MSBA Legislative Update March 12, 2010 FORECLOSURE BRIEFING On March 10, 2010, the Insurance and Financial Services Committee received a briefing from District Court Judge Andre Janelle regarding Maine’s foreclosure mediation program. The foreclosure mediation program was established by P.L. 2009, ch. 402, § 18, which was enacted in the summer of 2009. The program began as a pilot project in York County but is now operational in all sixteen Maine counties. Judge Janelle described the mediation process. He also explained some of the outcomes of mediations, such as loan modifications, short sales and transfers of deeds in lieu of foreclosure. He admitted that not all foreclosures are forestalled by the mediation process, but nonetheless characterized the program as a success. The Committee was very interested in the report and asked a number of questions about how to improve the process. Judge Janelle explained that there have been few problems with implementation. He did note that some out-of-state lenders are difficult to locate, that some lenders may not use the process in good faith and that lenders and homeowners do not always appear at mediations. These problems, however, were not portrayed as widespread. COMMITTEES WINDING DOWN Many of the Legislative committees have finalized their work for the second regular session. From the beginning of the session in January, legislative leadership “encouraged” the committees to move quickly through public hearings and work sessions in order to complete work by mid-March. Though some committees continue to have hearings and work sessions scheduled, it is clear that the Legislature is well on its way to completing its work in a timely manner. The action now will be more focused on the floor of the House and Senate, while bills and amendments make their way through floor debate. In the meantime, the Appropriations Committee continues its work to create a supplemental budget which addresses the $300 million plus deficit. To date, the Appropriations Committee continues to receive recommendations from the various jurisdictional committees, but has not yet urged all of the various recommendations into a draft proposal. LEGISLATIVE DATABASE We have linked to an updated copy of your Legislative Database. We recommend you read the database carefully, because a number of legislative proposals have been introduced, with public hearings and work sessions already scheduled. Click here to open the database. REGULATORY DATABASE We have linked to an updated Regulatory Database highlighting any changes in new proposed or newly adopted rules of interest to MSBA. Click here to open the Regulatory Database. As always, please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions: Pattie Aho at 207-622-6311 or paho@pierceatwood.com