On Monday, state lawmakers in the House of Representatives advanced Gov. Janet Mills’ proposal to transfer millions out of the Budget Stabilization Fund (BSF) — colloquially known as the Rainy Day Fund — in response to recent storm damage throughout the state.
In accepting the Appropriations and Financial Affairs (AFA) Committee’s Democrat-backed majority report, representatives opted to not only approve Gov. Mills’ proposal to reallocate $50 million from the BSF to the Infrastructure Adaptation Fund (IAF), but also to transfer an additional $10 million from the BSF to the newly-created Business Recovery and Resilience Fund (BRRF).
Created in 2021, the IAF was first introduced by Mills’ as part of an effort to “empower communities in the fight against climate change.”
The BRRF is newly established by this legislation and is described as “provid[ing] grant opportunities for business and organizations, including nonprofit organizations, affected by severe weather-related events,” including the storms that occurred on December 18, 2023, January 10, and January 13.
Just over a month after this bill (LD 2225) was first brought before lawmakers by Speaker of the House Rachel Talbot Ross (D-Portland), the AFA Committee released its recommendations to the full Legislature, revealing that members were divided on which of three proposed amendments lawmakers ought to accept.
The Committee’s majority report was largely similar to Mills’ original recommendation in that it seeks to transfer $50 million from the BSF to the IAF. Their amendment also, however, goes a step further and calls for an additional $10 million to be transferred from the BSF to a newly-created BRRF.
This version of the Legislation was supported by all Democrat members of the Committee, including: Sen. Peggy Rotundo (D-Androscoggin), Rep. Melanie F. Sachs (D-Freeport), Rep. Daniel J. Ankeles (D-Brunswick), Rep. Benjamin T. Collings (D-Portland), Sen. Jill Duson (D-Cumberland), Rep. Jessica L. Fay (D-Raymond), Rep. Drew Gattine (D-Westbrook), and Rep. Ann Higgins Matlack (D-St. George).
Click Here to Read the Majority’s Amendment
The major difference between this version of the bill and the Committee’s two minority reports is the source from which this funding for these programs is to be drawn.
Instead of pulling money from the BSF, both minority reports propose drawing their funding from the state’s unappropriated General Fund surplus.
In doing so, these amendments avoid utilizing the BS in a manner that is inconsistent with its statutory purpose and historical usage, as is done in both Mills’ original draft and the majority’s amendment.
The BSF is statutorily required to be used primarily as a reserve account to offset state expenses in the event of a General Fund revenue shortfall, as well as to provide assistance to the families of fallen first responders or cover specifically-defined expenses during certain emergency situations.
“I propose taking from the Rainy Day Fund to respond to some pretty rainy days we’ve had and some rainy days ahead,” Mills said, during her two-part State of State Address on January 30.
The Republican minority reports, on the other hand, seek to address these same concerns over recent storm damage by sourcing their funding from the unappropriated surplus of the General Fund, instead of amending the BSF’s historical spending limits.
The first of these two reports — supported by Sen. Rick Bennett (R-Oxford), Rep. John “Jack” E. Ducharme III (R-Madison), and Rep. H. Sawin Millett Jr. (R-Waterford) — recommends making only the $50 million appropriation to the IAF, omitting the proposal to establish and fund the BRRF.
Click Here to Read the First Minority Report
The Committee’s third and final report — backed by Rep. Mark John Blier (R-Buxton) and Rep. Nathan M. Carlow (R-Buxton) — proposes moving forward with both the allocation to the IAF, as well as creating and providing $10 million in funding for the BRRF.
Click Here to Read the Second Minority Report
On Monday, lawmakers in the House voted without a roll call to accept the AFA Committee’s majority report.
LD 2225 will now be sent to the Senate for further consideration.
