Environment (Public Lands)

This bill authorizes Maine's Bureau of Parks and Lands to convey 47 leased lots in Lincoln Plantation and exchange a small parcel in Sandy River Plantation for a right-of-way. The director may sell the Lincoln Plantation lots via quitclaim deed, with proceeds required to purchase conservation land in Oxford County. The Sandy River exchange involves trading up to 0.25 acres for a deeded right-of-way across adjacent property. The bill implements specific land transactions under existing state conservation laws without altering land use designations.

LD 694 requires developers seeking approval for high-impact interstate electric transmission lines in Maine to include specific conservation funding in their petitions. The bill mandates an annual payment of $10,000 per megawatt of the line's capacity to Maine's Land for Maine's Future Trust Fund, with at least 20% directed to the Conservation Land Management Fund. This applies directly to transmission line developers submitting petitions to the Public Utilities Commission for project approval. The law aims to tie infrastructure development to ongoing conservation funding, without altering the commission's approval process for the lines themselves.