We got off to a great start this week with the Taxation Committee voting unanimously in support of an amended version of a bill we put in for our loggers this session, in collaboration with the Professional Logging Contractors, LD 1313, “An Act to Promote Equity in the Forest Products Industry by Allowing Commercial Wood Haulers to be Eligible for Certain Sales Tax Exemptions and Refunds.”
We are incredibly grateful to Senator Farrin for bringing this bill forward at our request, to the Taxation Committee for their unanimous support of this important bill and to our members from all sectors of the industry who turned out to support our loggers. We will continue to champion this legislation as it works its way through the process.
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Wednesday was a very busy day, beginning with a Maine Forest Service press conference to highlight Wildfire Awareness Week at the Bolton Hill Facility in Augusta. Over 90% of wildfires are human caused, and there have already been 164 wildfires this year with over half of those occurring within the last week.
Commercial landowners and forest operators are a partner in wildfire prevention and response efforts, and landowners owning 500 acres or more cover 40% of the wildfire response efforts through the commercial forestry excise tax. We appreciate MFS’s efforts to educate the public on wildfire prevention, and were happy to be included in this press event.
We were also joined by representatives from ND Paper, Woodland Pulp/St. Croix Tissue, Robbins Lumber, Stratton Lumber and Huhtamaki on Wednesday for a series of public hearings. It is always a treat to bring members to our “mill” to help connect them with lawmakers on issues of importance to our industry.
The first bill the group engaged on is one that is of great importance to our industry – and to all manufacturers based in Maine, LD 1423, “An Act to Improve Recycling by Updating the Stewardship Program for Packaging.” As presented, this bill contains variety of different priorities from our group and others, and it lacks the support that is necessary to get it over the finish line.
That said, the Council has worked hard with program advocates, the department, our members and a number of others on an amended version that addresses our most pressing concerns that must be resolved now. These include fixes to definitions and make clarifications that require legislative action due to the routine technical rulemaking process.
The MFPC amendment, which is contained in our testimony here, makes the following critical, and most importantly agreed upon, changes to the EPR program:
- It amends the definition of consumer to exclude packaging used in business-to-business transport or during manufacturing, so long as it is managed and paid for exclusively by the producer. Under the current rule, manufactures are flagged as consumers, regardless of how waste and recycling is handled. This will result in taxation on packaging at every link in the manufacturing chain, adding significant cost to manufacturers that invest in Maine. All sides agree that the current definition is overly broad, and that it will have a significant negative impact to our industry and others unless it is changed.
- It clarifies that “post-consumer recycled content” includes pre-consumer “broke” materials and defects that are cycled back through fiber stream, and it exempts packaging from penalties if PCR use is restricted by federal or state regulations. Producers should not be penalized for not using restricted materials.
- It amends the definition of “producer” to provide clear guidance in determining who is responsible for the packaging under a variety of circumstances. This definition is in line with the approach taken in other EPR states.
- It refines the definition of “toxicity” by adding “intentional addition” language without triggering broader regulatory consequences.
While this amendment does not accomplish all of our goals (or anyone’s) included in the printed bill, it represents a significant improvement over the status quo without including provisions that would delay or otherwise derail the program. Simply put, thanks to Senator Bennett, Senator Grohoski, Maine DEP and program advocates, we have an opportunity to use LD 1423 as a vehicle targeted at the possible, and we very much appreciate the opportunity to work collaboratively with all sides of the issue.
We are working now on a follow-up amendment that moves more mutually agreed upon provisions into our amendment. We will circulate it around to our members soon with the opportunity to opt-in to a letter supporting the compromise amendment. Please be on the lookout for this letter, as we are requesting as much member buy-in as possible. We need to show a strong unified front among Maine-based businesses who will be most impacted by the flawed definitions in this program. In the meantime,
PLEASE CONTACT ENR COMMITTEE MEMBERS TODAY AND URGE THEM TO SUPPORT THE MFPC AMENDMENT FOR LD 1423!
Maine manufacturers cannot afford a double (or even triple) tax on materials that are handled outside of the municipal waste stream.
Senator Denise Tepler, Chair
Denise.Tepler@legislature.maine.gov
Senator Stacy Brenner
Stacy.Brenner@Legislature.Maine.gov
Senator Joe Martin
Joseph.Martin@Legislature.Maine.gov
Representative Victoria Doudera, Chair
Victoria.Doudera@Legislature.Maine.gov
Representative Dan Ankeles
Dan.Ankeles@Legislature.Maine.gov
Representative Art Bell
Arthur.Bell@Legislature.Maine.gov
Representative William Bridgeo
William.Bridgeo@legislature.maine.gov
Representative Dick Campbell
Richard.Campbell@legislature.maine.gov
Representative Laurie Osher
Laurie.Osher@Legislature.Maine.gov
Representative Morgan Rielly
Morgan.Rielly@Legislature.Maine.gov
Representative Tammy Schmersal-Burgess
Tammy.Schmersal-Burgess@Legislature.Maine.gov
Representative Mike Soboleski
Mike.Soboleski@Legislature.Maine.gov
Representative David Woodsome
David.Woodsome@legislature.maine.gov
PLEASE STAND WITH US IN SUPPORT OF THE MFPC COMPROMISE AMENDMENT TO LD 1423!
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Also on Wednesday, MFPC was joined by those same members to weigh in on the 13 Paid Family and Medical Leave bills that were heard by the Labor Committee in what turned out to be an 8.5 hour event. Our specific concerns include:
- Any effort to remove Maine’s undue hardship provision must be rejected.
- The fund should be protected from being swept for other uses
- Maine’s employers already face workforce shortages. This program will make it very difficult to adequately and safely staff facilities.
- Maine’s program is the most benefits-rich program in the country. It should be made voluntary and brought more in line with other programs.
- Maine’s program is ripe for abuse and it lacks necessary safeguards.
Our testimony can be found here.
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On Thursday, we testified before the Taxation Committee in support of some provisions of LD 1630, “An Act to Amend the Open Space Tax Law”, and in opposition to others. Our comments can be found here. We also testified before the Housing and Economic Development Committee in opposition to LD 1664, “An Act to Repeal the Dirigo Business Incentives Program.” Our comments on that bill can be found here.
That’s all for now. Next week’s schedule, as currently posted, is available below. It is of note that if you did not have the opportunity to weigh in on LD 870 at the public hearing, the public will have the opportunity to provide comment at the work session, which will be followed by a briefing from the LUPC.
As previously mentioned, look out for an email to our members to sign on to a coalition letter in support of our efforts to make targeted changes to Maine’s EPR program. Please also take a moment to reach out to ENR members today. They need to hear from Maine-based businesses, and constituents, on this issue.
Please reach out if you have any questions. Thank you.