Title 25, Title 25

This chapter may be known and cited as "the Extreme Risk Protection Order Act."

As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. [IB 2025, c. 1, §6 (NEW).] 1. Court. "Court" means a District Court in this State. 2. Dangerous weapon. "Dangerous weapon" has the same meaning as in Title 17‑A, sect…

1. Jurisdiction. The court has jurisdiction over proceedings under this chapter. 2. Venue. A proceeding under this chapter must be commenced in the judicial division where the respondent resides or where events that give rise to the petition occurred. If a District Court Judge is…

1. Petition. A family or household member, a law enforcement agency or a law enforcement officer may file a petition requesting that the court issue an extreme risk protection order in accordance with this subsection. A. A petition filed pursuant to this subsection must allege th…

1. Petition. In filing a petition under this chapter, a petitioner may request that the court issue an emergency extreme risk protection order. An emergency extreme risk protection order may be issued ex parte, without prior notice to the respondent. A. A petitioner seeking an em…

1. Motion to terminate. A motion to terminate an extreme risk protection order issued pursuant to section 2244 is subject to the provisions of this subsection. A. The respondent may file a motion to terminate an extreme risk protection order issued pursuant to section 2244 or an …

1. Form of service; transmittal. A petition, emergency extreme risk protection order, extreme risk protection order or notice of a hearing issued pursuant to this chapter must be served by a law enforcement officer in accordance with the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure. A court th…

1. Fee. A fee may not be charged for forms or for filing a petition, motion or other request for relief under this chapter. 2. Rules; other actions not barred. Proceedings commenced under this chapter must be in accordance with the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure. A proceeding und…

1. Law enforcement officers and agencies. Law enforcement officers are authorized to enforce orders issued pursuant to this chapter. A law enforcement agency shall adopt a written policy on the enforcement of this chapter and the handling of extreme risk protection orders. 2. Fai…

1. Relinquishment by respondent. A respondent who is required to relinquish a dangerous weapon in the respondent's possession, custody or control under an extreme risk protection order issued pursuant to this chapter, upon service of the order, shall immediately relinquish the da…

An extreme risk protection order issued pursuant to this chapter is a final order for the purposes of appeal.

1. Annual report; submission to Legislature. The State Court Administrator, acting at the direction of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Court, shall prepare an annual report on and relating to the application of this chapter by the courts. By January 1, 2027 and annually…

In every town and city of more than 2,000 inhabitants, and in every town of 2,000 inhabitants or less, if such a town so votes at a town meeting, and in each village corporation, if such a corporation so votes at the annual meeting of the corporation, the municipal officers shall…

A building official in the performance of the building official's official duty may enter any building for the purpose of making the inspection required by chapters 313 to 321.

The building official shall inspect each building during the process of construction so far as may be necessary to see that all proper safeguards against the catching or spreading of fire are used, that the chimneys and flues are made safe and that proper cutoffs are placed betwe…

Subject to Title 32, chapter 139, the building official shall inspect all buildings while they are in process of being repaired and see that all reasonable safeguards are used against the catching and spreading of fire and that the chimneys and flues are made safe. The building o…

Unless an alternative appeal process has been established by ordinance pursuant to Title 10, section 9724, subsection 5, an appeal in writing may be taken from any order or direction of the building official to the municipal officers, whose order thereon is final.

A building in a municipality of more than 2,000 inhabitants may not be occupied until the building official has given a certificate of occupancy for compliance with the inspections required by section 2353‑A. A building in a municipality of more than 2,000 inhabitants that has ad…

If the owner of any building neglects or refuses for more than 30 days to comply with any direction of the building official concerning the repairs on any building as provided in section 2354, the owner must be penalized in accordance with Title 30‑A, section 4452.

An owner or occupant of a building who refuses to permit a building official to enter the building or willfully obstructs the building official in the inspection of the building as required by chapters 313 to 321 must be penalized in accordance with Title 30‑A, section 4452.

The building official, the fire inspector and the municipal officers of any city or town may at all reasonable hours, for the purpose of examination, enter into and upon all buildings and premises within their jurisdiction. Whenever any of those officers find in any building or u…

1. Municipal enforcement. 1-A. Municipal enforcement. Effective December 1, 2010, duly appointed fire chiefs or their designees, municipal building officials and code enforcement officers, when authorized by their respective municipal employer, may bring a civil action in the nam…

As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. [PL 2007, c. 699, §11 (NEW).] 1. Board. "Board" means the Technical Building Codes and Standards Board established in Title 5, section 12004‑G, subsection 5‑A. 2. Bui…

1. Established. The Division of Building Codes and Standards is established within the office to provide administrative support and technical assistance to the board in executing its duties pursuant to Title 10, section 9722, subsection 6. 2. Staff. The director may appoint and m…

The code must be enforced in a municipality that has more than 4,000 residents. The code must be enforced through inspections that comply with the code through any of the following means: [PL 2019, c. 391, §7 (AMD).] 1. Building officials. Building officials and local code enforc…

The Uniform Building Codes and Standards Fund, referred to in this section as "the fund," is established within the office to fund the activities of the division under this chapter and the activities of the board under Title 10, chapter 1103 and Title 30‑A, section 4451, subsecti…

Each municipality not having an organized fire department, at its annual meeting, shall elect at least one fire ward, who shall be a fire inspector. Such fire inspectors shall perform the duties set forth in sections 2392 to 2395. If more than one fire ward is elected by any muni…

The State Fire Marshal or public safety inspectors, upon the complaint of a person or whenever they determine it necessary, may inspect all buildings and premises within their jurisdiction. The State Fire Marshal or a public safety inspector may forbid the use of a building or ot…

If any person fails to comply with the order of any officer under section 2392 or with the decision of the Commissioner of Public Safety on review and within the time fixed, then such officer or the Commissioner of Public Safety may file a complaint in the Superior Court in the c…

When property is destroyed or damaged by fire, the municipal fire inspector shall investigate the cause, circumstances and origin of the fire, and especially examine whether it was the result of carelessness or of design. The Attorney General may supervise and direct such investi…

The municipal fire chief or a designee shall submit to the State Fire Marshal an incident report for each response made, regardless of whether an actual fire occurred. The report must be submitted in a manner consistent with a national fire incident reporting system.

The Office of the State Fire Marshal is established as a bureau within the Department of Public Safety. The Commissioner of Public Safety, with the advice and consent of the Governor and subject to review by the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over…

For purposes of this Part, unless the context indicates otherwise, "public safety inspector" means an inspector acting under the direction of the Commissioner of Public Safety or the commissioner's designee.

The Attorney General, or the Attorney General's designee, has the power to summon and compel the attendance of witnesses before them or either of them, to testify in relation to any matter that is a subject of inquiry and investigation under sections 2394 to 2396 and to compel th…

The Commissioner of Public Safety may incur reasonable expenses in educating the public in fire prevention and protection. [PL 1973, c. 727, §1 (RPR).] Every fire insurance company or association that does business or collects premiums or assessments in the State shall pay to the…

Municipal fire inspectors shall record or cause to be recorded all returns made under this chapter.

Any municipal fire inspector or any insurance company neglecting or refusing to perform any duty required by this chapter shall be punished by a fine of not less than $10 nor more than $100 for each offense.

1. Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. A. "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Public Safety or the commissioner's designee. [PL 2001, c. 439, Pt. BBBBB, §1 (NEW).] B. "Fund" means the …

As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. [PL 1981, c. 404, §2 (NEW).] 1. Action. "Action" includes nonaction or the failure to take action. 2. Authorized agencies. "Authorized agencies" means: A. Attorney Ge…

1. Information disclosed. Any authorized agency investigating a fire loss may, in writing, require the insurance company at interest to release to the requesting agency any or all relevant information or evidence deemed important to the authorized agency, which the company may ha…

1. Confidentiality. Any authorized agency or insurance company which receives any information pursuant to this chapter shall hold it in confidence and not release the information, except to another authorized agency, until its release is required for a criminal or civil proceedin…

1. Reasonable cause to suspect; information disclosed. A health care practitioner, as defined by Title 24, section 2502, subsection 1‑A, who, as a result of the practitioner's examination or treatment of a person for a burn injury, has reasonable cause to suspect that the burn in…

On complaint of any citizen that a stove, stovepipe, oven, furnace, boiler or appurtenance is defective, out of repair or so placed in any building as to endanger it or any other building, the Commissioner of Public Safety or municipal officers of any town of not more than 2,000 …

Whoever with intent to injure another causes a fire to be kindled, whereby the property of any other person is injured or destroyed, commits a Class D crime.

The common law right to an action for damages done by fires is not taken away or diminished and it may be pursued notwithstanding the penalties set forth in chapters 313 to 321.

Penalties provided in sections 2432 and 2439 may be recovered by complaint, indictment or civil action, 1/2 to the municipality where the offense is committed and 1/2 to the State.