An Act To Amend the Laws Governing the Enactment Procedures for Ordinances
Maine Legislature, Session 122, LD 1481
Committee: State and Local Government
Sponsors: BROMLEY, KOFFMAN, COWGER, DAMON, EBERLE, PIOTTI
Amends: 30-A MRSA §3002

Legislative Document 
No. 1481 
S.P.507 
In Senate, March 24, 2005 
An Act To Amend the Laws Governing the Enactment Procedures 
for Ordinances 
Reference to the Committee on State and Local Government suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Senator BROMLEY of Cumberland. 
Cosponsored by Representative KOFFMAN of Bar Harbor and 
JOY J. O'BRIEN 
Secretary of the Senate 
Senators: COWGER of Kennebec, DAMON of Hancock, Representatives: EBERLE of South 
Portland, PIOTTI of Unity, WOODBURY ofYarrnouth. 
Printed on recycled paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 30-A MRSA §3002. sub-§§5 and 6 are enacted to read: 
5. 
Pro~~J;i1.!x:eJiJor ordi~anc~or bylaws enacted or 
by citizen initiative. 
Municipal ordinances or bylaws 
enacted or amended as provided in this subsection. 
i'l.ID~ncled 
may be 
A. 
The electors of the municipality may propose anY--!1ew 
ordinance or bylaw or amendment to an existing ordinance or 
bylaw by written petition addressed to the city councilor 
board of selectmen. 
The petition must be signed by a number 
of electors of the municipality egual to at least 10% of the 
total votes cast for Governor in the municipality in the 
last gubernatorial election preceding the 
filing of 
the 
petition. 
Signatures may be collected only from registered 
voters 
in 
the 
municipality. 
All 
signatures 
must 
be 
certified as those of registered voters by the municipal 
clerk. 
The measure thus proposed, unless enacted without 
change by the city councilor board of selectmen, must be 
submitted to the electors at the next municipal or general 
election. 
All 
ordinances 
and 
bylaws 
adopted or 
amended 
through this process apply prospectively and may not affect 
any grandfathered rights. 
B. 
For 
the 
purposes 
of 
this 
subsection, 
"grandfathered 
rights" includes rights pertaining to: 
(1) 
All existing structures and uses of structures: 
(2) 
All 
structures 
and 
uses 
of 
structures 
in 
construction or proposed for which building permi t..h 
zoning 
permits, 
subdivision 
approval, 
site 
plan 
approval 
or 
any 
other 
land 
use 
approval 
has 
been 
granted; and 
(3) 
All proposed structures and uses of structures for 
which written notice of intent to file an applicationL 
describing the nature of the use or uses proposed, the 
maximum 
land 
area that will 
be 
disturbed 
and 
not 
revegetated and the maximum area of occupiable space, 
has been sent by certified mail to all owners of record 
on the municipal assessment records within 500 feet of 
the property boundary of those proposed structures at 
least 90 days prior to receipt of the written petition 
descr ibed in paragraph A by the city councilor board 
of 
selectmen 
and 
for 
which 
an 
application 
for 
a 
building permit, 
zoning permit, 
subdivision approvaL 
si te plan approval or any other land use approval has 
been filed prior to receipt of that written petition. 
Page I-LR198l(l) 
6. 
Proc~dure for ~ople's veto. 
The 
electors 
of 
a 
municipality 
may 
cause 
the 
suspension of 
actions 
of 
a 
city 
councilor board of selectmen by filing a written petition as 
described in this subsection with the city councilor board of 
selectmen. 
The petition must specifically state the action that 
is sought to be 
stopped and must 
be 
signed by 
a 
number of 
registered voters in the municipality equal to at least 10°" of 
the votes cast for Governor in the municipality in the last 
gubernatorial election preceding the filing of the petition. 
The 
petition must be addressed to and filed with the city councilor 
board of selectmen by 5:00 p.m. on or before the 30th day after 
.J;;,pe final action of the municipality that is the subject of the 
petition. 
If 
the 
30th 
day 
is 
a 
Saturday, 
Sunday or 
legal 
holiday, 
the 
petiti~Q~Jls_t be filed by 5:00 p.m. 
on the next 
business day after the 30th day. 
The signatures on the petition 
must 
be 
certified 
as 
those 
of 
registered 
voters 
in 
the 
municipality prior to filing. 
Upon receipt of the petition, the 
city councilor board of selectmen shall suspend the action that 
is the subject of the petition. 
The city councilor board of 
selectmen shall give notice of the time when the petition is to 
be voted on, 
which must be at the next municipal or general 
election. 
SUMMARY 
This bill establishes the procedures 
by citizen's initiative and the procedure 
ordinances enacted by a municipality. 
for ordinances 
for people' Eo: 
enacted 
veto of