An Act to Protect Agricultural Lands by Creating a Permitting Process for Solar Development on Those Lands
Maine Legislature, Session 131, LD 1700
Committee: Environment and Natural Resources
Sponsors: PLUECKER, CRAFTS, CRAY, DODGE, GUERRETTE, JAUCH, SHAW, BLACK, INGWERSEN
Amends: 12 MRSA §5019

Legislative Document
No. 1700
H.P. 1089
House of Representatives, April 18, 2023
An Act to Protect Agricultural Lands by Creating a Permitting 
Process for Solar Development on Those Lands
Reference to the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources suggested and ordered 
printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative PLUECKER of Warren.
Cosponsored by Representatives: CRAFTS of Newcastle, CRAY of Palmyra, DODGE of 
Belfast, GUERRETTE of Caribou, JAUCH of Topsham, SHAW of Auburn, Senators: BLACK 
of Franklin, INGWERSEN of York.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  12 MRSA §5019 is enacted to read:
§5019.  Permitting process for ground-mounted solar installations on agricultural 
land
1. Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the 
following terms have the following meanings.
A. "Department" means the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry.
B. "Farm product" means a plant or animal that is useful to humans, including fruits, 
berries, vegetables, dairy products, livestock or livestock products, poultry or poultry 
products, grains, forages, flowers, seeds, grasses, hay, silage, livestock feed, bees, 
Christmas trees, maple syrup and similar products.
C. "Ground-mounted solar installation" means a solar electrical system that is installed 
directly on the ground instead of solely on a wall or roof of a building.
D. "Viable agricultural land" means land highly suitable for agricultural production of 
a farm product.  "Viable agricultural land" does not include homes, farm buildings, 
roads or lawns.
2. Permit required.  A person may not develop, install or build any ground-mounted 
solar installation without first obtaining a permit from the department if the activity is 
located in, on or over any viable agricultural land.
3. Permit approval; standards.  The department shall grant a permit requested under 
subsection 2 upon proper application and upon such terms as the department considers 
necessary to fulfill the purposes of this section.  The department may grant a permit only if 
it determines that the value of the ground-mounted solar installation exceeds the value of 
the agricultural land. The department shall grant a permit when the department finds that 
the applicant has demonstrated that the proposed activity meets the following standards, as 
applicable:
A. The agricultural land has been proven to be contaminated and therefore unsuitable 
to the production of human or livestock feed;
B. The agricultural land has been developed and it is not economically feasible to return 
to agricultural production;
C. The societal benefit of distributed energy production on the agricultural land 
outweighs the economic, cultural and societal benefit of food production, and the 
specific parcel has unique qualities that increase its value for solar development over 
another identified parcel; 
D. The economic benefit of distributed energy production on the agricultural land 
contributes to the viability of a farm business or an agricultural operation, such as 
through meeting or partially meeting on-farm energy needs or generating a needed 
alternative source of farm revenue, and the ground-mounted solar installation will be 
located in such a way so that food production on the property can continue.  The 
landowner must demonstrate that a solar installation on agricultural land is ancillary to 
the use of the property for agriculture or located in an area that has less agricultural 
value relative to the rest of the property or otherwise situated in a way that allows for 
continued agriculture uses now or in the future;
E. Commercial food production will continue on the site of the ground-mounted solar 
installation for the reasonably expected economic life of the solar development. If the 
site of the installation is owned by a commercial farming operation, the farming 
operation must demonstrate the economic benefit of the installation to food production 
so that there is a net increase in economic food value, net food production or 
agroecological benefit to the farm; or
F. Installation of the ground-mounted solar installation will have minimal long-term 
impact on soil health, including by using panels or pilings that sit on top of the soil 
rather than poured cement.
An entity proposing to construct a ground-mounted solar installation must demonstrate 
adequate financial capacity to decommission the installation at any time during 
construction or operation of the installation or upon termination of installation operations 
for any reason. The obligation to decommission the installation must be transferred to any 
future owner of the installation in the event of a transfer of title. Decommissioning is 
required if the installation's purpose or use is abandoned for a period of one year at any 
time after construction begins. Demonstration of financial capacity to decommission must 
include documentation of financial assurance that the decommissioning costs will be fully 
funded prior to the start of construction. Financial assurance may be demonstrated in the 
form of a performance bond, surety bond, letter of credit or other form of financial 
assurance acceptable to the department.  In the case of land that is not contaminated or was 
developed before the installation, decommissioning must return the land to a state 
appropriate for agricultural use.
4. Permit approval; administrative procedures. The department shall process all 
permits requested under this section in accordance with this subsection.
A. The department shall organize a public hearing on a permit request upon request.
B. The department may not review a permit without notifying the municipality in which 
the proposed activity is to occur. The municipality may provide comments within a 
reasonable period established by the commissioner, and the commissioner shall 
consider any such comments.
C. The department may not review a permit without notifying the Maine Land Use 
Planning Commission if the ground-mounted solar installation is going to occur on 
land over which the Maine Land Use Planning Commission has jurisdiction. The 
Maine Land Use Planning Commission may provide comments within a reasonable 
period established by the commissioner, and the commissioner shall consider any such 
comments.
5. Delegation of authority to municipality; home rule.  This subsection governs the 
delegation to a municipality of the authority to issue permits under this section.
A. A municipality may apply to the department for authority to issue all permits under 
this section or for partial authority to process applications for permits involving 
ground-mounted solar installations on specified viable agricultural land. The 
department shall grant such authority if it finds that the municipality has:  
(1) Established a planning board and a board of appeals;
(2) Adopted a comprehensive plan and related land use ordinances determined by 
the former State Planning Office or the department to be consistent with the criteria 
set forth in Title 30-A, chapter 187, subchapter 2 and determined by the 
commissioner to be at least as stringent as criteria set forth in subsection 3;   
(3) The financial, technical and legal resources to adequately review and analyze 
permit applications and oversee and enforce permit requirements;   
(4) Made provision by ordinance or rule for:  
(a) Prompt notice to the commissioner of all applications received; and  
(b) Prompt notice to the public upon receipt of an application and written 
notification to the applicant and the commissioner of the issuance or denial of 
a permit stating the reasons for issuance or denial, except for those applications 
for which no public notice or written decision is required;   
(5) Provided an application form that is substantially the same as that provided by 
the commissioner; and   
(6) Appointed a code enforcement officer, certified pursuant to Title 30-A, section 
4451.
B.  The following procedures apply to applications under this section processed by 
municipalities.  
(1) No permit issued by a municipality may become effective until 30 days 
subsequent to its receipt by the commissioner, but, if the permit is approved by the 
department in less than 30 days, the effective date is the date of approval. A copy 
of the application for the permit and the permit issued by the municipality must be 
sent to the commissioner, immediately upon its issuance, by registered mail. The 
department shall review that permit and either approve, deny or modify it as 
necessary. If the department does not act within 30 days of the department's receipt 
of the permit from the municipality, this constitutes the department's approval and 
the permit is effective as issued, except that within this 30-day period the 
department may extend the time for departmental review an additional 30 days.
(2) A copy of the municipality's action to approve or deny an application must be 
sent to the commissioner within 14 days of the municipality's decision.   
C. Nothing in this section may be understood or interpreted to limit the home rule 
authority of a municipality to protect the agricultural land of the municipality through 
enactment of standards that are more stringent than those found in this section.  
D.  Any person who violates any permit issued under this section is subject to the 
provisions of Title 38, section 349 in addition to any penalties that the municipality 
may impose. The provisions of this section may be enforced by the commissioner and 
the municipality that issued the permit.  
E. This paragraph governs the department's review of delegated authority under this 
subsection.
(1) If the department finds that a municipality has failed to satisfy one or more of 
the criteria identified in paragraphs A and B, the department shall notify the 
municipality accordingly and make recommendations to establish compliance. The 
municipality may then submit a modified application for approval.
(2) If, at any time, the department determines that a municipality may be failing to 
exercise its permit-granting authority in accordance with its approval procedures, 
the department shall notify the municipality of the specific alleged deficiencies and 
shall order a public hearing, for which adequate public notice must be given, to be 
held in the municipality to solicit public or official comment on the alleged 
deficiencies. Following the hearing, if the department finds such deficiencies, the 
department shall revoke the municipality's permit-granting authority. The 
municipality may reapply for authority at any time. 
6. Violations; enforcement.  A person may not violate subsection 2.  Each day of a 
violation must be considered a separate offense. A finding that any violation has occurred 
is prima facie evidence that the activity was performed or caused to be performed by the 
owner of the property where the violation occurred.  The department shall enforce the 
provisions of this section.
7. Research.  The commissioner, in cooperation with other state agencies, is authorized 
to conduct research and studies to determine how agricultural lands can be restored and 
enhanced.
8. Funds.  The department is the public agency of the State authorized to accept funds, 
public and private, for the purposes of this section.
9. Fees.  Notwithstanding Title 5, section 8071, subsection 3, the commissioner shall 
adopt rules to establish procedures to charge applicants fees for costs incurred in reviewing 
permit applications regarding ground-mounted solar installations. Those fees must be 
scaled according to the economic and land use impact of the installation. Rules adopted 
pursuant to this subsection are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, 
subchapter 2-A.
SUMMARY
This bill establishes a permitting process to develop, install or build any ground-
mounted solar installation on or over any viable agricultural land.