[co-author: Sarah Simon, 2025 Summer Associate]
On May 23, 2025, Maine’s Governor Janet Mills signed into law “An Act to Require Landowners to Report Their Participation in a Forest Carbon Program or Project” (H.P.3 – L.D. 39; codified at 12 MRSA § 8881, sub-§2-A-C; 12 MRSA § 8885, sub-§2-B, sub-§3). The new law requires landowners enrolled in forest carbon credit programs or projects to report, on an annual basis, basic data on their participation in such programs to the state of Maine. With this enactment, Maine becomes the second state, following New Hampshire, to track landowners enrolled in forest carbon credit programs.
Maine landowners are required to file a report with the Department of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry disclosing the name of the forest carbon credit program or project, the name of the forest carbon protocol or registry used by the program, the name and contact information of the landowner(s), period of enrollment, date of enrollment, and total forest acreage enrolled. The law will take effect 90 days after the close of the legislative session, with the first reports likely due in January 2026 for projects enrolled in 2025. Landowners who enrolled in these forest carbon credit programs before the bill was signed into law must report their previous participation by July 1, 2026. After that, reports will be due each January for the prior year. The law applies to enrollment in voluntary or regulatory programs but does not require landowners to report on credit issuance, sales, or the financial value of the credits. The reporting obligation does not extend to any non-forest carbon credit programs.
The purpose of the reporting requirement is to provide the state with visibility into the emerging carbon credit market and the amount of land in Maine enrolled in such programs. Maine has a goal of reaching net-zero emissions by 2045, and forest carbon is a major offset to the state’s emissions. However, a potential challenge arises if these credits are sold in external markets to offset emissions elsewhere. Maine’s robust forest products industry also has an interest in understanding how carbon credit project enrollment may impact the overall amount of land available for harvest.
Maine’s new carbon credit reporting law is part of a growing trend towards greater disclosure of carbon credit generation and use as states and other governments grapple with the greenhouse gas accounting impacts of such projects, along with their potential economic benefits or impacts.
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