Maine Revised Statutes Title 12. Conservation § 10253. Maine Endangered and Nongame Wildlife Fund

1. Fund established. The Maine Endangered and Nongame Wildlife Fund, referred to in this section as the “fund,” is established. The fund receives money deposited by the Treasurer of State pursuant to section 10255 and Title 36, section 5284, revenues generated in accordance with this section and any money contributed voluntarily to the fund. All money deposited in the fund and the earnings on that money remain in the fund to be used for the management of nongame wildlife and for necessary administrative and personnel costs associated with the management of nongame wildlife and may not be deposited in the General Fund or any other fund, except as specifically provided by law.

2. Report and allocation. The commissioner shall include a report on the fund as part of the report submitted to the Governor pursuant to section 10103. This report must also be submitted to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over fisheries and wildlife matters. The commissioner shall submit a budget for each biennium in accordance with Title 5, sections 1663 to 1666. The State Controller shall authorize expenditures from the fund as allocated by the Legislature.

3. Grants. Any person, organization or agency of the State may apply to the department for a grant to undertake research and nongame wildlife management activities. The department may award grants out of the fund. For the purposes of this section, “nongame wildlife” includes all unconfined terrestrial, freshwater and saltwater species that are not ordinarily collected, captured or killed for sport or profit.

4. Fundraising. The commissioner or the commissioner's authorized agent may provide for the creation, reproduction, sale, licensing, distribution and other disposal of any art or products for the purpose of generating revenues for the management of the State's nongame wildlife. All money generated from the sale of these items must be deposited in the fund.

5. Repealed. Laws 2025, c. 283, § 1, eff. Sept. 24, 2025.

6. Make Change for Wildlife program. The Make Change for Wildlife program is established to encourage voluntary support for the fund from businesses that collect voluntary customer contributions at the point of sale. Businesses shall deposit contributions collected under this subsection with the Treasurer of State and designate those contributions for deposit in the fund. The Treasurer of State shall credit all contributions to the fund and all money generated pursuant to this subsection must be used only for the purposes described in subsection 1.