130th MAINE LEGISLATURE
		LD 494		LR 433(02)
	An Act To Change the Compensation Structure of the Maine Labor Relations Board and the State Board of Arbitration and Conciliation
	Fiscal Note for Bill as Amended by Committee Amendment " "
	Committee: Labor and Housing
	Fiscal Note Required: Yes
Fiscal Note
Potential current biennium cost increase - General Fund Rate increase offset by higher fee revenue - Other Special Revenue Funds
Fiscal Detail and Notes
	Increasing the per diem rate for members of the State Board of Arbitration and Conciliation from $150 to $300 a day for their services, except when meeting to deliberate or vote with respect to a matter before the Maine Labor Relations Board, will increase  personal services costs to the board.  The amount will depend on the number of days the State Board of Arbitration and Conciliation members are actually employed in the discharge of their official duties, excluding the one exception.  Because the per diem and other necessary expenses of the board are shared equally by the parties that agree to use the Board of Arbitration and Conciliation services, the cost of this change will be paid by fees collected from the interested parties.
	This bill also includes a provision that will allow the Maine Labor Relations Board to pay per diem and other necessary expenses for members and alternates of the board from the board's General Fund appropriation if doing so would not create a financial hardship for the board.  This preliminary fiscal impact statement assumes that the board will manage the additional costs of this provision within its existing budgeted resources and no additional General Fund appropriations will be required.