LD 2081

APPROVED  CHAPTER
  APRIL 13, 2026  670
  BY GOVERNOR  PUBLIC LAW
  STATE OF MAINE
  _____
  IN THE YEAR OF OUR LORD
  TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-SIX
  _____
  H.P. 1396 - L.D. 2081
    An Act to Provide Health Care Cost Reimbursement for Retired Law
  Enforcement Canines
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
   Sec. 1. 25 MRSA c. 203 is enacted to read:
  CHAPTER 203
  RETIRED LAW ENFORCEMENT CANINE HEALTH CARE
§1821. Health care cost reimbursement for retired law enforcement canines
    1. Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the
following terms have the following meanings.
   A. "Agency head" means the chief official of a state law enforcement agency,
   including, but not limited to, the Chief of the State Police, the State Fire Marshal, the
   Game Warden Colonel or the Commissioner of Public Safety.
   B. "Applicant" means a handler of a retired law enforcement canine or an individual
   who adopts a retired law enforcement canine.
   C. "Law enforcement canine" means a canine that has been:
       (1) Certified by a nationally recognized or state-recognized law enforcement
       canine certification organization; and
       (2) Trained and actively deployed in a law enforcement capacity by a state law
       enforcement agency.
   D. "Retired law enforcement canine" means a law enforcement canine that no longer
   serves in active law enforcement duty and:
       (1) Served a minimum of 5 years in active law enforcement duty with one or more
       state law enforcement agencies; or
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        (2) Served less than 5 years in active law enforcement duty with one or more state
        law enforcement agencies and was retired from service due to a medical condition
        diagnosed by a veterinarian licensed in accordance with Title 32, section 4860 and
        approved by the canine's last employing agency head.
    2. Retired Law Enforcement K-9 Health Care Fund. The Retired Law Enforcement
K-9 Health Care Fund, referred to in this section as "the fund," is established in and
administered by the Department of Public Safety. The fund must be held separate and apart
from all other money, funds and accounts. Interest earned by the fund must be credited to
the fund. Any unexpended balances remaining in the fund at the end of any fiscal year do
not lapse and must be carried forward to the next fiscal year.
    A. The fund must be used to reimburse applicants for veterinary health care costs for
    eligible retired law enforcement canines. Reimbursable services include:
        (1) Routine preventive care;
        (2) Treatment of illness or injury; and
        (3) Medications and surgical procedures necessary to maintain the retired law
        enforcement canine's quality of life.
    B. Reimbursement is limited to $5,000 per eligible law enforcement canine for the life
    of the canine, subject to available appropriations and submittal of documentation
    required under subsections 3 and 4. An agency head may, at the agency head's sole
    discretion, provide additional reimbursement from the agency's legislatively authorized
    budget, including, but not limited to, a designated subfund or line-item allocation.
    There is no limit on the amount a law enforcement agency may reimburse from its own
    funds.
    3. Eligibility. To qualify for reimbursement under this section:
    A. A canine must be a retired law enforcement canine;
    B. The applicant must reside in the State;
    C. The canine may not be in active service with any state or local law enforcement
    agency; and
    D. A completed application must be submitted to the Department of Public Safety that
    includes:
        (1) A diagnosis by a veterinarian licensed in accordance with Title 32, section
        4860; and
        (2) Proof of veterinary expenses incurred.
    4. Funding sources. The fund consists of:
    A. Appropriations and allocations from the Legislature;
    B. Contributions from private sources, including donations, grants and endowments;
    and
    C. Fines or fees collected by state law enforcement agencies and allocated by the
    Legislature.
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If appropriations and allocations from the Legislature are insufficient, a law enforcement
agency may use funds from its legislatively authorized budget, including agency-specific
subfunds or designated line-item allocations, to reimburse veterinary expenses for a retired
law enforcement canine that served in that agency. Such a reimbursement is at the sole
discretion of the agency head.
     5. Rulemaking. The Commissioner of Public Safety shall adopt rules to implement
this section. The rules must:
    A. Establish reimbursement guidelines;
    B. Establish application procedures;
    C. Ensure equitable distribution of funds; and
    D. Identify procedures for maintaining records of disbursements.
Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5,
chapter 375, subchapter 2-A.
    Sec. 2. Appropriations and allocations. The following appropriations and
allocations are made.
PUBLIC SAFETY, DEPARTMENT OF
Retired Law Enforcement K-9 Health Care Fund N571
Initiative: Establishes the Retired Law Enforcement K-9 Health Care Fund.
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS  2025-26  2026-27
 All Other  $0  $500
  __________       __________
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS TOTAL  $0  $500
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