ME LD1458

Compensation fees for renewable energy developments must equal the average value of the undeveloped land occupied by the project, replacing the previous system where the Department of Environmental Protection set criteria-based fee amounts.

Fee exemptions apply to areas in designated municipal growth zones, brownfields, and PFAS-contaminated properties.

Wildlife habitat impact assessments are limited to six specific habitat types: deer wintering habitat, threatened/endangered species habitat, seabird nesting islands, significant vernal pools, waterfowl/wading bird habitat, and shorebird areas.

Large undeveloped habitat blocks are explicitly excluded from consideration as wildlife habitat in impact determinations.

Compensation fees collected must be deposited into the Land for Maine's Future Trust Fund, and related department rulemaking is changed from major substantive to routine technical rules.