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Bill > LD383
ME LD383
ME LD383An Act to Facilitate the Consolidation of the Department of Environmental Protection and the Maine Land Use Planning Commission into a Single Combined Entity
summary
Introduced
02/04/2025
02/04/2025
In Committee
03/18/2025
03/18/2025
Crossed Over
Passed
Dead
05/29/2025
05/29/2025
Introduced Session
132nd Legislature
Bill Summary
This bill implements statutory changes and other provisions necessary to transition the Maine Land Use Planning Commission from the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry to the Department of Environmental Protection. The bill also requires the Department of Environmental Protection, on or before January 1, 2026, to submit to the Joint Standing Committee on Environment and Natural Resources a report outlining recommendations, including necessary draft legislation, for the consolidation, by July 1, 2028, of the Department of Environmental Protection and the Maine Land Use Planning Commission into a single combined entity, to be known as the Maine Environmental and Land Use Commission. The new Maine Environmental and Land Use Commission must be designed to prioritize landowner rights, ensuring that private landowners are empowered to make use of their property subject to reasonable, well-established rules for the protection of the environment, and its activities and adopted rules must ensure sustainable land use development practices and not unduly or arbitrarily restrict landowner property use except as necessary to protect public health, safety and the environment. After reviewing the report, the committee may report out a bill relating to the report to the Second Regular Session of the 132nd Legislature.
AI Summary
This bill facilitates the transfer of the Maine Land Use Planning Commission (LUPAC) from the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry to the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), with a long-term goal of creating a single combined entity called the Maine Environmental and Land Use Commission by July 1, 2028. The bill makes numerous technical amendments to state statutes to reflect this administrative transfer, including changing references to departmental oversight and reporting requirements. Importantly, the bill requires the DEP to submit a comprehensive report by January 1, 2026, outlining recommendations for the consolidation, with specific provisions to prioritize landowner rights, ensure sustainable land use practices, and create a transparent, efficient regulatory process. The proposed combined entity would be designed to balance environmental protection with property rights, including establishing a landowner rights advisory board, implementing streamlined permit processes, conducting regular rule reviews, and creating a property rights compensation fund. The bill includes detailed transition provisions to ensure continuity of existing rules, contracts, personnel, and resources during the transfer, and mandates that the new entity's rules be subject to rigorous cost-benefit analysis and legislative oversight.
Committee Categories
Agriculture and Natural Resources
Sponsors (7)
Joseph Martin (R)*,
Scott Cyrway (R),
Rachel Henderson (R),
Michael Lance (R),
Josh Morris (R),
Michael Soboleski (R),
Peter Wood (R),
Last Action
Placed in the Legislative Files. (DEAD) (on 05/29/2025)
Official Document
bill text
bill summary
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bill summary
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bill summary
| Document Type | Source Location |
|---|---|
| State Bill Page | https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/display_ps.asp?LD=383&snum=132 |
| Fiscal Note: Text | https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/bills_132nd/fiscalpdfs/FN038301.pdf |
| BillText | https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/getPDF.asp?paper=SP0149&item=1&snum=132 |
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