An Act To Clarify the Time Period in Which Municipalities Must File Notices of Intent with the State for Purposes of Issuing Building Permits
Maine Legislature, Session 122, LD 1865
Committee: State and Local Government
Sponsors: BARSTOW

Legislative Document 
No. 1865 
H.P. 1305 
House of Representatives, January 3, 2006 
An Act To Clarify the Time Period in Which Municipalities Must 
File Notices of Intent with the State for Purposes of Issuing Building 
Permits 
Submitted by the Department of Administrative and Financial Services pursuant to Joint 
Rule 204. 
Received by the Clerk of the House on December 28,2005. Referred to the Committee on 
State and Local Government pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed pursuant to Joint 
Rule 401. 
Presented by Representative BARSTOW of Gorham. 
Printl!d on re(;ycled paper 
1J1~ 
m.7I/tI£~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. I. 5 MRSA §I742-B, as amended by PL 2001, c. 615, §l, is 
further amended to read: 
§1742-B. Municipal building ordinances 
The 
Department of Administrative 
and Financial Services, 
Bureau of General Services, referred to as "the bureau" in this 
section, shall notify a municipality of a 
state construction 
project or public 
improvement within the boundaries of that 
municipality as soon as practicable after beginning the schematic 
design proc~ If a municipality intends to review and issue 
building 
permits 
on 
state 
construction 
projects 
and 
public 
improvements, the municipality must file a notice of intent with 
the 
~e~a~~ffieR~-~--AeffiiRis~~a~ieRT-~~-e{-~~~-~ffi~~eyeffieR~S 
bureau no later than 30 days following receipt of notification by 
the 
bureau 
of 
the 
state 
construction 
project 
or 
l?ublic 
improvement. 
Once the required notice is filed, the projects and 
improvements to state-owned or leased buildings must comply with 
municipal ordinances governing the construction and alteration of 
buildings, provided that the municipal building code standards 
are as stringent as, or more stringent than, the code for state 
buildings. 
Prior to requesting bids, the bureau shall obtain or 
it shall 
require 
the 
project 
designer 
to 
obtain 
municipal 
approval of the project plans and specifications. 
Contractors 
and subcontractors shall obtain all necessary municipal building 
permits and the project must be subject to municipal inspections. 
Fees may be asessee assessed for any permit obtained for any 
state construction project or public improvements to state-owned 
buildings. 
If a proposed public improvement is for new construction 
only and is not reviewed by a municipality, the state agency 
responsible for the new construction shall provide public notice 
of the project in the same manner as is required for notice of 
similar projects by ordinance of the municipality. 
Public notice 
under this paragraph must be provided as soon as development of 
the schematic design for the project is complete. 
For purposes of this section, "schematic design" means the 
phase 
of 
the project or public 
improvement 
when 
the scale, 
proportions and relationships of the major project components are 
defined and the major building systems, construction materials, 
cost estimate and schedule of the project or public improvement 
are identified. 
Documents that are 
a part of the schematic 
design include a site plan and floor plan and building sections 
and elevations. 
Page l-LR2949(1) 
SUMMARY 
This bill clarifies that a municipality must be informed 
early in the design process of a state construction project or 
public 
improvement 
within that municipality's 
boundaries 
and 
requires a municipality that intends to review or issue permits 
for that project or improvement to file notice of intent within 
days of notification of the project or improvement.