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An Act Regarding Energy Efficiency Standards for Residential Rental Properties
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 14 MRSA §6030-C  is enacted to read:
§ 6030-C.   Residential energy efficiency disclosure statement 
 
1.  Energy efficiency disclosure.     A landlord or other lessor of residential property that will be used by a tenant or lessee as a primary residence shall provide to potential tenants or lessees a residential energy efficiency disclosure statement in accordance with Title 35-A, section 10006, subsection 1 that includes, but is not limited to, information about the energy efficiency of the property. 
 
2.   Provision of statement.     A landlord or other lessor shall provide the residential energy efficiency disclosure statement required under subsection 1 in accordance with this subsection. The landlord or lessor shall provide the statement to any person who requests the statement in person and shall post the statement in a prominent location in a property that is being offered for rent or lease. Before a tenant or lessee enters into a contract or pays a deposit to rent or lease a property, the landlord or lessor shall provide the statement to the tenant or lessee, obtain the tenant’s or lessee’s signature on the statement and sign the statement. The landlord or lessor shall retain the signed statement for a minimum of 7 years. 
Sec. 2. 35-A MRSA §10006  is enacted to read:
§ 10006.  Energy efficiency of rental properties 
 
1.   Residential energy efficiency disclosure statement.     The commission and the Maine State Housing Authority shall prepare a residential energy efficiency disclosure statement form for landlords and other lessors of residential properties to use to disclose to tenants and lessees information about the energy efficiency of the property in order to comply with Title 14, section 6030-C. The commission and the Maine State Housing Authority shall post and maintain the statement required by this subsection on the Internet in a format that is easily accessible by the public. 
 
2.   Suggested energy efficiency standards.     The commission and the Maine State Housing Authority shall prepare suggested energy efficiency standards for landlords and other lessors of residential property that is used by the tenant or lessee as a primary residence. The commission and the Maine State Housing Authority shall post and maintain the standards required by this subsection on the Internet in a format that is easily accessible by the public. 
Sec. 3. Report. The Public Utilities Commission shall prepare and submit a report to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over utilities and energy matters before January 1, 2008 that provides the commission’s assessment of whether the requirements of the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 14, section 6030-C are achieving the purposes of informing prospective tenants of the energy efficiency characteristics of residential properties used as primary residences. The commission also shall include in its report an assessment of whether the form that the commission and the Maine State Housing Authority submitted on January 31, 2006 to the Joint Standing Committee on Utilities and Energy as part of its report pursuant to Resolve 2005, chapter 109 and that, with changes suggested by the committee, will be used as the disclosure statement under Title 35-A, section 10006, subsection 1, requires adjustments to achieve the purposes of Title 14, section 6030-C.
 
SUMMARY
This bill, reported by the Joint Standing Committee on Utilities and Energy pursuant to Resolve 2005, chapter 109, section 4, does the following:
1. It requires landlords of residential property that will be used by tenants as a primary residence to provide to the tenants an energy efficiency disclosure statement for the property and directs the Public Utilities Commission and the Maine State Housing Authority to prepare and distribute an energy efficiency disclosure statement form for landlords to use;
2. It directs the Public Utilities Commission and the Maine State Housing Authority to develop suggested energy efficiency standards for residential property used by tenants as their primary residence; and
3. It requires the Public Utilities Commission to submit to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over utilities and energy matters before January 1, 2008 the commission’s assessment of the effectiveness of the energy disclosure statement in meeting the purposes of the law.