An Act to Mitigate So-called Forever Chemicals in Decommissioned Schools by Establishing a Fund for Mitigation Projects
Maine Legislature, Session 131, LD 1553
Committee: State and Local Government
Sponsors: BRAKEY, BENNETT, LEE, LIBBY, SHAW
Amends: 30-A MRSA §6006-I

Legislative Document
No. 1553
S.P. 617
In Senate, April 10, 2023
An Act to Mitigate So-called Forever Chemicals in Decommissioned 
Schools by Establishing a Fund for Mitigation Projects
Reference to the Committee on State and Local Government suggested and ordered printed.
DAREK M. GRANT
Secretary of the Senate
Presented by Senator BRAKEY of Androscoggin.
Cosponsored by Senator: BENNETT of Oxford, Representatives: LEE of Auburn, LIBBY of 
Auburn, SHAW of Auburn.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  30-A MRSA §6006-I is enacted to read:
§6006-I.  Decommissioned Schools Contamination Mitigation Fund
1.  Fund established.  The Decommissioned Schools Contamination Mitigation Fund, 
referred to in this section as "the fund," is established in the custody of the bank.  
2.  Administration.  The bank shall administer and invest the fund. The fund must be 
established and held separate and apart from any other funds or money of the State or the 
bank and must be used and administered exclusively for the purposes authorized in this 
section. The fund consists of:  
A. Sums that may be appropriated by the Legislature or transferred to the fund by the 
Treasurer of State;
B. Principal and interest received from the repayment of loans made from the fund;
C. Capitalization grants and awards made to the State or an instrumentality of the State 
by the United States for any of the purposes for which the fund has been established. 
These amounts may be paid directly into the fund without appropriation by the State 
and the bank is designated as the recipient for the State of any such funds;
D. Interest earned from the investment of fund balances;
E. The proceeds of any bonds or notes issued by the State or the bank sold for the 
purpose of deposit in the fund;
F. Funds from school construction audit recoveries; and
G. Other funds and gifts in kind or cash from any public or private source received for 
use for any of the purposes for which the fund has been established and that the bank 
and the Department of Education may solicit from any 3rd parties such as foundations 
or corporations, including the use of tax credits as available to support activities 
authorized for the fund pursuant to subsection 3.
3.  Purposes.  The fund may be used:
A. To make loans to school administrative units for mitigating the contamination of 
decommissioned school buildings and land by polychlorinated biphenyl compounds 
and contaminants listed in the federal Toxic Substances Control Act, 15 United States 
Code, Chapter 53;
B. To guarantee or insure, directly or indirectly, the payment of notes or bonds issued 
or to be issued by a school administrative unit for the purpose of financing mitigation 
projects authorized under paragraph A;
C. To guarantee or insure, directly or indirectly, funds established by a school 
administrative unit for the purpose of financing mitigation projects authorized under 
paragraph A;
D. To deposit with a lending institution or with a trustee bank available fund balances 
to offset loan balances for school administrative units undertaking mitigation projects 
authorized by paragraph A;
E. To invest available fund balances and credit the net interest income on those 
balances to the fund;
F. To invest as a source of revenue or security for the payment of principal and interest 
on general or special obligations of the bank if the proceeds of the sale of the 
obligations have been deposited in the fund, or if the proceeds of the sale of the 
obligations are used for mitigation projects authorized in paragraph A, or as a source 
of revenue to subsidize the school administrative unit loan payment obligations; and
G. To pay the costs of the bank and the Department of Education associated with the 
administration of the fund and projects financed by the fund, except that no more than 
the lesser of 2% of the aggregate of the highest fund balances in any fiscal year and 4% 
of the combined value of any capitalization grants provided by the United States for 
deposit in the fund may be used for these purposes. The Commissioner of Education is 
authorized to receive revenue from the fund administered by the bank. Funds provided 
to the Department of Education from the fund must be deposited in a nonlapsing 
dedicated account to be used to carry out the purposes of this section.   
4.  Priorities.  Periodically, and at least annually, the Department of Education shall 
prepare and certify to the bank a mitigation project priority list of those school 
administrative units whose mitigation projects are eligible for loans under this section. In 
establishing the priority list, the department shall grant special consideration to mitigation 
projects that include urgent health and safety needs. The department shall submit with the 
list the factors considered when determining the priorities.  
5.  Eligibility terms.  The bank and the Department of Education shall develop by rule 
the terms of repayment of loans. A loan made pursuant to this section may not carry an 
interest rate higher than 0%. A loan may be made only if a mitigation project is certified 
by the Department of Education as eligible for financing under this section and is on the 
priority list prepared under subsection 4. The repayment period may vary depending upon 
the financial condition of a school administrative unit as identified by the Department of 
Education.  
6.  Forgiveness of principal payments.  The fund must provide direct grants by 
forgiving the principal payments of a loan for an eligible school administrative unit. The 
amount of the forgiveness of principal payments must be determined by the school 
administrative unit's state share percentage as determined in Title 20-A, section 15672, 
subsection 31, not to exceed 70% and not less than 30%.  
7.  Establishment of accounts.  The bank may establish accounts and subaccounts 
within the fund as it determines desirable to effectuate the purposes of this section, 
including, but not limited to, accounts to segregate a portion or portions of the fund as 
security for bonds issued by the bank for deposit in the fund and to be invested for the 
benefit of specified mitigation projects receiving financial assistance from the fund.  
8.  Rules.  The Department of Education and the bank shall adopt rules necessary to 
implement this section. Rules adopted by the Department of Education and the bank to 
implement this section are major substantive rules pursuant to Title 5, chapter 375, 
subchapter 2-A.
SUMMARY
This bill creates the Decommissioned Schools Contamination Mitigation Fund under 
the custody of the Maine Municipal Bond Bank for the purpose of providing financing to 
school administrative units for mitigating the contamination of decommissioned school 
buildings and land by polychlorinated biphenyl compounds and contaminants listed in the 
federal Toxic Substances Control Act, 15 United States Code, Chapter 53.