»Chapter 100, Definitions Regulation [Posted on Friday October 16, 2020] On February 6, 2020, the Maine Board of Environmental Protection voted to authorize the submission on behalf of the Governor of a petition to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator, under Section 176A of the Clean Air Act (CAA), to remove certain portions of Maine from the Ozone Transport Region (OTR).
EPA recently notified the Department that amending the definition of "Ozone Transport Region" in the Department's Chapter 100 Definitions Regulation is necessary to facilitate processing of the Departments petition because the current State Implementation Plan-approved definition includes the entire state of Maine. Since approval of the Departments Section 176A Petition would reduce the geographic extent of the OTR in Maine, the Department is proposing to revise this definition to exclude those parts of the state to be removed from the OTR by the EPA Administrator pursuant to CAA Section 176A.
The Department will be submitting the changes to this rule, including previous amendments adopted on January 14, 2019, to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for approval in Maine's State Implementation Plan.
On October 15 the Board voted to post the proposed rule changes to public hearing on November 19, 2020.
Directions on how to attend the hearing will be posted on the Department's rulemaking website and the Board's webpage one week before the hearing. Persons who want to testify at the hearing are encouraged to add their name to a testimony signup list prior to the start of the hearing by emailing their name to Board staff at
by close of business on Monday, November 16th. »Chapters 156, 158, CO2 Budget Trading [Posted on Wednesday October 14, 2020] Chapter 156: CO2 Budget Trading Program
Chapter 158: CO2 Budget Trading Program Auction Provisions
This proposal updates the rules governing the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative to conform with the updated Model Rule published by RGGI, Inc. on December 19, 2017 and revised on December 14, 2018. The changes maintain Maine's participation in the program through 2030 and beyond by defining Maine's emissions cap and rate of cap reduction in alignment with the other participating states. The proposed amendments to Chapters 156 and 158 include updates to the CO2 allowance allocation provisions, changes to definitions supporting the updates, and the deletion of the SF6 (sulfur hexafluoride) and energy efficiency offset categories.
The proposed CO2 allowance allocation amendments include:
- CO2 budget trading program base budget (in tons) for 2021 through 2030.
- The creation of an emissions containment reserve (ECR) allowing greater emissions reductions in the event that reductions prove less expensive than anticipated. States implementing the ECR will withhold allowances from an auction if the ECR trigger price is not met.
- The CCR trigger price is established at $13 in 2021. Each year after 2021, the CCR trigger price is 1.07 multiplied by the CCR trigger price from the previous calendar year.
- The number of CCR allowances available for each year from 2021 onward is established.
- The CO2 budget trading program adjusted budget is established for 2021 through 2025 (formula)