Title 38, Title 38

The commission shall elect annually, from its own membership, a chair and secretary and such other officers as it deems necessary. Meetings must be held at the call of the chair or at the call of more than 1/2 of the membership. The meetings must be held no less frequently than 8…

The commission shall prepare a biennial budget and shall submit to the Legislature requests for appropriations sufficient to carry out its assigned tasks. The commission may accept contributions of any type from any source to assist it in carrying out its assigned tasks, and make…

1. The commission shall have the power, after notice and public hearing, to adopt such rules and regulations governing its procedures as it deems necessary to carry out the purposes of this chapter. The rules and regulations may cover but shall not be limited to: A. The form and …

1. -- additional. In order to implement this chapter, the commission may, in addition to the powers and duties otherwise authorized by this chapter: A. Adopt an official seal; [PL 1979, c. 459, §1 (NEW).] B. Compel attendance of witnesses and require production of evidence; [PL 1…

The commission may acquire conservation easements or other interest in real estate in the name of the State by gift, purchase, grant, bequest, devise or lease for any of its purposes and may convey administration thereof to any appropriate agency. [PL 1979, c. 459, §1 (NEW).] A c…

1. Guide for boundaries. The comprehensive plan submitted to the 106th Legislature by the Saco River Environmental Advisory Committee must be used as a guide by the planning boards of the municipalities within the corridor in making recommendations for district boundaries and by …

1. Classification. The land and water area within the Saco River Corridor shall be classified by the commission according to the following land and water use districts: A. Resource protection; [PL 1979, c. 459, §1 (NEW).] B. Limited residential; and [PL 1979, c. 459, §1 (NEW).] C…

1. Areas to be included. The Resource Protection District shall include the following areas: A. Wetlands, swamps, marshes and bogs; [PL 1979, c. 459, §1 (NEW).] B. Areas where the entire width of the corridor on one or both sides of the river is within the 100-year floodplain; [P…

1. Areas to be included. The Limited Residential District shall include lands within the corridor which may be suitable for development, but which are not necessary for the growth of areas of intensive development. The Limited Residential District shall serve as the residuary dis…

1. Areas to be included. The General Development District shall include those areas within the corridor which exhibit a clearly defined pattern of intensive residential, commercial or industrial development and such reserve growth areas as may be deemed necessary by the commissio…

1. Omitted uses. Uses not specifically mentioned or covered by any general category in the enumeration of permitted and prohibited uses for each district shall be deemed prohibited unless allowed by special permit upon a showing by the applicant that the soils are suitable for th…

Any existing building or structure or use of a building or structure lawful March 19, 1974, or on the date of any subsequent amendment of this chapter or of any regulation adopted hereunder, may continue although such a use of a structure does not conform to this chapter or the r…

Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, after March 19, 1974, a person may not engage in any use of land or water for which a permit is required under this chapter without first obtaining a permit from the commission and complying with all federal, state and municipal regul…

1. Permits. The commission shall grant permits for uses allowed under this chapter upon a showing by the applicant that the soils are suitable for the proposed use and that it will be in compliance with all applicable performance standards and requirements established under this …

Permits granted under this chapter may be made subject to such reasonable conditions concerning setback, location, spacing, size of structure or development, type of construction, time of completion, landscaping, retention of trees, screening, reclamation, erosion control, noise …

Maps showing district boundaries within the Saco River Corridor shall be kept in the office of the commission and the maps or conformed copies of them shall be available for public inspection during normal business hours. Copies of those portions of such maps including the area o…

Nothing in this chapter prevents municipal, state or federal authorities from adopting and administering more stringent requirements regarding performance standards or permitted uses within use districts established by the commission or within districts overlapping the districts …

1. Standards. Unless otherwise specified, the following performance standards shall be applicable to all uses of land and water areas within the corridor, whether or not a permit is required from the commission. A. No building may be located closer to the Ossipee, Little Ossipee …

The commission, after notice and public hearing, may establish such additional performance standards as it deems necessary to carry out the purposes of this chapter, provided that such standards are consistent with the standards established in section 962. [PL 1977, c. 459, §1 (N…

The commission may initiate, and any municipal agency, an organization qualified under section 966‑A or any property owner or lessee may petition for a change in the boundary of any land use district or for amendments to any additional performance standard adopted pursuant to sec…

1. Variance. A relaxation of the performance standards enacted by this chapter or adopted pursuant thereto may be granted by the commission, after notice and public hearing, upon a finding by the commission that the following provisions are met: A. Application of the performance …

1. No variance where prohibited. No variance shall be granted in order to permit a use within a district in which such use is expressly prohibited, except in accordance with this section. A special use variance may be granted, after notice and public hearing, to permit a single f…

It shall be unlawful to use or occupy, or permit the use or occupancy of, any land, structure or part of any land or structure created, erected, changed, converted or wholly or partly altered or enlarged in its use or structural form, which use or structure requires a permit unde…

The commission may establish reasonable fees for permit applications, variance applications and certificates of compliance. The funds derived from the collection of such fees shall be retained by the commission. The commission may also establish a reasonable schedule of fees for …

The parties to any proceeding before the commission may include the applicant, if any, any landowner whose lands will be directly affected by the proposed action of the commission, any landowner whose lands are adjacent to, directly across the river from, or within 500 feet of la…

1. Participation. A citizens' group or organization may participate in all hearings held by the commission, request and receive notices, bring judicial proceedings and exercise all other rights of parties to proceedings before the commission, provided that the group or organizati…

1. Effect of standards, rules and orders. Standards, rules and orders issued by the commission pursuant to this chapter have the force and effect of law. 2. Conformance required. A person may not undertake development except in conformance with this chapter and the standards, rul…

Except where otherwise specified by statute, any party or person aggrieved by any order or decision of the commission, in regard to any matter upon which there was a hearing before the commission and of which a record of said hearing is available, may, within 30 days after notice…

1. Fund established. The Saco River Corridor Fund, referred to in this section as the "fund," is established as a nonlapsing dedicated, interest-bearing account. All charges collected pursuant to this section must be deposited into the fund. All interest earned by the account acc…