PFAS Fund closes on 108‑acre Waldo County parcel; department seeks leasing authority and will consider PILOT payments

The Maine PFAS Fund closed on its first property acquisition — a 108‑acre parcel in Waldo County purchased for $333,000 — and staff outlined next steps for stewardship and municipal payments at an advisory committee meeting.

PFAS Fund staff said about 75% of the parcel is forested and 25% is open field, with the field mainly classified as prime farmland or farmland of statewide importance. Soil sampling on the site measured approximately 22 parts per billion PFAS in soil. Beth, who leads land acquisition and stewardship work for the fund, said the site historically produced hay and that with the measured soil level "the hay grown on this property should not be the sole source of feed for a grass based dairy, but it's likely that other products can be grown on this property, for example corn, especially if that corn is mixed with other feed sources."

Next steps and legal limits: Staff said the department intends to enroll the property in the Maine Department of Environmental Protection's voluntary response action program (VRAP) to identify and record use restrictions in the Waldo County registry of deeds. Because state agencies cannot pay property taxes, staff described payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTs) as a voluntary policy tool the fund may use to mitigate municipal impacts while the state owns property. Under fund rule chapter 405, payments of PILOTs are allowed, and staff said municipalities may or may not request them.

Leasing authority: The department does not currently have authority to lease PFAS‑acquired land; staff pointed to a pending legislative bill (LD 130) that the ACF committee had presented to the legislature to seek leasing authority and to direct lease or sale proceeds back into the PFAS Fund. Committee members raised concerns about the long‑term fiscal effect of PILOTs and the potential for outsized municipal impacts if multiple properties are held long term. Beth said the fund will ask municipal assessors to estimate values under farmland or open‑space tax laws to create a rational basis for any PILOT payments rather than enrolling the state property in those tax programs.

Comments from the advisory committee included questions about frequency and basis for payments and emphasis on being strategic given the fund's finite resources. Beth said the fund expects to have additional purchase and sale agreements for other properties in the near term and that staff will continue discussion with the land advisory panel on PILOT policy and implementation.

No formal vote was recorded in the transcript; staff committed to continue developing the leasing and PILOT approach and to follow DEP VRAP enrollment steps for the Waldo County parcel.