of municipal 
solid waste disposed of in the State and representative audits of waste littered in 
the State, which must include, but is not limited to:
(a)  A description of the sampling techniques to be used in those audits, which 
must include random sampling;
(b)  For waste disposal audits, a description of the types and weight of 
packaging material in the waste stream and the percentage by weight and 
volume of the waste stream that is composed of packaging material; and 
(c)  For litter audits, a description of packaging material type by weight in the 
sampled litter, identification of the producer or producers of the packaging 
material in the sampled litter, if identifiable, and an evaluation based on those 
audits regarding the areas of the State in which litter accumulation is greatest; 
and 
(9)  Any additional information required by the department.
B.  In accordance with applicable requirements of state purchasing laws, the 
department shall enter into a contract with a bidder that has submitted a proposal in 
accordance with the requirements of this subsection, the term of which must cover 10 
years of operation of the packaging stewardship program by the stewardship 
organization. The contract must, at a minimum, include provisions to ensure that the 
stewardship organization will operate the program in accordance with all applicable 
statutory requirements and the rules adopted by the department under this section. 
If, at the close of the competitive bidding process under this subsection, the department 
determines that no bidder has submitted, in accordance with this subsection, a proposal that 
meets the requirements of this subsection, the department may reopen a new competitive 
bidding process under this subsection.
4. Prohibition; producer compliance information.  This subsection governs the sale 
or distribution in the State of products with packaging not in compliance with the 
requirements of this section and sets forth requirements for the collection and publication 
of compliance information.
A.  Beginning one calendar year following the effective date of the contract entered 
into by the department and the stewardship organization pursuant to subsection 3:
(1)  A producer may not sell, offer for sale or distribute for sale in or into the State 
a product contained, protected, delivered, presented or distributed in or using 
packaging material for which the producer has not complied with all applicable 
requirements of this section; and
(2)  A retailer may not sell, offer for sale or distribute for sale in or into the State a 
product contained, protected, delivered, presented or distributed in or using 
packaging material if, based on the information made available by the department 
pursuant to paragraph C, the product is contained, protected, delivered, presented 
or distributed in or using packaging material for which its producer has not 
complied with all applicable requirements of this section.
B.  At the department's request, the stewardship organization shall provide to the 
department a list of producers that are participating in the program and are compliant 
with the program's requirements and, if known to the stewardship organization, a list 
of producers that are not participating in the program and are not compliant with the 
program's requirements. 
C.  Based on information provided to the department under paragraph B and any other 
information considered by the department, the department shall make available on its 
publicly accessible website a regularly updated list of producers that the department 
has determined are compliant with all applicable requirements of this section and a list 
of producers and, where applicable, specific products for which the department has 
determined the producer has not complied with all applicable requirements of this 
section.  The department shall conduct outreach to retailers to provide notification of 
the information made available under this paragraph and any changes to that 
information.
5.  Annual reporting by stewardship organization.  Beginning one calendar year 
following the effective date of the contract entered into by the department and the 
stewardship organization pursuant to subsection 3, and annually thereafter, the stewardship 
organization shall submit to the department and make available on its publicly accessible 
website a report that includes, at a minimum, the following information:
A.  Contact information for the stewardship organization;
B.  A list of participating producers and the brands of products associated with those 
producers;
C.  The total weight of each type of packaging material sold, offered for sale or 
distributed for sale in or into the State by each participating producer as reported in 
accordance with subsection 7;
D.  As applicable, the total weight of each type of packaging material collected and 
managed by each participating producer through alternative collection programs 
approved by the department under subsection 8;
E.  A complete accounting of payments made to and by the stewardship organization 
during the prior calendar year, including information on how the stewardship 
organization determined the amount of such payments in accordance with subsections 
and 10 and the rules adopted under subsection 13, paragraph A, subparagraphs (1) 
and (4);
F.  A list of producers that are not participating in the program that are required to 
participate in the program and any product-specific noncompliance, if known by the 
stewardship organization;
G.  A description of education and infrastructure investments made by the stewardship 
organization in prior calendar years and an evaluation of how those investments were 
designed to increase access to recycling in the State and to encourage the reuse of 
packaging material; 
H.  A description of the results of the representative audits required pursuant to 
subsection 3, paragraph A, subparagraphs (7) and (8);
I.  An assessment of the progress made toward the achievement of any program goals 
required by the department by rule pursuant to subsection 13, paragraph D;  
J.  An assessment of whether the payment schedule for producer payments adopted by 
the department by rule pursuant to subsection 13, paragraph A, subparagraph (1) has 
been successful in incentivizing improvements to the design of packaging material as 
encouraged through the allowance of payment adjustments in accordance with 
subsection 6, paragraph D;
K.  Any proposals for changes to the packaging stewardship program or investments 
in education and infrastructure designed to reduce the amount of packaging material 
used, increase access to recycling, increase the recycling of or recyclability of 
packaging material, reduce program costs or otherwise increase program efficiency, 
which may include an analysis of best practices for municipal recycling programs;
L.  The results of a 3rd-party financial audit of the stewardship organization; and 
M.  Any additional information required by the department.
6.  Producer payments.  In accordance with the provisions of this subsection and the 
rules adopted by the department, no later than 180 days after the effective date of the 
contract entered into by the department and the stewardship organization pursuant to 
subsection 3, and annually thereafter, a producer shall make payments to the stewardship 
organization to be deposited into the packaging stewardship fund under subsection 12 
based on the net weight of each type of packaging material sold, offered for sale or 
distributed for sale in or into the State by the producer and not managed by the producer 
under an approved alternative collection program.  The department shall adopt rules setting 
forth the manner in which such payments must be calculated, which must include, but are 
not limited to, provisions that:
A.  Require the amount of a producer's payment to include that producer's share of the 
program's operational costs as set forth in the proposed budget under subsection 3, 
paragraph A, subparagraph (5) and that producer's share of the administrative and 
enforcement costs incurred by the department pursuant to this section;
B.  Require the amount of a producer's payment to reflect the per-ton costs associated 
with the collection, processing, transportation and recycling or disposal of the 
producer's packaging material by municipalities and the costs associated with 
increasing access to recycling of that packaging material type through investments in 
infrastructure and education under subsection 11;
C.  Allow a low-volume producer to elect to pay a flat fee in lieu of a material-specific 
producer payment calculated pursuant to this subsection, provided that a producer 
seeking to pay a flat fee as a low-volume producer pursuant to this paragraph must 
submit to the department the information necessary to demonstrate that the producer 
meets the definition of "low-volume producer."  The department may adopt rules that 
relieve a producer from paying fees under this subsection with respect to packaging 
material acquired by the producer through insurance salvage, closeout, bankruptcy or 
liquidation; and
D.  Through an adjustment of a producer's payment responsibility calculated in 
accordance with this subsection and subsection 13, paragraph A, subparagraph (1), 
encourage packaging material waste reduction; the reuse of packaging material; the use 
of readily recyclable materials in packaging material; the reduction of the toxicity of 
packaging material; the use of post-consumer recycled material in packaging material 
provided that such use does not increase the toxicity of packaging material; the 
reduction of litter from packaging material; the use of single-material packaging that 
includes prominent and easily understandable recycling or disposal instructions for 
consumers or other design characteristics intended to reduce consumer confusion 
regarding recyclability and to reduce recycling contamination; any other incentives 
designed to support the management of packaging material consistent with the solid 
waste management hierarchy in section 2101.
Unless otherwise approved by the stewardship organization, a producer, other than a low-
volume producer, that makes a payment required pursuant to this subsection shall submit 
the payment to the stewardship organization at the same time that it submits its annual 
report to the stewardship organization required pursuant to subsection 7. 
7.  Annual reporting by producers.  Beginning no later than 180 days after the 
effective date of the contract entered into by the department and the stewardship 
organization pursuant to subsection 3, and annually thereafter, a producer shall report to 
the stewardship organization the total weight of each type of packaging material sold, 
offered for sale or distributed for sale in or into the State by the producer in the prior 
calendar year.  
A.  The report must include a description of the methods used by the producer in 
determining the amounts reported for each type of packaging material, a description of 
the characteristics of each type of packaging material reported that are relevant to the 
payment adjustment criteria adopted by the department by rule pursuant to subsection 
6, paragraph D and a list of all of the producer's brands associated with each type of 
packaging material. 
B.  A low-volume producer that elects to pay a flat fee determined by the department 
by rule adopted pursuant to subsection 6, paragraph C is not required to submit an 
annual report to the stewardship organization under this subsection.
C.  The department shall adopt rules that authorize a producer that is unable to fully 
satisfy the reporting requirements of this subsection due to a failure to obtain sufficient 
information regarding the characteristics of the packaging material the producer sells, 
offers for sale or distributes for sale in or into the State to alternatively report to the 
stewardship organization an estimate of the total weight of the producer's packaging 
material based on unit quantities, provided that such alternative reporting includes a 
description of the methods used by the producer to calculate such estimates.
8.  Alternative collection programs.  In accordance with the requirements of this 
subsection and the rules adopted by the department, a producer or group of producers may 
develop and operate an alternative collection program to collect and manage a type or types 
of packaging material sold, offered for sale or distributed for sale in or into the State by the 
producer or producers. A producer that manages a type of packaging material under an 
approved alternative collection program through reuse, recycling and, where approved by 
the department, management of that packaging material through incineration may wholly 
or partially offset the producer's payment obligations under the packaging stewardship 
program with respect to that same type of packaging material only. 
A.  Beginning on the effective date of the contract entered into by the department and 
the stewardship organization pursuant to subsection 3, a producer or group of producers 
seeking to implement an alternative collection program shall submit a proposal for the 
establishment of that program to the department for approval. The department shall 
approve or deny the proposal within 120 days of receipt and shall provide an 
opportunity for public review and comment on the proposal prior to its approval or 
denial. The department may approve an alternative collection program for a term of 5 
years and, at the expiration of such term, the producer or group of producers operating 
the program may submit an updated proposal to the department for approval.
B.  In determining whether to approve a proposed alternative collection program, the 
department shall consider: 
(1)  Whether the alternative collection program will provide year-round, 
convenient, free, statewide collection opportunities for the types of packaging 
material to be collected under that program;
(2)  To what extent the alternative collection program intends to manage those 
types of packaging material to be collected under the program through reuse for an 
original purpose, through recycling or through disposal at an incineration facility. 
The department may not approve an alternative collection program that proposes 
management of a packaging material type through disposal at an incineration 
facility unless that packaging material is not readily recyclable and the program 
proposes a process to begin reuse or recycling of that type of packaging material 
within a period of 3 years or less;
(3)  Whether the education and outreach strategies proposed for the alternative 
collection program can be expected to significantly increase consumer awareness 
of the program throughout the State;
(4)  How the alternative collection program intends to accurately measure the 
weight of each packaging material type collected, reused, recycled, disposed of at 
an incineration facility or otherwise managed under the program; and
(5)  To what extent approval of the alternative collection program may 
disproportionately impact any community in the State. 
C.  A proposed modification to an approved alternative collection program must be 
submitted to the department for written approval.  The department shall approve or 
deny a proposed modification based on application of the criteria described in 
paragraph B.  The department may waive payment of any fees associated with review 
and approval of a proposed modification to an approved alternative collection program 
if the review of the proposed modification does not require significant department staff 
time.
D.  Beginning no later than 180 days after the effective date of the contract entered into 
by the department and the stewardship organization pursuant to subsection 3, and 
annually thereafter, a producer or producers managing an approved alternative 
collection program shall report annually to the stewardship organization and to the 
department the following information:
(1)  The total tons of each type of packaging material collected, reused, recycled, 
disposed of at an incineration facility or otherwise managed under the alternative 
collection program in the prior calendar year, including a breakdown of the total 
tons of each type of material to be credited to each producer participating in the 
alternative collection program;
(2)  A list of the collection opportunities in the State for the types of packaging 
material managed under the alternative collection program that were made 
available in the prior calendar year;
(3)  A description of the education and outreach strategies implemented by the 
alternative collection program in the prior calendar year to increase consumer 
awareness of the program throughout the State; and
(4)  Any additional information required by the department.
E.  If the department determines that an approved alternative collection program is not 
operating in a manner consistent with the proposal approved under this subsection or 
the provisions of this subsection, the department shall provide written notice to the 
producer or producers operating the alternative collection program regarding the nature 
of the deficiency, the actions necessary to correct the deficiency and the time by which 
such actions must be implemented.  If the department determines that the producer or 
group of producers have failed to implement the actions described in the written notice 
within the required time frame, the department shall notify the producers or group of 
producers as well as the stewardship organization in writing that the producer or group 
of producers are ineligible to offset payment obligations under the packaging 
stewardship program based on packaging material managed under the alternative 
collection program.
9.  Requirements for participating municipalities.  In accordance with the provisions 
of this subsection and the rules adopted by the department, a municipality may elect to, but 
is not required to, participate in the packaging stewardship program under this section. To 
be eligible for reimbursement of costs under subsection 10 as a participating municipality, 
a municipality must, at a minimum:
A.  Provide for the collection and recycling of packaging material that is generated in 
the municipality and is readily recyclable; and
B.  Annually report to the stewardship organization, on a form provided and approved 
by the department, all information necessary for the stewardship organization to 
determine the municipality's incurred costs associated with its collection, processing, 
transportation and recycling or disposal of recyclable material and of municipal solid 
waste.
Two or more municipalities, municipally owned solid waste processing facilities or quasi-
municipal entities that manage waste materials on behalf of a municipality may elect to 
jointly report to the stewardship organization as required by paragraph B and to jointly 
receive reimbursement payments pursuant to subsection 10 from the stewardship 
organization. 
10.  Municipal reimbursements.  In accordance with the rules adopted by the 
department pursuant to subsection 13, paragraph A, subparagraph (4), the stewardship 
organization shall annually disburse to participating municipalities from the packaging 
stewardship fund established under subsection 12 reimbursement payments for the median 
per-ton cost of managing packaging material that is readily recyclable, reimbursement 
payments for the median per-ton cost of managing packaging material that is not readily 
recyclable and per capita payments associated with packaging material disposed of by 
participating municipalities.  For the purposes of this subsection, the cost to a municipality 
of managing packaging material may include, but is not limited to, the costs associated with 
the collection of packaging material, the costs associated with the transportation of 
packaging material to a recycling establishment or disposal facility and the costs associated 
with the cleanup and abatement of packaging material litter.
A.  In accordance with rules adopted by the department, the stewardship organization 
shall determine the amount of payments to participating municipalities under this 
subsection based on the following information:
(1)  Information provided by participating municipalities to the stewardship 
organization in accordance with subsection 9, paragraph B regarding the costs 
incurred by those municipalities in recycling packaging material that is readily 
recyclable and packaging material that is not readily recyclable and the tons of 
municipal solid waste disposed of in those municipalities, including, but not 
limited to, waste disposed of in public spaces and schools, which may include 
packaging material collected for recycling or disposal in public spaces and schools;
(2)  Information provided to the department by recycling establishments pursuant 
to section 2145 and aggregated and made available by the department to the 
stewardship organization, including the tons of recyclable material received by 
each recycling establishment from each municipality and the tons of processed 
recyclable material sold by each recycling establishment;
(3)  Information provided to the department by recycling establishments not 
located in the State or by participating municipalities and made available by the 
department to the stewardship organization regarding the tons of recyclable 
material brokered by those municipalities to those recycling establishments and 
processed and sold by those recycling establishments;
(4)  Information obtained by the stewardship organization through the audits of 
facilities that process recyclable material generated in the State as required by 
subsection 3, paragraph A, subparagraph (7); and
(5)  Any other information specified by the department by rule.
B.  In accordance with procedures and requirements adopted by the department by rule, 
the stewardship organization shall use the information described in paragraph A to 
determine the total tons of each packaging material type recycled by all municipalities 
at each recycling establishment and the percentage of those total tons attributable to 
each participating municipality. In the case of 2 or more municipalities that jointly send 
recyclable material to a recycling establishment, the stewardship organization shall 
assume that an equal amount of the jointly sent material is attributable to each resident 
of each municipality unless those municipalities by agreement identify an unequal per 
capita division of that jointly sent material for the purposes of this subsection.
11.  Investments in education and infrastructure.  In accordance with the provisions 
of this subsection and as approved by the department, the stewardship organization shall 
biannually provide for the expenditure of funds within the packaging stewardship fund 
established under subsection 12 that are designed to improve recycling education and 
infrastructure in the State.
A.  The total amount of investments in education and infrastructure made by the 
stewardship organization pursuant to this subsection must be directly proportional to 
the total amount of payments received from all producers for all packaging material 
that is not readily recyclable and is not actually recycled.
B.  Biannually, the department shall solicit proposals for investments in education and 
infrastructure.  A municipality or group of municipalities, a business or a recycling 
establishment may apply to the department to receive funding from the stewardship 
organization for a proposed investment in education and infrastructure.  The 
department shall review investment proposals received pursuant to this paragraph and 
shall solicit input on those proposals from producers, participating municipalities and 
recycling establishments.  
C.  After determining the total amount of funds required for investment in accordance 
with paragraph A and considering the input received pursuant to paragraph B, the 
department shall direct the stewardship organization to award funds to applicants that 
submitted proposals pursuant to paragraph B.  The department shall ensure that 
preference for funding is given to proposals that support the State's solid waste 
management hierarchy under section 2101, promote a circular economy for packaging 
material types for which producers were required to make payments under subsection 
6, increase the recyclability of packaging material that is not readily recyclable, 
increase access to recycling infrastructure in the State, improve consumer education in 
the State regarding recycling and recyclability and support recycling and education 
efforts in financially challenged or otherwise disadvantaged municipalities or 
communities and in other municipalities or communities that have received minimal or 
no prior funding pursuant to this paragraph.
12.  Packaging stewardship fund; authorized expenditures.  In accordance with the 
provisions of this subsection and the rules adopted by the department, the stewardship 
organization shall establish and manage a packaging stewardship fund. The stewardship 
organization shall deposit into the fund all payments received from producers in accordance 
with subsection 6 and shall expend those funds for the following purposes: 
A.  To reimburse participating municipalities in accordance with applicable provisions 
in subsections 9, 10 and 13 and the applicable rules adopted by the department pursuant 
to those subsections;
B.  To cover the operating costs of the stewardship organization, which must be 
annually verified by a 3rd-party financial audit paid for by the stewardship organization 
as required by subsection 5, paragraph L;
C.  To pay to the department all applicable fees required under subsection 13, paragraph 
B, including reimbursement of any costs incurred by the department in adopting rules 
and in administering and enforcing this section prior to the effective date of the contract 
entered into by the department and the stewardship organization pursuant to subsection 
3; and
D.  To support investments in education and infrastructure made in accordance with 
subsection 11.  
13.  Administration and enforcement; rulemaking; fees; department report.  The 
department shall administer and enforce this section and shall adopt rules as necessary to 
implement, administer and enforce this section.  Rules adopted pursuant to this section are 
routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A. 
A.  Rules adopted by the department pursuant to this section must include, at a 
minimum:
(1)  A process for annually determining a schedule of producer payments required 
under subsection 6, which must include a flat fee option for low-volume producers 
pursuant to subsection 6, paragraph C.
(a)  The payment schedule adopted under this subparagraph must be designed 
to ensure that the total amount of payments collected each year is equal to or 
in excess of the anticipated amount of expenditures required pursuant to 
subsection 12, paragraphs A to D.
(b)  The payment schedule adopted under this subparagraph must provide for 
a flat fee option to be assessed on a tiered basis such that a low-volume 
producer is required to pay no more than $500 per ton of packaging material 
and no more than $7,500 in total annual fees to the stewardship organization 
under this section;
(2)  A process for determining on an annual basis those types of packaging material 
that are readily recyclable, which must involve consultation with the stewardship 
organization and recycling establishments and must include a transitional period 
between the time that a type of packaging material is determined to be readily 
recyclable or to not be readily recyclable and the time that such determinations will 
be effective for the purposes of calculating producer payments and municipal 
reimbursements in accordance with this section;
(3)  A process for determining on an annual basis which municipalities are similar 
municipalities, which must involve consultation with participating municipalities;
(4)  For purposes of determining participating municipality reimbursements under 
subsection 10, a process for determining the median per-ton cost of managing 
packaging material that is readily recyclable, the median per-ton cost of managing 
packaging material that is not readily recyclable and the costs associated with the 
disposal of packaging material by participating municipalities, which must involve 
consultation with participating municipalities; and
(5)  Requirements for the assessment of program performance by the stewardship 
organization, including the setting of program goals used to inform the producer 
payment schedule determined pursuant to subparagraph (1) and the investments in 
infrastructure and education made pursuant to subsection 11, which must include, 
but are not limited to, program goals supporting an overall reduction by producers 
in the amount of packaging material used, an increased reuse by producers of 
packaging material and an increased amount of post-consumer recycled content in 
packaging material used by producers; recycling access and collection rate goals 
for municipalities; overall program and material-specific recycling rate goals; 
packaging material litter reduction goals; and any other goals required by the 
department.
To the maximum extent practicable, material-specific recycling rate goals adopted 
pursuant to this subparagraph must reflect the following recycling standards:
(a)  Sorted glass is considered recycled if it does not require further processing 
before entering a glass furnace or before use in the production of filtration 
media, abrasive materials, glass fiber insulation or construction materials;
(b)  Sorted metal is considered recycled if it does not require further processing 
before entering a smelter or furnace;
(c)  Sorted paper is considered recycled if it does not require further processing 
before entering a pulping operation; and
(d)  Plastic separated by polymer is considered recycled if it does not require 
further processing before entering a pelletization, extrusion or molding 
operation or, in the case of plastic flakes, does not require further processing 
before use in a final product.
B.  At the time that the stewardship organization submits its annual report to the 
department pursuant to subsection 5, the stewardship organization shall pay to the 
department a reasonable annual fee established by the department, not to exceed 
$300,000, to cover the department's actual costs for review of the stewardship 
organization's annual report and the department's costs in the prior fiscal year for its 
oversight, administration and enforcement of the packaging stewardship program.  In 
accordance with subsection 12, paragraph C, the annual fee required under this 
paragraph may include reimbursement of any costs incurred by the department in 
adopting rules and in administering and enforcing this section prior to the effective date 
of the contract entered into by the department and the stewardship organization 
pursuant to subsection 3.
C.  A producer or group of producers, when submitting a proposal to the department 
for the establishment of an alternative collection program or submitting a proposal to 
the department for modifications to an approved alternative collection program under 
subsection 8, shall pay to the department a reasonable fee established by the department 
to cover the department's actual costs for review of the proposal or proposed 
modifications.  A producer or group of producers operating an approved alternative 
collection program under subsection 8 shall pay to the department a reasonable annual 
fee established by the department, not to exceed $10,000 per participating producer, to 
cover the department's actual costs for review of the producer's or group's annual report 
and the department's costs for the oversight, administration and enforcement of the 
alternative collection program, which may be waived by the department if those 
activities by the department do not require significant department staff time.
D.  Beginning February 15, 2023, and annually thereafter, the department shall submit 
a report to the joint committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over environment 
and natural resources matters regarding the packaging stewardship program and 
alternative collection programs implemented pursuant to this section.  
(1) The report must include, at a minimum, data on the amount and type of 
packaging material associated with products sold, offered for sale or distributed for 
sale in or into the State; data regarding how that packaging material was managed; 
and any recommendations for amendments to the programs implemented under 
this section, including, but not limited to, the establishment of new program goals 
or the imposition of a prohibition on the sale, offer for sale or distribution for sale 
in or into the State of products associated with packaging material that the 
department has determined is nonessential, is contaminating collected recyclable 
material, is a common source of litter or exhibits toxicity, particularly if that 
toxicity is demonstrated to have a disproportionate impact on any community in 
the State.
(2)  Beginning February 15, 2027, and every 5 years thereafter, the report under 
this paragraph must describe the results of a comprehensive review of the rules 
adopted by the department pursuant to this section and shall include 
recommendations by the department for any legislative changes to this section 
determined necessary as a result of that review, including, but not limited to, 
changes to the flat fee that may be paid by a low-volume producer pursuant to 
subsection 6, paragraph C, as well as a description of any changes to those rules 
that the department intends to propose in a future rulemaking.
(3)  The report required under this paragraph may be included in the report required 
pursuant to section 1772, subsection 1.
14.  Antitrust exclusions.   A producer or stewardship organization, including a 
producer's or stewardship organization's officers, members, employees and agents that 
organize a packaging stewardship program or an alternative collection program under this 
section, is immune from liability for the producer's or stewardship organization's conduct 
under state laws relating to antitrust, restraint of trade, unfair trade practices and other 
regulation of trade or commerce only to the extent necessary to plan and implement the 
producer's or stewardship organization's packaging stewardship program or alternative 
collection program consistent with the provisions of this section.
15.  Proprietary information.  Proprietary information submitted to the department 
pursuant to the requirements of this section or the rules adopted pursuant to this section 
that is identified by the submittor as proprietary information is confidential and must be 
handled by the department in the same manner as confidential information is handled under 
section 1310-B.
Sec. 2.  Department of Environmental Protection; stewardship program 
for packaging; routine technical rulemaking.  On or before May 1, 2022, the 
Department of Environmental Protection shall initiate routine technical rulemaking 
consistent with the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A to adopt 
rules necessary for the implementation, administration and enforcement of a stewardship 
program for packaging pursuant to Title 38, section 2146.  The rulemaking required by this 
section must be done within existing resources and, notwithstanding any provision of law 
to the contrary, the department may use funds within the Maine Solid Waste Management 
Fund established pursuant to Title 38, section 2201 to support its activities required by this 
section except that, if the department uses funds within the Maine Solid Waste Management 
Fund as authorized under this section, the department shall deposit back into that fund the 
same amount of funds withdrawn once reimbursed pursuant to Title 38, section 2146, 
subsection 13, paragraph B.
SUMMARY
This bill establishes a stewardship program in the State for packaging material, to be 
operated by a stewardship organization contracted by the Department of Environmental 
Protection following a competitive bidding process.  Under the program, producers of 
products contained, protected, delivered, presented or distributed in or using packaging 
material pay into a fund based on the amount by weight of packaging material associated 
with the products they sell, offer for sale or distribute for sale in or into the State.  Producers 
can wholly or partially offset this payment obligation by implementing independent 
programs to recycle packaging of the same material type for which they have a payment 
obligation and can further reduce their payment obligation by reducing the amount of 
packaging associated with the products they sell, offer for sale or distribute for sale in or 
into the State or by meeting other program incentives.
Producer payments received by the stewardship organization are used to reimburse 
eligible municipalities for certain recycling and waste management costs.  To be eligible 
for such reimbursements, a municipality must share with the stewardship organization 
certain data regarding its recycling and waste management costs and must provide for the 
collection and recycling of packaging material generated in the municipality that is 
determined to be readily recyclable.  In addition to the payment of municipal 
reimbursements, the stewardship organization is authorized to use producer payments to 
cover the operational costs for the program, to pay department fees and to make 
investments in education and infrastructure aimed at reducing packaging waste and 
improving recycling outcomes in the State.