ME LD1959

Maximum municipal general assistance reimbursement for emergency shelter must equal the actual cost of providing emergency shelter services, rather than capped amounts set by the Department of Health and Human Services

Prohibits DHHS from adopting rules that reduce or restrict maximum assistance levels for emergency shelter or that impose eligibility time limits more restrictive than those already established in statute

Adds emergency shelters to the list of facilities excluded from the definition of "lodging place," alongside nursing facilities, assisted living facilities, and residential care facilities

Applies retroactively to July 1, 2023, potentially requiring reimbursement adjustments for assistance provided since that date

Sponsored by Senator Talbot Ross of Cumberland with bipartisan cosponsorship from legislators representing Portland, Lewiston, Bangor, and surrounding areas