An Act To Protect Certain Essential Workers from Infectious Disease
Maine Legislature, Session 130, LD 1436
Committee: Labor and Housing
Sponsors: O'CONNELL

Legislative Document
No. 1436
H.P. 1052
House of Representatives, April 12, 2021
An Act To Protect Certain Essential Workers from Infectious 
Disease
Received by the Clerk of the House on April 8, 2021.  Referred to the Committee on Labor 
and Housing pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed pursuant to Joint Rule 401.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative O'CONNELL of Brewer.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  26 MRSA c. 7, sub-c. 8-A is enacted to read:
SUBCHAPTER 8-A
PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT PRACTICES
§865.  Personal protective equipment
This section governs the handling of personal protective equipment by employers of 
covered employees.
1.  Definitions.  As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the 
following terms have the following meanings.
A.  "Covered employee" means:
(1)  A health care worker who provides direct patient care, a person who prepares 
food for patients or a member of the administrative staff in a hospital, sanatorium, 
convalescent home, rest home, nursing home, ambulatory surgical facility or other 
institution for the hospitalization or nursing care of human beings that is governed 
by Title 22, section 1811; 
(2)  A person who is in direct contact with persons being held in a correctional 
facility, as defined in Title 34-A, section 1001, subsection 6, or a county or 
municipal jail, holding facility, short-term detention area, secure detention facility, 
temporary holding resource or other facility subject to standards established under 
Title 34-A, section 1208 or 1208-A; 
(3)  A firefighter, as defined in section 809, subsection 1, paragraph A-1; and
(4)  An emergency medical services person, as defined in section 809, subsection 
1, paragraph A-2. 
B. "Employer" means a private or public employer, including the State and any political 
subdivision of the State, that employs one or more covered employees.
C. "Personal protective equipment" means protective gloves and other equipment and 
devices necessary to comply with rules relating to personal protective equipment 
adopted under section 565. 
2.  Supply.  An employer shall supply personal protective equipment to covered 
employees and shall ensure these employees use the personal protective equipment in 
accordance with rules relating to personal protective equipment adopted under section 565.
3.  Stockpiling.  Beginning November 1, 2021, an employer shall:
A.  In accordance with rules adopted under this section, maintain a stockpile of the 
following equipment in an amount equal to 3 months of normal use by covered 
employees:
(1)  N95 filtering facepiece respirators;
(2)  Powered air-purifying respirators with high-efficiency particulate air filters;
(3)  Elastomeric air-purifying respirators and appropriate particulate filters or 
cartridges;
(4)  Surgical masks;
(5)  Isolation gowns;
(6)  Eye protection; and
(7)  Shoe coverings;
B.  Ensure that single-use equipment in the stockpile under paragraph A is unexpired 
and not previously worn or used; 
C.  Establish and implement effective written procedures for periodically determining 
the quantity and types of equipment normally used by covered employees; and
D. Provide an inventory of the stockpile under paragraph A and a copy of the written 
procedures required pursuant to paragraph C to the Board of Occupational Safety and 
Health upon request.
If an employer's covered employees work in a facility or other setting controlled by another 
employer subject to this subsection, the employer that controls that facility or other setting 
is responsible for meeting the requirements of this subsection for all covered employees 
who work in that facility or setting.
4.  Rules.  The Department of Labor shall adopt rules necessary to implement this 
section.  Rules adopted under this section are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, 
chapter 375, subchapter 2-A.
5.  Penalty.  The following penalties apply to violations of this section.
A.  An employer that willfully or repeatedly violates any requirement of this section or 
rule adopted under this section may be assessed a civil penalty of not more than $1,000 
for each day during which the violation continues.  
B.  An employer that violates subsection 3, paragraph A may be assessed an 
administrative penalty by the Department of Labor of up to $25,000 for each violation, 
unless the department determines that the employer could not meet the requirement 
due to factors beyond the employer's control.   Factors beyond the employer's control 
may include, but are not limited to, a failure of a manufacturer or distributor to fulfill 
an order of equipment, damage by a 3rd party to equipment or theft of equipment.  If 
the department determines that there are factors beyond the employer's control, an 
administrative penalty may nevertheless be imposed on the employer for failure to meet 
the requirements of paragraph A with respect to supplies to which those factors do not 
apply.
Sec. 2.  Reporting.  On or before January 15, 2022, an employer, as defined in the 
Maine Revised Statutes, Title 26, section 865, shall determine its highest 7-day consecutive 
daily average consumption of personal protective equipment governed by Title 26, section 
during the 2021 calendar year and shall provide this information to the Department of 
Labor upon request.
SUMMARY
This bill requires public and private employers that employ persons who provide direct, 
in-person services in medical settings or in correctional institutions or that employ 
firefighters or emergency medical services persons, collectively referred to in this bill as 
"covered employees," to take certain actions with respect to providing personal protective 
equipment for those covered employees.
The bill requires employers to supply personal protective equipment to covered 
employees and to ensure these employees use the personal protective equipment in 
accordance with occupational and safety rules of the Department of Labor.
It also requires employers to maintain a stockpile of the following specific personal 
protective equipment equal to 3 months of normal use by covered employees: N95 filtering 
facepiece respirators, powered air-purifying respirators with high-efficiency particulate air 
filters, elastomeric air-purifying respirators and appropriate particulate filters or cartridges, 
surgical masks, isolation gowns, eye protection and shoe coverings.  If an employer's 
covered employees work in a facility or other setting controlled by another employer that 
must stockpile equipment for its own covered employees, the employer that controls that 
facility or other setting is responsible for meeting the stockpiling requirements for all 
covered employees who work in that facility or setting.  
The bill provides that, on or before January 15, 2022, an employer is required to 
determine its highest 7-day consecutive daily average consumption of personal protective 
equipment and to provide this information to the Department of Labor upon request. 
The bill provides for civil and administrative penalties for violations of the 
requirements of the bill.