An Act To Streamline the Regulatory Process for Commercial Building Construction Projects .
Maine Legislature, Session 124, LD 1242
Committee: Criminal Justice and Public Safety
Sponsors: HASKELL
Amends: 25 MRSA §2448, 25 MRSA §2450

FIRST REGULAR SESSIOf'"~-2009 
Legislative Document 
No. 1242 . 
H.P.861 
House of Representatives, March 30,2009 
An Act To Streamline the Regulatory Process for Commercial 
Building Construction Projects 
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(EMERGENCY) 
Reference to the Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety suggested and ordered 
printed. 
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Presented by Representative HASKELL of Portland. 
Printed 011 rccycleJ P:1P~1 
, 71/~d;/J1;11l!LC~{ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Emergency preamble. Whereas, acts and resolves of the Legislature do not 
become effective until 90 days after adjoilrnment unless enacted as emergencies; and 
Whereas, construction projects require a variety of permits from a variety of 
permitting agencies; and 
Whereas, consolidating the permitting review to a single authority will eXpedite the 
review process and thereby improve the regulatory environment in this State and improve 
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the efficiency of State Government; and 
Whereas, currently some municipalities review commercial construction projects 
for compliance with building, plumbing, zoning and electrical code and those 
municipalities exercise the principle authority for issuing construction pennits in this 
State; and 
Whereas, some municipalities currently enforce the Life Safety Code of the 
National Fire Protection Association for residential construction; and 
Whereas, the Office of the State Fire Marshal conducts plan reviews for compliance 
with th~ Life Safety Code of the National Fire Protection Association for commercial 
construction; and 
Whereas, some municipalities are well positioned to serve as the Life Safety Code 
of the National Fire Protection Association pennitting authority for commercial 
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construction in this State; and 
Whereas, in the judgment of the Legislature, these facts create an emergency within 
the meaning of the Constitution. of Maine and require the following legislation as 
immediately necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health and safety; now, 
therefore, . 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as foilows: 
Sec. 1. 25 MRSA §2448, as repealed and replaced by PL 1983, c. 232, § 1 and 
amended by PL 2003, c. 689, Pt. B, §6 and PL 2007, c. 324, § 17, is further amef!ded to 
read: 
§2448. Construction permit; when required 
Ne A property owner, agent or representative of the owner may not construct, alter or 
change the use of any structure to become a public building without first obtaining from 
the Commissioner of Public Safety or from a municipality designated pursuant to section 
2448-A a permit therefor for that purpose. A request for a permit ffiaU must be 
accompanied by a true copy of the plans and specifications for that construction, 
reconstruction or change of use. The commissioner shall issue a pennit only if the plans 
comply with statutes and lawful regulations promulgated rules adopted to reduce fire 
hazards. 
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The term "public building" shall include includes any building or structure 
constructed, operated or maintained for use by the general public, which shall include 
includes, but i§. not Be limited to, all buildings or portions of buildings used for a 
schoolhouse, hospital, convalescent, nursing or boarding home to be licensed by the 
Department 'of Health and Human Services, Division of Licensing and Regulatory 
Services; theater or other place of public assembly, mercantile occupancy over 3,000 
square feet, hotel, motel or .business occupancy of 2 or more stories; or any building ii' be 
state owned state-owned or operated state-operated. 
The term "true .copy" means an accurate representation by dimensioned plans and 
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specifications of the final construction documents. 
Sec. 2. 25 MRS A §2448-Ais enacted to read: 
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§2448-A. Municipal review of development 
The Commissioner of Pllblic Safety, referred to in this section as "the commissioner," 
may register rriunicipalities for authority to issue permits required by section 2448 under 
the following conditions. For purposes of this section, "municipal reviewing authority" 
has the same meaning as defined in Title 30-A, sectio'n 4366, subsection 7. 
1. Projects. A municipality registered pursuant to this section may review projects 
of public buildings that occupy less than 3,000 square feet. 
2. Registration. The commissioner shall register municipalities to grant permits for 
projects under subsection 1 if the commissioner finds that the municipality meets all of 
the following criteria. 
A. A municipal inspector of buildings has been appointed pursuant to section 2351. 
B. The municipality has an employee that is celiified as a plan reviewer by the 
National Fire Protection Association. 
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C. The municipality has adopted by reference the fire codes adopted by the Office of 
the State Fire Marshal pursuant to sections 2452 and 2465 .. 
D. The municipality has adequate resources to administer and enforce the provisions 
of the fire codes under paragraph C. 
E. 
The procedures for public hearing and notification have been established 
including: . 
(1) 
Notice to the commissioner upon receipt of an application, including a 
description of the project; 
(2) Notice of issuance and denial to the applicant and commissioner, including 
the reason for denial; 
(3) Public notification oftheapplication and any hearings; and 
(4) Procedures for public hearing. 
F. The procedures for appeal of local decisions by aggrieved parties are defined. 
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G. 
A registration form, provided by the commISSIoner, has been completed and 
submitted by the municipality, demonstrating compliance with the criteria under this 
su bsecti on. 
H. The municipality is cUITently enforcing the. Maine Uniform Building and Energy' 
Code. 
The Department of Public Safety shall publish on its publicly accessible website a list of 
those municipalities that are registered pursuant to this subsection. 
3. Current reguirements. A municipality registered under this section shall ensure 
that its municipal regulations continue to meet the criteria listed in subsection 2. 
A. The commissioner shall immediately notify a registered municipality of new or 
amended rules. 
B. A municipality shall adopt amendments to its municipal regulations within one 
calendar year of the effective date of new or amended ru les adopted by the 
Depaliment of Public Safety. 
Within 45 days of the adoption of the aniended 
municipal regulations', the municipality shall submit the amendments for approval by 
the commissioner. 
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4. Suspension of registration .. If the commissioner finds that a municipality no 
longer meets the criteria under subsection 2, or is not adequately implementing those 
requirements, the commissioner may suspend the registration under subsection 2 and 
shall immediately notify the municipality. The notice must contain findings of fact and 
conclusions of law. If the registration is suspended, the commissioner shall provide the 
municipality with the necessary procedures to come into compliance with this section. 
. 5. Central list of pending projects. The commissioner shall maintain and make 
available a list of projects that are pending municipal review under this section. 
6. Technical assistance. The commissioner may provide technical assistance to 
municipalities upon request for projects reviewed under this section. 
7. Application review process. Upon determination by the municipal reviewing 
authority that an application for a permit or permit amendment under this section is 
complete for processing: 
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A. The municipal reviewing authority shall submit to the commissioner within 14 
days ofihat determination one copy of the project application; and 
B. The commissioner shall review the application and, within 30 days of its receipt 
or within 30 days of receipt of any subsequent amendment to the application, 'notify 
the municipality if the Department of Public Safety intends to exercise jurisdiction as 
provided in subsection 9. 
A failure of the commissioner to act within the 30-day period following receipt of the 
application for a permit or within 30 days of receipt of any amendment to the application 
constitutes a decision not to exercise jurisdiction as provided in subsection 9. 
8. Record of I'eview and basis for decision. The municipality shall submit to the 
commissioner one copy of the record of the review of the application for a permit or 
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permit amendment and basis of the decision for each permit or permit amendment 
granted pursuant to this section within 40 working days of final action by the municipal 
reviewing authority. 
9. State jurisdiction. The Department of Public Safety shall review projects and 
exercise jurisdiction for a registered municipality if: 
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A. The rillmicipal reviewing authority in which the project is located petitions the 
commissioner in writing; or 
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B. The proposed project is located in more than one mlinicipa:lity. 
10. Joint enforcement. A permit or permit amendment issued by a municipal 
reviewing authority may be enforced by either the commissioner or the municipality that 
issued the permit or permit amendment. 
Sec. 3. 25 MRSA §2450, as amended by PL 2007, c. 699, § 12, is further amended 
to read: 
§24S0. Examinations by Department of Public. Safety 
The Commissioner of Public Safety shall adopt, in accordance with requirements of 
the Maine Administrative Procedure Act, a schedllie bf fees for the examination of all 
plans for construction, reconstruction or repairs submitted to the DepaJ1ment of Public 
Safety. The fee schedule for new construction or new use is 5¢per square foot for 
occupied spaces and 2¢ per square foot for bulk storage occupancies, except that a fee for 
review of a plan for new construction by a public school may not exceed $450. The fee 
schedule for reconstruction, repairs or renovations is based on the cost of the project-and 
may not exceed $450, except as provided in section 2450-A. +fie Except for projects 
reviewed by a municipality pursuant to section 2448-A, the fees must be credited. to a 
special revenue account to defray expenses in carrying out this section. Any balance of 
the fees may not lapse, but must be carried forward as a continuing account to be 
expended for the same purpose in the following fiscal years. For projects reviewed by a 
municipality that include occupied spaces, a 1 ¢ fee per square foot must be remitted to 
the Department of Public Safety and a 4¢ fee per square foot must be paid to' the 
. municipality. 
A municipality is prohibited from charging a developer a fee that is. in excess of the 
4¢ fee per square foot for fire code permits. 
This limitation does not prohibit a 
municipality from charging fees for other construction-related permits. 
Emergency clause. 
In view of the emergency cited in the preamble, this 
legislation takes effect when approved. 
SUMMARY 
This bill provides for the delegation of fire code permitting authority from the 
Department of Public Safety, Office of the State Fire Marshal to municipalities. 
The bill amends the law concerning certain public building projects for which the 
Department of Public Safety provides pl~m reviews. 
The bill arriends the I~ws concerning project permits to allow the option of municipal 
review for those projects. 
The bill creates a new section of law that outlines the circumstances that need to be 
satisfied before the Commi'ssioner of Public Safety may delegate permitting authority to a 
municipality. 
The bill also amends the law in order to adjust the payment of the current 5¢ plan 
review fee that is paid to the Department of Public Safety. 
It requires that if a 
municipality issues the permit, the municipality receives the 4¢ fee per square foot and 
the Department of Public Safety receives' the' 1 ¢ fee per square foot of the proposed 
project. There is no additional cost to the developer under this section. 
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