PREFACE

This electronic version of the Laws of the State of Maine is a translation of the official publication of the Session Laws of the State of Maine enacted by the First Regular Session of the 119th Legislature which is compiled and published under the authority of the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 3, section 163-A. The Laws of Maine has been in continuous publication since 1820, when the Acts and Resolves adopted by the First Legislature were published by the Secretary of State under the authority of Resolve 1820, chapter 25.

This web site contains the public laws, private and special laws, resolves, constitutional resolutions and joint study orders enacted at the First Regular Session of the 119th Legislature as well as the subject index to the laws enacted during that session.

Hard copies of Volumes 1 and 2 were published in September 1999 and contain, in addition to the information found at this web site, the 1997 Revisor's Report chapter 2 and a selection of significant addresses, joint resolutions and memorials. Additional volumes of the 1999 Laws of Maine will contain those measures adopted in the Second Regular Session and any subsequent special session of the 119th Legislature.

The following conventions are used throughout the series.

1. At the top of each page is a heading that indicates the individual classification of each law, the year and session of passage and its chapter number. Joint Study Orders are referred to by the Senate Paper (SP) or House Paper (HP) number and title.
2. When a word or phrase is deleted from the statutes, it is shown stricken through. When an entire section or larger segment is repealed, the text that is repealed is not shown stricken but its repeal is indicated by express language.
3. When new words or sections are added to the statutes, they are underlined.
4. Citations to a Legislative Document are printed beneath the chapter number heading to assist in locating the original source of each chapter.
5. The effective date for Maine laws is provided in the Constitution of Maine, Article IV, Part Third, Section 16, which specifies that, except for certain emergency legislation, an act or resolve enacted into law takes effect 90 days after the adjournment of the session in which it passed. The general effective date of nonemergency laws passed at the First Regular Session of the 119th Legislature is September 18, 1999. The effective dates of emergency legislation vary and are provided at the end of the chapters that were enacted as emergencies. The general effective date of September 18, 1999 is provided at the end of all nonemergency laws, with the proviso that other dates within the law itself control.

Copies of a specific chaptered law may be obtained by contacting the Engrossing Division of this office.

This edition of the Laws of Maine and its predecessors have been prepared for the convenience of the people of the State of Maine and any comments or suggestions for improvements in subsequent editions would be appreciated.

Margaret E. Matheson
Revisor of Statutes
July 1999

LEGISLATIVE STATISTICS
FIRST REGULAR SESSION
119th Legislature

Convened	December 2, 1998
Adjourned	June 19, 1999
Days in Session: Senate House of Representatives	68 68
Legislative Documents	2258
Carryover Bills	315*
Public Laws	533
Private & Special Laws	60
Resolves	89
Constitutional Resolutions	2
Initiated Bills	0
Vetoes: Overridden Sustained	1 24
Emergency Enactments	149
Effective Date	September 18, 1999 (unless otherwise indicated)

* Pursuant to Joint Order H.P. 1614, matters before the 119^th First Regular Session were held over to the Second Regular Session.