An Act to Provide Health Care Cost Reimbursement for Retired
Maine Legislature, Session 132, LD 2081
Committee: Criminal Justice and Public Safety
Sponsors: BISHOP

Legislative Document
No. 2081
H.P. 1396
House of Representatives, January 7, 2026
An Act to Provide Health Care Cost Reimbursement for Retired 
Law Enforcement Canines
Submitted by the Department of Public Safety pursuant to Joint Rule 203.
Reference to the Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety suggested and ordered 
printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative BISHOP of Bucksport.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  25 MRSA c. 203 is enacted to read:
CHAPTER 203
RETIRED LAW ENFORCEMENT CANINE HEALTH CARE
§1821.  Health care cost reimbursement for retired law enforcement canines
1.  Definitions.  As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the 
following terms have the following meanings.
A.  "Agency head" means the chief official of a state law enforcement agency, 
including, but not limited to, the Chief of the State Police, the State Fire Marshal, the 
Game Warden Colonel or the Commissioner of Public Safety. 
B.  "Applicant" means a handler of a retired law enforcement canine or an individual 
who adopts a retired law enforcement canine. 
C.  "Law enforcement canine" means a canine that has been: 
(1) Certified by a nationally recognized or state-recognized law enforcement 
canine certification organization; and
(2) Trained and actively deployed in a law enforcement capacity by a state law 
enforcement agency. 
D.  "Retired law enforcement canine" means a law enforcement canine that no longer 
serves in active law enforcement duty and: 
(1) Served a minimum of 5 years in active law enforcement duty; or
(2) Served less than 5 years in active law enforcement duty and was retired from 
service due to a medical condition diagnosed by a veterinarian licensed in 
accordance with Title 32, section 4860 and approved by the employing agency 
head. 
2.  Retired Law Enforcement K-9 Health Care Fund.  The Retired Law Enforcement 
K-9 Health Care Fund, referred to in this section as "the fund," is established in and 
administered by the Department of Public Safety.  The fund must be held separate and apart 
from all other money, funds and accounts.  Interest earned by the fund must be credited to 
the fund.  Any unexpended balances remaining in the fund at the end of any fiscal year do 
not lapse and must be carried forward to the next fiscal year.
A.  The fund must be used to reimburse applicants for veterinary health care costs for 
eligible retired law enforcement canines.  Reimbursable services include: 
(1) Routine preventive care; 
(2) Treatment of illness or injury; and
(3) Medications and surgical procedures necessary to maintain the retired law 
enforcement canine's quality of life. 
B.  Reimbursement is limited to $5,000 per eligible law enforcement canine for the life 
of the canine, subject to available appropriations and submittal of documentation 
required under subsections 3 and 4.  An agency head may, at the agency head's sole 
discretion, provide additional reimbursement from the agency's appropriated budget, 
including, but not limited to, a designated subfund or line-item allocation.  There is no 
limit on the amount a law enforcement agency may reimburse from its own funds. 
3.  Eligibility.  To qualify for reimbursement under this section: 
A.  A canine must be a retired law enforcement canine; 
B.  The applicant must reside in the State; 
C.  The canine may not be in active service with any state or local law enforcement 
agency; and
D.  A completed application must be submitted to the Department of Public Safety that 
includes: 
(1) A diagnosis by a veterinarian licensed in accordance with Title 32, section 
4860; and
(2) Proof of veterinary expenses incurred. 
4.  Funding sources.  The fund consists of: 
A.  Appropriations and allocations from the Legislature; 
B.  Contributions from private sources, including donations, grants and endowments; 
and
C.  Fines or fees collected and allocated by the Legislature. 
If appropriations and allocations from the Legislature are insufficient, a law enforcement 
agency may use funds from its appropriated budget, including agency-specific subfunds or 
designated line-item allocations, to reimburse veterinary expenses for a retired law 
enforcement canine that served in that agency.  Such a reimbursement is at the sole 
discretion of the agency head. 
5.  Rulemaking.  The Commissioner of Public Safety shall adopt rules to implement 
this section.  The rules must: 
A.  Establish reimbursement guidelines;
B.  Establish application procedures;
C.  Ensure equitable distribution of funds; and
D.  Identify procedures for maintaining records of disbursements.
Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, 
chapter 375, subchapter 2-A.
SUMMARY
This bill establishes the Retired Law Enforcement K-9 Health Care Fund, administered 
by the Department of Public Safety, to reimburse up to $5,000 for veterinary expenses for 
eligible retired law enforcement canines who served on a state law enforcement agency.  
To be eligible, canines must have served a minimum of 5 years in active law enforcement 
duty or been retired prior to serving 5 years in active law enforcement duty due to medical 
necessity.  A law enforcement agency head may, at the agency head's sole discretion, 
provide additional reimbursement from the budget of that agency without limit.  The fund 
may also receive private donations, grants and other sources of funding.