APPROVED CHAPTER
MAY 3, 2022 710
BY GOVERNOR PUBLIC LAW
STATE OF MAINE
_____
IN THE YEAR OF OUR LORD
TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-TWO
_____
H.P. 154 - L.D. 219
An Act To Improve the Agricultural Marketing Loan Fund and Agricultural
Development Grant
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 7 MRSA §306-A, as amended by PL 2013, c. 64, §§1 and 2, is further
amended to read:
§306-A. Agricultural Development Fund
1. Agricultural Development Fund. The commissioner shall establish an agricultural
development fund the Agricultural Development Fund, referred to in this section as "the
fund," to accelerate new market development, adoption of advantageous technologies
technology and promotion of state agricultural products by state producers.
2. Fund operation. The commissioner shall utilize the agricultural development fund
to:
A. Provide grants to individuals, firms or organizations public agencies and private
for-profit entities and nonprofit entities based in the State to conduct market research
or to undertake market promotion activities for the purpose of expanding existing
markets and developing new markets for state agricultural products; and
B. Test and demonstrate new technologies related to the production, storage and
processing of state agricultural commodities. products; and
C. Provide technical assistance grants for conducting market research, feasibility
studies, engineering studies, construction planning, land use planning, facility design
and configuration planning and for funding the purchase of on-farm equipment and
other technology purchases that directly support the growth of agricultural enterprises
as defined in section 434.
The commissioner may disburse grant money awarded to an applicant during any of the 3
fiscal years following award of the grant to an applicant.
3. Rulemaking. The commissioner shall establish, by rule, in a manner consistent
with Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2‑A criteria for the allocation of grant money,
application requirements consistent with the provisions of this section, a schedule for
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accepting and reviewing applications, reporting requirements on grant expenditures and
project results and any other administrative requirements necessary for the efficient
implementation of this program. Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection are major
substantive routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2‑A. The
commissioner is guided by the following criteria:
A. Applications may be submitted by individuals, firms or organizations public
agencies and private for-profit entities and nonprofit entities based in the State in
response to a request for proposals for competitive grants. The commissioner may also
contract directly with individuals, firms or organizations public agencies and private
for-profit entities and nonprofit entities for a special project under section 307;
B. A percentage of the total cost of any project must be funded by the applicant or
applicants and a percentage of the total cost must be funded from nonpublic sources.
These percentages must be established by rule. A single grant may not exceed 50% of
the total funds available to be granted in a given year;
C. Information relative to market research or development activities provided to the
commissioner prior to formal application, included in grant applications or provided to
the commissioner to fulfill reporting requirements is confidential information and may
not be publicly disclosed by the commissioner as long as:
(1) The person to whom the information belongs or pertains has requested that
certain information be designated as confidential; and
(2) The commissioner has determined that the information gives the person
making the request opportunity to obtain business or competitive advantage over
another person who does not have access to the information or will result in loss
of business or other significant detriment to the person making the request if access
is provided to others; and
D. When possible, the commissioner shall award grants to applicants representing
diverse agricultural enterprises and geographic areas of the State.
4. Advisory committee. The commissioner shall establish the Agricultural
Development Committee to evaluate market and production development competitive
grant applications and review project results.
Sec. 2. 7 MRSA §307, as amended by PL 2013, c. 64, §3, is further amended to
read:
§307. Special projects
The commissioner may contract directly with the University of Maine System or
qualified individuals, firms or organizations public agencies and private for-profit entities
and nonprofit entities based in the State for market research, for testing new technologies
and for research on technical problems related to the production, marketing, storage and
processing of agricultural commodities products.
Sec. 3. 7 MRSA §308, as amended by PL 1999, c. 72, §6, is repealed.
Sec. 4. 7 MRSA §434, sub-§1, as amended by PL 2001, c. 152, §1, is further
amended to read:
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 1. Agricultural enterprise. "Agricultural enterprise" means a person or business
located in this State and engaged or beginning to engage in the commercial growing or
harvesting of plants; raising of animals; growing or obtaining plant or animal by-products;
aquaculture, as defined in Title 12, section 6001, subsection 1; or further processing,
storing, packaging or marketing a raw product derived from plants, animals, plant or animal
by-products or aquaculture, as defined in Title 12, section 6001, subsection 1, with the
intent that the product be sold or otherwise disposed of to generate income. "Agricultural
enterprise" includes a business or activity that attracts visitors to a farm for the purpose of
supplementing income from the primary crop or livestock operation. "Agricultural
enterprise" does not include a business engaged primarily in the growing, harvesting or
further processing of forest species of trees for the purpose of producing pulp or other
materials used in the paper manufacturing or wood manufacturing process.
Sec. 5. 7 MRSA §435, sub-§2, ¶A, as amended by PL 2003, c. 168, §1, is further
amended to read:
A. An agricultural marketing loan for any project under this subchapter, the total cost
of which exceeds $100,000 $200,000, may not exceed 75% 90% of the project cost. A
loan from the fund may not be provided for such a project unless the applicant
demonstrates a commitment of private funds of at least 5% of the total cost of the
project; except that, in order to encourage the undertaking of cooperative projects by 2
or more agricultural enterprises, an agricultural marketing loan may not be provided
unless the cooperating agricultural enterprises as a group demonstrate a commitment
of private funds of at least 5% of the total cost of the project.
Sec. 6. 7 MRSA §435, sub-§2, ¶B, as amended by PL 2003, c. 168, §1, is further
amended to read:
B. An agricultural marketing loan for any project under this subchapter, the total cost
of which is $100,000 $200,000 or less, may not exceed 90% of the total cost of the
project.
Sec. 7. 7 MRSA §435, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2007, c. 660, §12, is repealed.
Sec. 8. 7 MRSA §435, sub-§3-A, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 660, §13, is amended
to read:
3-A. Loans for participants in the Maine Farms for the Future Program. The
interest rate for loans for capital improvements identified in a business plan developed
under section 318 for a farm determined eligible under section 319 is the federal prime rate
on the date of loan commitment but may not be greater than 2% per year.
Sec. 9. 7 MRSA §435, sub-§3-B is enacted to read:
3-B. Interest rate. Except as provided in subsection 3-A, the interest rate for loans
under this section is the federal prime rate on the date of loan commitment but may not be
greater than 5%. Loans current on the effective date of this subsection may be refinanced
at the borrower’s request to an interest rate of the federal prime rate but not greater than
5%.
Sec. 10. 7 MRSA §436, as amended by PL 2007, c. 660, §15, is further amended to
read:
§436. Grants for technical assistance and research
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 The commissioner may use all or a portion of the accrued interest in the cash balance
of the Agricultural Marketing Loan Fund and all or a portion of loan repayments for grants
for technical assistance and for grants from the agricultural development grant program
Agricultural Development Fund in chapter 10. The commissioner may expend grant
dollars designated to an applicant in one fiscal year during any of the 3 fiscal years
following designation.
Sec. 11. 10 MRSA §1023-J, first ¶, as amended by PL 2017, c. 475, Pt. A, §12, is
further amended to read:
The Agricultural Marketing Loan Fund, referred to in this section as "the "fund," is
created. The fund must be deposited with and maintained by the Finance Authority of
Maine. The fund must be administered by the Commissioner of Agriculture, Conservation
and Forestry in accordance with Title 7, chapter 101, subchapter 1‑D. All money received
by the Finance Authority of Maine from any source for the development and
implementation of an improved agricultural marketing loan program must be credited to
the fund. Any money credited to the fund from the issuance of bonds on behalf of the State
for financing loans for agricultural enterprises may be used only for the following purposes:
to provide assistance to agricultural enterprises in this State for the design, purchase,
construction, renovation or improvement of commodity and storage buildings and packing
and marketing facilities equipment essential to the agricultural enterprise; for the purchase,
construction or renovation of buildings, equipment, docks, wharves, piers or vessels used
in connection with a commercial agricultural enterprise; for the purchase of land in
connection with development of new cranberry acreage; for the purchase of land for
irrigation reservoirs or to provide direct access to water for irrigation or to fund the
development of new or existing sustainable water sources; for the purchase of land
necessary for the start-up of a new agricultural enterprise; for the purchase of land
necessary for the expansion of an existing agricultural enterprise when the land acquisition
is necessary to comply with land use regulations; for the development of a business plan
for improvements to pastureland, including seeding and actions to promote rotational
grazing; for the design or implementation of improvements to infrastructure, equipment
and natural resources to enhance a commercial agricultural enterprise’s climate adaptation
or mitigation capacity; for refinancing existing loans used to finance eligible uses as
defined in this section; or, if the commissioner so approves at the time of loan insurance
commitment, to pledge money in the fund as security for, and to apply money in the fund
to, payment of principal, interest and other amounts due on any term loans insured by the
Finance Authority of Maine to an eligible dairy farmer. Repayment of these loans and
interest on these loans must be credited to the fund and may be used for the purposes stated
in this section or Title 7, section 436. Interest earned on money in the fund and interest
earned on loans made from the fund may be used to pay the administrative costs of
processing loan applications and servicing and administering the fund and loans and grants
made from the fund since the inception of the agricultural marketing loan program, to the
extent that these costs exceed the fee for administrative costs established by Title 7, section
435, subsection 4.
Sec. 12. Transfer balance of interest in the Agricultural Marketing Loan
Fund. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, no later than September 1,
2022 the Finance Authority of Maine shall transfer the balance of realized interest in the
Agricultural Marketing Loan Fund, as established under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title
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10, section 1023-J, and any previously awarded agricultural development grant funds that
have not been paid to grantees to the Agricultural Development Fund, as established under
Title 7, section 306-A, through a transfer to the Agricultural Development Fund, Other
Special Revenue Funds account.
Sec. 13. Transfer from unappropriated surplus of the General Fund.
Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, on or before June 30, 2023, the State
Controller shall transfer $467,240 from the unappropriated surplus of the General Fund to
the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, Agricultural Development Fund
Other Special Revenue Funds account.
Sec. 14. Appropriations and allocations. The following appropriations and
allocations are made.
AGRICULTURE, CONSERVATION AND FORESTRY, DEPARTMENT OF
Bureau of Agriculture 0393
Initiative: Provides a one-time allocation for grants to public agencies, private for-profit
entities and nonprofit entities based in the State to conduct market research or to undertake
market promotion activities for the purpose of expanding existing markets and developing
new markets for state agricultural products; to test and demonstrate new technologies
related to the production, storage and processing of state agricultural products; and to
provide technical assistance grants for conducting market research, feasibility studies,
engineering studies, construction planning, land use planning, facility design and
configuration planning and funding the purchase of on-farm equipment and other
technology purchases that directly support the growth of agricultural enterprises.
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS 2021-22 2022-23
All Other $0 $617,240
__________ __________
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS TOTAL $0 $617,240
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Statutes affected:
Bill Text LD 219, HP 154: 7.435
Bill Text ACTPUB , Chapter 710: 7.306, 7.307, 7.308, 7.434, 7.435, 7.436, 10.1023