Title 1

This subchapter may be known and cited as "the Freedom of Access Act."

The Legislature finds and declares that public proceedings exist to aid in the conduct of the people's business. It is the intent of the Legislature that their actions be taken openly and that the records of their actions be open to public inspection and their deliberations be co…

1. Conditional approval. Approval of an application or granting of a license, certificate or any other type of permit upon conditions not otherwise specifically required by the statute, ordinance or regulation pursuant to which the approval or granting is issued. 1-A. Legislative…

1. Proceedings open to public. Except as otherwise provided by statute or by section 405, all public proceedings must be open to the public and any person must be permitted to attend a public proceeding. 2. Record of public proceedings. Unless otherwise provided by law, a record …

1. Remote participation. This section governs remote methods of participation in public proceedings of certain public bodies. For the purposes of this section, "remote methods" means telephonic or video technology allowing simultaneous reception of information and may include oth…

In order to facilitate the public policy so declared by the Legislature of opening the public's business to public scrutiny, all persons shall be entitled to attend public proceedings and to make written, taped or filmed records of the proceedings, or to live broadcast the same, …

Those bodies or agencies falling within this subchapter may hold executive sessions subject to the following conditions. [PL 1975, c. 758 (NEW).] 1. Not to defeat purposes of subchapter. An executive session may not be used to defeat the purposes of this subchapter as stated in s…

Public notice shall be given for all public proceedings as defined in section 402, if these proceedings are a meeting of a body or agency consisting of 3 or more persons. This notice shall be given in ample time to allow public attendance and shall be disseminated in a manner rea…

1. Conditional approval or denial. Every agency shall make a written record of every decision involving the conditional approval or denial of an application, license, certificate or any other type of permit. The agency shall set forth in the record the reason or reasons for its d…

Except as otherwise provided by statute, a person has the right to inspect and copy any public record in accordance with this section within a reasonable time of making the request to inspect or copy the public record. [PL 2011, c. 662, §5 (NEW).] 1. Inspect. A person may inspect…

1. Records. Any person aggrieved by a refusal or denial to inspect or copy a record or the failure to allow the inspection or copying of a record under section 408‑A may appeal the refusal, denial or failure within 30 calendar days of the receipt of the written notice of refusal,…

1. Civil violation. An officer or employee of a state government agency or local government entity who willfully violates this subchapter commits a civil violation. 2. Penalties. A state government agency or local government entity whose officer or employee commits a civil violat…

1. Advisory committee established. The Right To Know Advisory Committee, referred to in this chapter as "the advisory committee," is established to serve as a resource for ensuring compliance with this chapter and upholding the integrity of the purposes underlying this chapter as…

1. Training required. A public access officer, a board member and an official subject to this section shall complete a course of training on the requirements of this chapter relating to public records and proceedings. The official, board member or public access officer shall comp…

1. Designation; responsibility. Each agency, county, municipality, board or commission established under Title 5, chapter 379, school administrative unit and regional or other political subdivision shall designate an existing employee as its public access officer to serve as the …

An agency shall consider, in the purchase of and contracting for computer software and other information technology resources, the extent to which the software or technology will: [PL 2011, c. 662, §8 (NEW).] 1. Maximize public access. Maximize public access to public records; an…

As used in this subchapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. [PL 2003, c. 709, §3 (NEW).] 1. Public records exception. "Public records exception" or "exception" means a provision in a statute or a proposed statute that decla…

1. Recommendations. During the second regular session of each Legislature, the review committee may report out legislation containing its recommendations concerning the repeal, modification and continuation of public records exceptions and any recommendations concerning the excep…

1. Scheduling guidelines. 2. Scheduling guidelines. 2-A. Scheduling guidelines. The advisory committee shall use the following list as a guideline for scheduling reviews of public records exceptions and reporting its recommendations to the review committee: A. Exceptions enacted …

1. Procedures before legislative committees. Whenever a legislative measure containing a new public records exception is proposed or a change that affects the accessibility of a public record is proposed, the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over th…

Whoever intentionally removes any book, record, document or instrument belonging to or kept in any state office, except books and documents kept and deposited in the State Library, intentionally secretes, alters, mutilates, defaces or destroys any such book, record, document or i…

As used in this subchapter, the word "agency" shall mean a state department, agency, office, board, commission; or quasi-independent agency, board, commission, authority or institution.

1. Definitions. As used in this section, the term "publications" includes periodicals; newsletters; bulletins; pamphlets; leaflets; directories; bibliographies; statistical reports; brochures; plan drafts; planning documents; reports; special reports; committee and commission min…

All Maine reports, digests, statutes, codes and laws, printed or purchased by the State and previously distributed by law to the several towns and plantations within the State, shall be and remain the property of the State and shall be held in trust by such towns or plantations f…

All revisions of and supplements to the statutes, the session laws and the Maine Reports sold or furnished to any state, county or municipal officer must be held in trust by that officer for the sole use of that officer's office; and at the expiration of that officer's term of of…

All publications printed or published by the State as a requirement of law shall set forth the authority for the same at an appropriate place on each copy printed or published. Publications printed or published by the State which are not required by law shall set forth the source…

All addressees on mailing lists used for the distribution of all matters printed or distributed at state expense by dedicated or undedicated revenues shall at least once in every 12-month period be contacted in writing to inquire if continuance of delivery to said addressees is d…

1. Available to public. The Governor shall maintain in the Governor's office a file containing a copy of every executive order issued by that Governor or by previous governors that is currently in effect. This file must be open to public inspection at reasonable hours. 2. Dissemi…

This chapter may be known and cited as the "InforME Public Information Access Act."

As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. [PL 1997, c. 713, §1 (NEW).] 1. Board. "Board" means the InforME Board established in section 534. 1-A. Agency fees. "Agency fees" are fees defined in statute or agen…

Information Resource of Maine, referred to as "InforME," is established with the following purposes: [PL 1997, c. 713, §1 (NEW).] 1. Electronic gateway. To serve as a self-supporting and cost-effective electronic gateway to provide and enhance access to the State's public informa…

1. Membership. The InforME Board, as established in Title 5, section 12004‑G, subsection 30‑A, consists of 15 voting members and 2 nonvoting, advisory members as follows: A. The Secretary of State or the Secretary of State's designee; [PL 1997, c. 713, §1 (NEW).] B. Three members…

1. Criteria and specifications; contract terms. The Chief Information Officer within the Department of Administrative and Financial Services or the Chief Information Officer's designee, in consultation with the board, shall develop criteria and specifications for a network manage…

1. Voluntary cooperation. All data custodians may voluntarily cooperate with the network manager in providing public information, access to public information and assistance as may be requested for achieving InforME's purposes. 2. Duplication of fee services. Executive branch and…

1. Funding. InforME is self-supporting and may not receive an appropriation or allocation from the General Fund or other state funds. Revenue is generated through fees on services paid by data custodians, subscribers or users, from contracts with other state departments and agenc…

1. Information. The information developed by the network manager for InforME and public information made available through InforME is owned by the public, and copyright or licensing restrictions may not be fixed to this information by the board, the network manager or data custod…

As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. [PL 2001, c. 321, Pt. B, §1 (NEW).] 1. Personal information. "Personal information" means information about a natural person that readily identifies that specific per…

Each public entity that has a publicly accessible site on the Internet associated with it shall develop a policy regarding its practices relating to personal information and shall post notice of those practices on its publicly accessible site on the Internet. The policy must incl…

The Secretary of State, or the secretary's designee, and the Commissioner of Administrative and Financial Services, or the commissioner's designee, shall establish a data governance program. [PL 2023, c. 581, §1 (AMD).] 1. Implementation. Implementation of a data governance progr…

The Kennebec Journal is the state paper of this State, in which must be published all advertisements, notices and orders required by law to be published in the state paper.

To be qualified as a medium for the publication of legal notices, legal advertising and other matter required by law to be published in a newspaper, a newspaper, unless otherwise ordered by the court in the proceedings, must be printed in the English language; must be entered as …

Notwithstanding section 601, all probate notices, notices of foreclosure, other legal notices, legal advertising and other matter required by law to be published in a newspaper that have been published in the Coastal Journal from the date of its first publication on November 3, 1…

1. Electronic posting of legal notices. A legal notice appearing in a newspaper pursuant to section 601 must be placed on any publicly accessible website that the newspaper maintains in the following manner: A. The legal notice must be placed on the newspaper's publicly accessibl…

Whenever, due to an emergency resulting from the effects of enemy attack, or the anticipated effects of a threatened enemy attack, it becomes imprudent, inexpedient or impossible to conduct the affairs of State Government at the normal location of the seat thereof in Augusta, the…

During such time as the seat of government remains at such emergency temporary location, or locations, all official acts now or hereafter required by law to be performed at the seat of government by any officer, agency, department or authority of this State, including the conveni…

This subchapter shall control and be supreme in the event they shall be employed, notwithstanding the provisions of any other law to the contrary or in conflict herewith.