PLEASE NOTE: Legislative Information cannot perform research, provide legal advice, or interpret Maine law. For legal assistance, please contact a qualified attorney.
An Act To Increase Funding for the Youth Conservation Corps
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. Department of Environmental Protection to contract with private organization in 2018 and 2019. For the years 2018 and 2019, the Department of Environmental Protection shall distribute the funds appropriated in section 2 through a competitive bid process to a private organization to establish and administer the program to reduce erosion and protect lake water quality under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 38, section 480-JJ. The department shall ensure that any contract entered into with a private organization under this section requires that:
1. The erosion control measures described in Title 38, section 480-JJ, subsection 3 be performed in the summers of 2018 and 2019 with labor provided by a youth conservation corps organized or based in the State;
2. No more than 10% of the funds appropriated by the Legislature for the program in section 2 or received by the contracted organization as matching funding is used for the administration of the program by the contracted organization;
3. The scope of the program as implemented by the contracted organization is determined by the amount of funds appropriated in section 2; and
4. The contracted organization disburses to a youth conservation corps no more than $1 from the funds appropriated for the program in section 2 for every $2 in matching funds contributed to the program by that youth conservation corps. Federal and state funds may not be considered matching funds under the program.
Sec. 2. Appropriations and allocations. The following appropriations and allocations are made.
 
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, DEPARTMENT OF
 
Land and Water Quality 0248
 
Initiative: Increases from $20,000 to $40,000 per year beginning in fiscal year 2018-19 ongoing funding to contract with a private organization to reduce shoreline erosion and protect lake water quality.

GENERAL FUND	2017-18	2018-19	
All Other	$0	$20,000	
			
GENERAL FUND TOTAL	$0	$20,000	

SUMMARY
This bill increases funding beginning in fiscal year 2018-19 for the program established by the 127th Legislature to reduce shoreline erosion and protect lake water quality to be implemented and administered by a private organization contracted with by the Department of Environmental Protection. The bill directs the department for the years 2018 and 2019 to distribute appropriated funds for the program through a competitive bid process and requires the contracted private organization to use labor from a youth conservation corps in the summers of 2018 and 2019 to implement erosion control measures. It provides that the contracted organization is allowed to disburse to a youth conservation corps no more than $1 of state funding for every $2 in matching funds contributed by that youth conservation corps.