An Act Regarding Enforcement of the Annual Reporting Requirement of the Laws Governing Unclaimed Beverage Container Deposits

“(5) Payment of $500,000 annually to the department for deposit into and use in accordance with the Cost and Carbon Efficient Technology Fund established in section 3114‑A. (6) Beginning October 1, 2026, payment of $2,000,000 annually to the department for deposit and use in accordance with the Lake Water Quality Restoration and Protection Fund under section 480-N; (7) Beginning October 1, 2026, payment of $2,000,000 annually to the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry for deposit and use in accordance with the Maine Working Farmland Access and Protection Program under Title 7, section 164; and (8) Beginning August 1, 2026, payment of $2,000,000 annually to the Maine Commission on Public Defense Services under Title 4, section 1801 to support regional public defender office staffing.”

“The cooperative shall include in its annual report required under section 3107, subsection 3‑B, paragraph E any recommendations for a reduction in or other amendment to the payment required under this subparagraph that the cooperative believes necessary due to a reduction in the amount of unclaimed deposits available for expenditure in accordance with paragraph C, a surplus of undistributed funding within the Cost and Carbon Efficient Technology Fund established in section 3114‑A or for other reasons specified by the cooperative.”