Maine Revised Statutes Title 22-A. Health and Human Services § 213. Funds for social services

The department shall administer any funds that may be available from private, local, state or federal sources for the provision of social services as defined by the department. Within any limitation that may apply from the sources of such funds, the department may provide said social services itself, or assure itself of the provision of such services by purchase of services, by contracts or by grants, or by joint provision of services, by contracts or by grants, or by joint provision of services with other agencies through matching agreements.

The department shall adopt rules as necessary to define eligibility for social services, contractual terms, conditions for grants, matching ratios and quality of performance standards and such others as are necessary for the administration of this section. These rules must be published and subject to a 30-day public review prior to taking final effect.

The department may expend any unidentified child support payments and any interest earned on those funds that the department has received when the department cannot identify the child for which payment was made. The department may expend these funds only in its efforts to enforce child support laws in accordance with Title 19-A, chapters 53,  1 63,  2 65  3 and 67.  4 Before making any expenditure, the department must wait at least 12 months from the date the unidentified funds were received.