Title 13, Title 13

Associations formed under this subchapter and foreign corporations and associations admitted to do business in the State and entitled to the benefits of this subchapter shall pay the annual license fee required of other business corporations and foreign corporations.

The return upon capital shall not exceed 6% per year upon the paid-up capital and shall be noncumulative. Total return upon capital distributed for any single period shall not exceed 50% of the net savings for that period.

Articles of incorporation for the formation of an association under this subchapter must be drawn up and filed in the same manner and under the same provisions as for organizing business corporations under Title 13-C, except where such procedure would be inconsistent with this su…

Any 3 or more natural persons or 2 or more associations may incorporate in this State under this subchapter.

An association may be incorporated under this subchapter to engage in any one or more lawful mode or modes of acquiring, producing, building, operating, manufacturing, furnishing, exchanging or distributing any type or types of property, commodities, goods or services for the pri…

An association shall have the capacity to act possessed by natural persons and the authority to do anything required or permitted by this subchapter and also: 1. Continuation. To continue as a corporation for the time specified in its articles; 2. Seal. To have a corporate seal a…

Bylaws shall be adopted, amended or repealed by at least a majority vote of the members voting.

Regular meetings shall be held as prescribed in the bylaws, but shall be held at least once a year. Special meetings may be demanded by a majority vote of the directors or by written petition of at least 3/10 of the membership, in which case it shall be the duty of the secretary …

Each member of an association shall have one and only one vote, except that where an association includes among its members any number of other associations or groups organized on a cooperative basis, the voting rights of such member associations or groups may be as prescribed in…

If an association has provided for voting by delegates, any provision of this subchapter referring to votes cast by the members shall apply to votes cast by delegates; but this shall not permit delegates to vote by mail.

Unless specified otherwise in an association's articles of incorporation or bylaws, members are permitted to vote by proxy. [PL 1997, c. 7, §2 (NEW).] 1. Appointment of agent. The appointment of one or more agents to vote on behalf of the member must be by written proxy executed …

Any natural person, association, incorporated or unincorporated group organized on a cooperative basis or any nonprofit group shall be eligible for membership in an association, if it has met the qualifications for eligibility, if any, stated in the articles or bylaws and shall b…

Any natural person or group eligible for membership and legally obligated to purchase a share or shares of, or membership in, an association shall be deemed a subscriber. The articles or bylaws may determine whether, and the conditions under which, any voting rights or other righ…

Members are not jointly or severally liable for any debts of the association, nor may a subscriber be so liable except to the extent of the unpaid amount on the shares or membership certificates subscribed by the subscriber. A subscriber may not be released from such liability by…

A member may be expelled by the vote of a majority of the members voting at a regular or special meeting. The member against whom the charges are to be preferred shall be informed thereof in writing at least 10 days in advance of the meeting, and shall have an opportunity to be h…

At least once a year the members or the directors, or both, as the articles or bylaws may provide, shall apportion the net savings of the association in the following order. 1. Reserve fund. Not less than 10% shall be placed in a reserve fund until such time as the fund shall equ…

No certificate for share or membership capital shall be issued until the par value thereof has been paid for in full. There shall be printed upon each certificate issued by an association a full or condensed statement of the requirements of sections pertaining to one-member-one-v…

If a member desires to withdraw from the association or dispose of any or all of the member's holdings, the directors may purchase such holdings by paying the member the par value of any or all of the holdings offered. The directors shall then reissue or cancel the same. A vote o…

An association may, at any regular or special meeting legally called, be directed to dissolve by a vote of 2/3 of the entire membership. By a vote of a majority of the members voting, 3 of their number shall be designated as trustees, who shall, on behalf of the association and w…

This subchapter may be known and cited as the "Maine Cooperative Affordable Housing Ownership Act."

As used in this subchapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. [PL 1993, c. 300, §1 (NEW).] 1. Conversion. "Conversion" means a change in character of residential real property from a rental to an ownership basis. Creation of …

1. Nonprofit. Cooperative affordable housing corporations are considered nonprofit inasmuch as they are not organized to make a profit for themselves or for their members. 2. Applicability. Except as otherwise provided in this subchapter, cooperative affordable housing corporatio…

A person, firm, corporation or association, domestic or foreign, commencing business in this State after the effective date of this section may not use the word "cooperative" or "co-op" as a part of its corporate name unless it has complied with this subchapter or any other law o…

1. Personal property. A cooperative interest is personal property. 2. Nonseverable interest. The possessory interest evidenced by a proprietary lease is a part of and may not be severed from a cooperative interest.

1. Creation of security interest. Security interests in shares of cooperative affordable housing corporations may be created, perfected and enforced in the same manner as security interests in certificated securities under Title 11, Articles 8‑A and 9‑A. A lender may perfect such…

Articles of incorporation of a cooperative affordable housing corporation must contain the following provisions in addition to those required by Title 13‑C: [RR 2001, c. 2, Pt. B, §28 (COR); RR 2001, c. 2, Pt. B, §58 (AFF).] 1. One class of stock. A statement that the cooperative…

Within 6 months after the first conveyance of a share to a member, an organizational meeting of the cooperative affordable housing corporation must be held for the purpose of adopting bylaws, electing officers and transacting such other business as may come before the meeting.

1. Capital stock. A cooperative affordable housing corporation must be organized on a membership basis with capital stock. 2. Requirements. A cooperative affordable housing corporation must have one class of stock and one class of members. The designation, qualifications, require…

The bylaws of a cooperative affordable housing corporation must contain procedures under which the cooperative affordable housing corporation's possessory remedy will be pursued in the event of a member's default and the rights of a defaulting member, in accordance with section 1…

A cooperative affordable housing corporation shall issue shares to its members as evidence of their ownership of a cooperative interest. The shares must be in a form prescribed in the articles of incorporation or bylaws of the cooperative affordable housing corporation. Restricti…

1. One vote per member. Except as provided in subsection 5, the votes in a cooperative affordable housing corporation must be assigned so that each member has one vote. 2. Nonmembers on board. Nonmembers may be elected by the membership of the cooperative affordable housing corpo…

A cooperative affordable housing corporation may not consolidate or merge with another corporation other than a cooperative affordable housing corporation. Two or more cooperative affordable housing corporations may consolidate or merge in accordance with Title 13‑C, chapter 11. …

A cooperative affordable housing corporation may organize as a limited equity cooperative in order to fulfill the public purpose of providing and preserving housing for persons and households of low income and moderate income at the time that they purchase their memberships. In a…

Every member of a cooperative affordable housing corporation is entitled to receive from the cooperative affordable housing corporation a written proprietary lease that must include the following: [PL 1993, c. 300, §1 (NEW).] 1. Personal property security interest. A provision th…

1. Materials provided to prospective members. In conjunction with the offering of cooperative interests to prospective members, a person or entity offering to sell cooperative interests shall provide to a purchaser prior to the execution of a subscription agreement by the purchas…

Failure or neglect to provide to purchasers the documents and disclosures required by section 1756 is considered a violation of Title 10, chapter 206.

By vote of at least 80% of its members or any larger percentage specified in the articles of incorporation or bylaws, a cooperative affordable housing corporation may vote to dissolve and terminate its proprietary leases. In addition, a cooperative affordable housing corporation …

Any lender is authorized to make loans secured by shares in a cooperative affordable housing corporation, including limited equity cooperatives. For purposes of Title 9‑A, section 1‑202, subsection (8), a loan secured by shares of a cooperative affordable housing corporation must…

1. Apportionment. Subject to subsection 2, the board of directors of a cooperative affordable housing corporation may apportion annually the remainder of its net income in one or more of the following ways: A. As a reserve fund for the general operation of the cooperative afforda…

Title 5, chapter 337, subchapter IV applies to all cooperative affordable housing corporations in the State.

1. Property not tax-exempt. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, cooperative property does not qualify for property tax exemption under Title 36, section 652, subsection 1, paragraph A. 2. Eligibility for property tax relief. Without limiting the eligibility of m…

A cooperative affordable housing corporation may organize as a group equity cooperative for the purpose of providing and preserving housing for classes of low-income or moderate-income households at the time that the person or household purchases a membership. A group equity coop…

1. Program inclusion. Housing cooperatives and residents of housing cooperatives as classified or categorized in subsection 2 as owners, landlords, tenants or renters must be considered for eligibility as owners, landlords, tenants or renters for all state and municipal housing a…

This subchapter may be cited as the "Uniform Agricultural Cooperative Association Act".

It is the declared policy of this State, as one means of improving the economic position of agriculture, to encourage the organization of producers of agricultural products into effective associations under the control of such producers, and to that end this subchapter should be …

This subchapter shall be so interpreted and construed as to effectuate its general purpose to make uniform the law of those states which enact it.