Despite the cancellation of Legislative Committees on Monday due to the snowstorm, this week was a busy one. Today was the deadline for committees to vote out the bills that were carried over from last year. Some committees have been granted permission to continue to work bills, but soon the focus will shift to bills introduced this session and to bills being debated by the full chambers.
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On Tuesday, the Agriculture, Forestry and Conservation Committee held a public hearing for the department bill LD 2118, “An Act To Eliminate The Natural Areas Program And Reassign Certain Responsibilities Under The Program To The Department Of Inland Fisheries And Wildlife And To Amend The Law Governing Administration Of The Department Of Inland Fisheries And Wildlife, Bureau Of Resource Management.” This bill was introduced last year as LD 402 and went through the committee process before failing to pass in non-concurrence between the bodies. After extensive discussions with DIFW and other stakeholders, MFPC testified in favor of bill asserting that the voluntary, non-regulatory functions of the Maine Natural Areas Program should be carried over to DIFW with an aim toward reducing duplicative work and to better fit within the expertise of the department. We will continue to engage on this bill during the work session next week.
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On Wednesday, MFPC submitted testimony in support of LD 2144, “Resolve, To Establish The Working Group To Prioritize Wellness And Mental Health Resources For Heritage Industries.” This bill would study the mental health and wellness resources available to individuals in heritage industries such as the farming, fishing, and the forest products sector. We will continue to monitor this bill and have asked that we have a seat on any working group that comes out of the bill.
Also on Wednesday, MFPC testified in opposition to LD 2018, “An Act To Amend The Requirements Governing Self-insurance Plans In The Paid Family And Medical Leave Benefits Program.” This bill would codify the assertion made by the Department of Labor that risk pooling is not allowed for those who self-insure for their paid family medical leave benefits. We conducted a survey to see what sort of plans our current members were utilizing, and about half were using private plans with several expressing a wish to self-insure with risk pools. Representatives from Robbins Lumber and Treeline, Inc. also testified in opposition.
Wednesday continued to be a busy day as the work session for LD 19, “An Act To Change The Definition Of “Oversized ATV” In The Laws Governing The Registration Of All-terrain Vehicles.” Last year, MFPC testified in opposition to the bill which would increase the weight and width allowance for ATVs that can be registered in Maine. Ahead of the work session, we provided further information to the committee with this analysis of the public comments from the LD 1308 public access to private lands working group.
Unfortunately, even though it is abundantly clear that law enforcement and landowners are not supported at the level needed to deal with issues that are driven by the increase in pressure on the state ATV trails in recent years, the Committee voted OTP-AM/OTP-AM with both versions having serious repercussions for landowners that allow motorized access on their land. Law enforcement issues also remain unresolved, which would lead to even more unresolved conflicts. Either report would likely result in a complete reshaping of how landowners approach motorized access to private land, and would mark the end of the unified statewide network that was the result of the 2020 ATV Taskforce.
This would be a an unfortunate and impactful outcome for recreators, landowners and law enforcement alike, so preventing this change remains a top priority for MFPC.
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Next week, in addition to the meetings listed below, the IFW Committee will receive a report back on the LD 1308 Public Access to Private Land report on Wednesday at 1 pm and on Thursday evening, Krysta will be joined by Patrick Strauch at the FRA meeting in Brewer to deliver a presentation entitled “Maine’s Forest: Economic Impact, Pending Legislation & Spruce Budworm.” To RSVP, and for more information, please email Eric Kingsley at ekingsley@forestresources.org.
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Finally, MFPC’s final Timber Talk breakfast of the year will take place on February 24 from 7-8:30 AM. The theme this month will be the State of the Forest Economy. Policymakers and MFPC members are encouraged to attend. RSVP here.