E. William Stockmeyer

Attorney, Managing Director

E. William Stockmeyer

Attorney, Managing Director

Phone: 207.253.0585 Fax: 207.772.3627 Email: billstockmeyer@dwmlaw.com

84 Marginal Way, Suite 600 Portland, ME 04101-2480

Assistant: Megan Potter Email: mpotter@dwmlaw.com

About

Bill Stockmeyer devotes his practice to advising municipalities, schools, and other local government entities on a wide variety of ever-evolving financial and business matters. Leader of the firm’s Public Finance Group, Bill is rated AV, the highest rating awarded by Martindale Hubbell, is listed in Best Lawyers in America in both Public Finance Law and Education Law, and is elected to the American College of Bond Counsel.

Bill guides clients through bond issuance, budgetary matters, school funding, state education subsidies, school reorganization, construction/renovation projects, public bidding and procurement, town meetings/referendums, real estate, state-level legislation, and public board conflicts of interest. A seasoned practitioner who is keenly attuned to the dynamics driving multi-stakeholder decisions, Bill understands the premium his clients place on clear, practical, and timely advice and assistance, especially in the face of local uncertainty and conflict. Sensitive to the unique fiscal situation of public entities, Bill often suggests cost-effective solutions that save them significant funds.

Bill is approved as local counsel by the Maine Municipal Bond Bank and the New Hampshire Municipal Bond Bank, and he is listed in the “Red Book” of Municipal Bond Attorneys. He serves as bond counsel and issuer’s counsel to his clients on general obligation bonds, lease purchase transactions, and working capital (“TRAN” and “TAN”) financings, as well as on tax credit bonds, revenue bonds, private activity bonds, current and advance refundings, remedial actions, and private letter rulings.

In his free time, Bill enjoys being with his family, tackling home improvement projects, and reading nautical historical novels by Patrick O’Brian. Dedicated to community needs, Bill also serves on both the Board and the Finance Committee of The Morrison Center.

Education

Cornell Law School, J.D., 1986, Board of Editors, Cornell Law Review

Cornell University, M.S., 1979

Cornell University, B.A., 1977

Recognition

Martindale Hubbell, AV Preeminent

Best Lawyers, Public Finance Law (2009-2024)

Best Lawyers, Education Law (2009-2024)

Listed in the “Red Book” of Municipal Bond Attorneys

Representative Clients & Matters

Bill Stockmeyer’s extensive experience includes:

  • For the Town of Skowhegan, Bill developed an advisory ranked choice referendum on the proposed options for the construction financing of the Town’s public safety building. Because Maine’s ranked choice voting statute was limited to certain candidate elections, Bill conceived and implemented a “Yes/No” bond referendum question in combination with an advisory, ranked choice referendum on the multiple site options. The Board of Selectmen used the advisory rankings to break an impasse on the choice of sites, allowing the bond financing for the project to proceed.
  • For RSU 39’s state funded elementary school project in Caribou, Maine, Bill negotiated and drafted agreements and coordinated transactions to assemble the new school site. The site assembly included multiple real estate exchanges between RSU 39, the City of Caribou, and a local developer; a street discontinuance; conveyances from abutters; the relocation of a City park requiring approvals by the City Council and the office of the Maine Attorney General; and National Park Service approval of a 6(f) conversion (relocation) of federal Land and Water conservation grant projects.
  • In numerous situations, Bill has moderated annual budget meetings for Maine school districts. His experience gained at these meetings has enabled him to help in situations where budget annual meetings had previously “gone off the rails.”
  • During the COVID-19 emergency, Bill has advised numerous school districts on the steps and legal documents required for expedited budget approval, as well as on emergency procurements using federal funds.
  • Bill is advising on the organizational structure for Maine’s new “integrated consolidated schools,” which involve a new state funding resource for school construction for combined secondary and post-secondary instruction. The new school entities will require some degree of cooperation among the legally separate participants, but will also need to attend to the need for local control of education in rural Maine. The correct form of instructional governance is expected to release significant state construction funding aid for rural Maine.
  • Bill has helped other school districts in need of enabling legislation for particular needs, including drafting the private and special legislation for the formation of RSU 1, a year in advance of general enabling legislation for RSUs.
  • Bill researched and drafted appropriate documentation for Maine schools to receive allocations of the State’s qualified school construction bonds, qualified zone academy bonds, and qualified energy conservation bonds, enabling them to issue these federal tax credit bonds at zero and near-zero interest rates. Without this work, most if not all of the State’s allocations would have expired.

Publications

Primary Author, School Finance Chapter, Maine School Law, 6th edition (2018).

Memberships

American College of Bond Counsel

National Association of Bond Lawyers

Maine Council of School Board Attorneys

Maine State Bar Association

National Council of School Board Attorneys

Community/Public Service

Morrison Center
Finance Committee and Board of Directors

Past Presentation

From November 3, 2023 9:00 am

Maine School Business Officials 10th Annual Law Seminar

From July 25, 2023 9:00 am

2023 Maine School Finance Summer Institute

From October 7, 2022 9:00 am

Maine School Business Officials 9th Annual Law Seminar

From October 15, 2021 9:00 am

Maine School Business Officials 8th Annual Law Seminar-ZOOM Edition

From July 21, 2021 9:00 am

2021 Maine School Finance Summer Institute (Virtual!)

For 2021, we are taking our School Finance Summer Institute virtual using Zoom, a cloud-based video-conferencing service. The Institute program has been designed with busy educators in mind.

From October 9, 2020 12:00 pm

Maine School Business Officials 7th Annual Law Seminar

From October 4, 2019 12:00 pm

Maine School Business Officials 6th Annual Law Seminar

From October 18, 2018 8:00 am

5th Annual Maine School Business Officials Seminar

From July 24, 2018 11:00 am

2018 Maine School Finance Summer Institute

From November 9, 2017 12:00 pm

Maine School Business Officials 4th Annual Law Seminar

From September 8, 2017 12:00 pm

A New Take on School Consolidation: The Budget Bill Reforms and Other Critical Developments in School Law

From February 15, 2017 9:00 am

Post Issuance Tax Compliance for Tax-Exempt and Tax Credit Borrowing

From October 21, 2016 12:00 pm

Maine School Business Officials 3rd Annual Law Seminar