An Act To Strengthen the Laws against Driving under the Influence of Drugs
Maine Legislature, Session 125, LD 1491
Committee: Criminal Justice and Public Safety
Sponsors: WILLETTE, COLLINS, CLARK, DAVIS, MAZUREK, RIOUX, THERIAULT
Amends: 29-A MRSA §2401, 29-A MRSA §2431, 29-A MRSA §2432, 29-A MRSA §2453, 29-A MRSA §2456, 29-A MRSA §2472, 29-A MRSA §2481, 29-A MRSA §2482, 29-A MRSA §2503, 29-A MRSA §2524, 29-A MRSA §2525, 29-A MRSA §2526

Legislative Document 
No. 1491 
H.P. 1096 
House of Representatives, April 14, 2011 
An Act To Strengthen the Laws against Driving under the Influence 
of Drugs 
Reference to the Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety suggested and ordered 
printed. 
HEATHER J.R. PRIEST 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative WILLETTE of Mapleton. 
Cosponsored by Senator COLLINS of York and 
Representatives: CLARK of Easton, DAVIS of Sangerville, MAZUREK of Rockland, RIOUX 
of Winterport, THERIAULT of Madawaska. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  29-A MRSA §2401, sub-§2-A is enacted to read: 
2-A.  After ingesting drugs.  "After ingesting drugs" means while having a 
detectable urine-drug level or a detectable blood-drug level with a positive confirmed 
drug or its metabolite concentration in accordance with the drug reporting rules, 
standards, procedures and protocols adopted by the Department of Health and Human 
Services. 
Sec. 2.  29-A MRSA §2431, sub-§1, as amended by PL 2009, c. 447, §44, is 
further amended to read: 
1.  Test results.  Test results showing a drug concentration detectable urine-drug 
level or detectable blood-drug level or alcohol level at the time alleged are admissible in 
evidence.  Failure to comply with the provisions of sections 2521 and 2523 may not, by 
itself, result in the exclusion of evidence of alcohol level or drug concentration detectable 
urine-drug level or detectable blood-drug level, unless the evidence is determined to be 
not sufficiently reliable. 
Sec. 3.  29-A MRSA §2431, sub-§2, ¶A-1 is enacted to read: 
A-1.  A person certified in accordance with section 2524 performing an approved 
immunoassay detection test for urine-drug level may issue a certificate stating the 
results of the test. 
Sec. 4.  29-A MRSA §2431, sub-§2, ¶L is enacted to read: 
L.  Evidence that materials used in the collection and performance of an approved 
immunoassay detection test of urine was provided by the Department of Health and 
Human Services is prima facie evidence that the materials were of the composition 
and quality stated by the manufacturer and are of a quality appropriate for the 
purpose of producing reliable test results. 
Sec. 5.  29-A MRSA §2431, sub-§2, ¶M is enacted to read: 
M.  A photograph, digital image or photocopy of an approved immunoassay detection 
test clearly showing the results of the test is prima facie evidence of the results. 
Sec. 6.  29-A MRSA §2431, sub-§2, ¶N is enacted to read: 
N.  The results of an approved immunoassay test kit are prima facie evidence of 
urine-drug level. 
Sec. 7.  29-A MRSA §2431, sub-§2, ¶O is enacted to read: 
O.  The prosecution is not required to produce expert testimony regarding the 
functioning of an approved immunoassay drug test before test results are admissible 
if sufficient evidence is offered to show that the test kit was an approved test kit 
provided by the Department of Health and Human Services. 
Sec. 8.  29-A MRSA §2432, as amended by PL 2009, c. 447, §48, is further 
amended to read: 
§2432.  Alcohol level; detectable urine-drug level; detectable blood-drug level; 
evidentiary weight 
1.  Level less than 0.05 grams.  If a person has an alcohol level of 0.05 grams or less 
of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood or 210 liters of breath, it is prima facie evidence 
that that person is not under the influence of alcohol. 
2.  Level greater than 0.05 grams and less than 0.08 grams.  If a person has an 
alcohol level in excess of 0.05 grams of alcohol but less than 0.08 grams of alcohol per 
milliliters of blood or 210 liters of breath, it is relevant evidence, but not prima facie, 
indicating whether or not that person is under the influence of intoxicants to be 
considered with other competent evidence including evidence of a detectable urine-drug 
level or blood-drug concentration level. 
3.  Level of 0.08 grams or greater.  In proceedings other than under section 2411, a 
person is presumed to be under the influence of intoxicants if that person has an alcohol 
level of 0.08 grams or more of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood or 210 liters of breath. 
4.  Detectable urine-drug level.  If a person has trace amounts of any drug or the 
metabolites of any drug at detectable concentration levels within the person's urine, it is 
relevant evidence, but not prima facie, indicating whether or not that person is under the 
influence of intoxicants, to be considered with other competent evidence, including 
evidence of alcohol level and detectable blood-drug level. 
5.  Detectable blood-drug level.  If a person has trace amounts of any drug or the 
metabolites of any drug at detectable concentration levels within the person's blood, it is 
relevant evidence, but not prima facie, indicating whether or not that person is under the 
influence of intoxicants, to be considered with other competent evidence, including 
evidence of alcohol level and detectable urine-drug level. 
Sec. 9.  29-A MRSA §2453, as amended by PL 2009, c. 447, §49, is further 
amended to read: 
§2453.  Suspension on administrative determination; operating motor vehicle with 
excessive alcohol level under influence of intoxicants or after ingesting drugs 
1.  Purpose.  The purpose of this section is: 
A.    To provide maximum safety for all persons who travel on or otherwise use the 
public ways; and 
B.    To remove quickly from public ways those persons who have shown themselves 
to be a safety hazard by operating a motor vehicle with an excessive alcohol level.: 
(1)  With an excessive alcohol level; 
(2)  Under the influence of intoxicants; or 
(3)  After ingesting drugs. 
2.  Definition.  For the purposes of this section, "operating a motor vehicle with an 
excessive alcohol level" means operating a motor vehicle with an alcohol level of 0.08 
grams or more of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood or 210 liters of breath. 
3.  Suspension.  The Secretary of State shall immediately suspend a license of a 
person determined to have operated a motor vehicle with an excessive alcohol level, 
under the influence of intoxicants, or after ingesting drugs. 
4.  Drug and alcohol program.  The Secretary of State may not suspend a license 
solely because a person has not satisfactorily completed an alcohol and drug program, as 
defined in subchapter 1.  This limitation does not affect statutory restoration authority. 
5.  Stay.  If, within 10 days from the effective date of the suspension, the Secretary of 
State receives a request in writing for a hearing in accordance with section 2483, the 
suspension is stayed until a hearing is held and a decision is issued. 
6.  Period of suspension.  The following periods of suspension apply. 
A.    The same suspension period applies as if the person were convicted of OUI. 
C.    If a person's license is also suspended for an OUI conviction arising out of the 
same occurrence, the period of time the license has been suspended under this section 
prior to the conviction must be deducted from the period of time of a court-imposed 
suspension. 
D.    The period of suspension is a minimum and the Secretary of State may suspend 
the license for an additional period under section 2451, subsection 3. 
7.  Restoration of license.  The Secretary of State may issue a license or permit as 
follows. 
A.    Restoration of any license or permit to operate, right to operate a motor vehicle 
and right to apply for or obtain a license suspended under this section must be in 
accordance with sections 2502 to 2506. 
8.  Hearing.  The scope of the hearing must include whether: 
A.    The person operated a motor vehicle with an excessive alcohol level, under the 
influence of intoxicants or after ingesting drugs; and 
B.    There was probable cause to believe that the person was operating a motor 
vehicle with an excessive alcohol level, under the influence of intoxicants or after 
ingesting drugs. 
Sec. 10.  29-A MRSA §2456, sub-§1, ¶B, as amended by PL 2009, c. 447, §51, 
is further amended to read: 
B.    While having an alcohol level of more than 0.08 grams per 100 milliliters of 
blood or 210 liters of breath or after ingesting drugs; or 
Sec. 11.  29-A MRSA §2456, sub-§3, ¶B, as amended by PL 2009, c. 447, §52, 
is further amended to read: 
B.    The person, at that time, had an excessive alcohol level, was operating after 
ingesting drugs or was under the influence of intoxicants or may be penalized for 
failure to submit to required chemical testing; and 
Sec. 12.  29-A MRSA §2472, as amended by PL 2009, c. 447, §§57 to 62, is 
further amended to read: 
§2472.  Juvenile provisional license 
1.  Licensee not yet 21 years of age.  A license issued to a person who has not yet 
attained the age of 21 years is a provisional license for a period of 2 years following the 
date of issue or until the holder attains 21 years of age, whichever occurs last.  That 
license remains in force as a nonprovisional license to the next normal expiration date.  A 
license issued by another jurisdiction to a person who has not yet attained the age of 21 
years is a provisional license for the purpose of operating a motor vehicle within this 
State. 
A license of a person who has not yet attained 21 years of age includes the condition that 
the person not operate a motor vehicle with an alcohol level of more than 0.00 grams per 
milliliters of blood or 210 liters of breath or after ingesting drugs.  When a person 
who has not yet attained 21 years of age operates a motor vehicle with an alcohol level of 
more than 0.00 grams per 100 milliliters of blood or 210 liters of breath or after ingesting 
drugs, the provisions of section 1251, subsection 1, paragraph B apply. 
2.  Suspension terms for moving violations.  If a person who has not yet attained 
the age of 21 years is convicted or adjudicated of a moving motor vehicle violation that 
occurred within 2 years from the date of issue of a juvenile provisional license, the 
Secretary of State shall suspend the license without right to hearing: 
A.    For 30 days on the 1st offense; 
B.    For 60 days on the 2nd offense; and 
C.  For 90 days on the 3rd or subsequent offense. 
3.  Suspension for OUI conviction or certain alcohol or drug concentration level.  
The Secretary of State shall suspend, without preliminary hearing, a juvenile provisional 
license of a person who: 
A.    Receives an OUI conviction; or 
B.    Operates a motor vehicle with an alcohol level of more than 0.00 grams per 100 
milliliters of blood or 210 liters of breath.; or 
C.  Operates a motor vehicle after ingesting drugs. 
3-A.  Juvenile provisional license; suspension for OUI conviction or certain 
alcohol or drug concentration level.  Unless a longer period of suspension applies, the 
Secretary of State shall suspend, without a preliminary hearing, a juvenile provisional 
license pursuant to subsection 3 for the following periods: 
A.    One year for a first offense; and 
B.    Two years for a 2nd offense. 
If the Secretary of State determines that the person operated the motor vehicle at the time 
of the offense with a passenger under 21 years of age, an additional suspension period of 
days must be imposed. 
4.  Duty to submit to test.  A person under 21 years of age who operates a motor 
vehicle shall submit to a chemical test if there is probable cause to believe that person has 
operated a motor vehicle with an alcohol level of more than 0.00 grams per 100 milliliters 
of blood or 210 liters of breath or after ingesting drugs.  The provisions of subchapter 4 
apply, except the suspension is: 
A.    Eighteen months for the first refusal; and 
B.    Thirty months for a 2nd or subsequent refusal. 
If the Secretary of State determines that the person operated the motor vehicle at the time 
of the offense with a passenger under 21 years of age, an additional suspension period of 
days must be imposed. 
5.  Hearing; stay; issues.  If a hearing is requested in accordance with section 2483, 
the suspension under subsection 3, paragraph B or C is stayed pending the outcome of the 
hearing.  The scope of a hearing must include whether: 
A.    There was probable cause to believe that the person was under 21 years of age 
and operated a motor vehicle with an alcohol level of more than 0.00 grams per 100 
milliliters of blood or 210 liters of breath or after ingesting drugs; 
B.    The person operated a motor vehicle with an alcohol level of more than 0.00 
grams per 100 milliliters of blood or 210 liters of breath or after ingesting drugs; and 
C.    The person was under 21 years of age. 
6.  Restoration of license.  If a person's license has been suspended under subsection 
for a first offense, the Secretary of State may issue a license if: 
A.    One half of the suspension period has expired; and 
B.    The Secretary of State has received notice that the person has completed the 
alcohol and other drug program of the Office of Substance Abuse. 
A 2nd or subsequent offender may be issued a license following the completion of the 
period of suspension provided the Secretary of State has received notice that the person 
has completed the alcohol and other drug program of the Office of Substance Abuse. 
Sec. 13.  29-A MRSA §2481, sub-§1-A is enacted to read: 
1-A.  Report of drug recognition expert.  A drug recognition expert certified in 
accordance with section 2526 who has probable cause to believe that a person operated a 
motor vehicle while under the influence of intoxicants or after ingesting drugs shall send 
to the Secretary of State a report, completed under oath on a form approved by the 
Secretary of State, of all information relevant to that belief, including, but not limited to: 
A.    Information adequately identifying the person who is the subject of the report; 
and 
B.  The drug recognition expert's grounds for probable cause to believe that the 
person operated a motor vehicle while under the influence of intoxicants or after 
ingesting drugs. 
The person who analyzed a drug or a drug's metabolite concentration pursuant to a drug 
recognition expert's report shall submit a copy of a confirmed test result certificate to the 
Secretary of State. 
Sec. 14.  29-A MRSA §2482, sub-§2, ¶C, as amended by PL 2003, c. 434, §34 
and affected by §37, is further amended to read: 
C.    If the suspension or revocation is imposed by an authority other than a court 
Unless the suspension or revocation is ordered by a court or rests solely upon a 
conviction or adjudication in court of an offense that is, by statute, expressly made 
grounds for that suspension or revocation, the right of the person to request a hearing 
and the procedure for requesting a hearing; and 
Sec. 15.  29-A MRSA §2482, sub-§2, ¶F, as amended by PL 2009, c. 447, §64, 
is further amended to read: 
F.    If the suspension or revocation is based on a report under section 2481, that a 
copy of the report of the law enforcement officer and any alcohol test certificate and 
drug concentration report will be provided to the person upon request to the Secretary 
of State. 
Sec. 16.  29-A MRSA §2503, sub-§1, as amended by PL 1997, c. 737, §21, is 
further amended to read: 
1.  Administrative suspension; work-restricted license.  On receipt of a petition for 
a work-restricted license from a person under suspension pursuant to section 2453 or 
section 2472, subsection 3, paragraph B or C for a first offense, the Secretary of State 
may stay a suspension during the statutory suspension period and issue a work-restricted 
license, if the petitioner shows by clear and convincing evidence that: 
A.    As determined by the Secretary of State, a license is necessary to operate a 
motor vehicle: 
 (1)  Between the residence and a place of employment or in the scope of 
employment, or both; or 
 (2)  Between the residence and an educational facility attended by the petitioner 
if the suspension is under section 2472, subsection 3, paragraph B for a first 
offense; 
B.    No alternative means of transportation is available; and 
C.    The petitioner has not, within 10 years, been under suspension for an OUI 
offense or pursuant to section 2453. 
Sec. 17.  29-A MRSA §2524, sub-§3-A is enacted to read: 
3-A.  Persons qualified to take specimens and perform immunoassay drug 
detection test.  A person certified by the Maine Criminal Justice Academy or the 
Department of Corrections as qualified to administer an immunoassay drug detection test 
kit approved by the Department of Health and Human Services may use an approved test 
kit to collect and analyze a sample specimen of urine. 
Sec. 18.  29-A MRSA §2524, sub-§5, as amended by PL 2009, c. 447, §71, is 
further amended to read: 
5.  Equipment for taking specimens.  Only equipment having a stamp of approval 
affixed by the Department of Health and Human Services may be used to take a sample 
specimen of breath or urine, except that a self-contained, breath-alcohol testing apparatus 
if reasonably available may be used to determine the alcohol level and an immunoassay 
drug detection test kit may be used to determine the detectable urine-drug level. 
Approved testing apparatus must have a stamp of approval affixed by the Department of 
Health and Human Services after periodic testing.  That stamp is valid for no more than 
one year.  An approved immunoassay drug detection test kit must be one that is provided 
to a state or local agency through the Department of Health and Human Services. 
Sec. 19.  29-A MRSA §2525, as amended by PL 1995, c. 145, §2, is further 
amended to read: 
§2525.  Drug impairment assessment 
1.  Submission to test required.  If a drug recognition technician expert has probable 
cause to believe that a person is under the influence of a specific category of drug, a 
combination of specific categories of drugs or a combination of alcohol and one or more 
specific categories of drugs, that person must submit to a blood or urine test selected by 
the drug recognition technician expert to confirm that person's category of drug use and 
determine drug concentration detectable urine-drug level or detectable blood-drug level.  
A drug recognition expert qualified pursuant to section 2524, subsection 3-A may 
perform an immunoassay drug detection test. 
2.  Admissibility of evidence.  If a law enforcement officer certified as a drug 
recognition technician expert by the Maine Criminal Justice Academy conducts a drug 
impairment assessment, the officer's testimony about that assessment is admissible in 
court as evidence of operating under the influence of intoxicants.  If a drug recognition 
expert qualified pursuant to section 2524, subsection 3-A performs an immunoassay drug 
detection test, the results of that test are admissible as evidence of operating under the 
influence of intoxicants.  Failure to comply with any provision of this section does not, by 
itself, result in the exclusion of evidence of test results, unless the evidence is determined 
to be not sufficiently reliable. 
3.  Payment for tests.  A person authorized to take specimens of blood at the 
direction of a law enforcement officer or to perform tests on specimens of blood or breath 
must be paid from the Highway Fund. 
Sec. 20.  29-A MRSA §2526, as enacted by PL 1993, c. 683, Pt. A, §2 and 
affected by Pt. B, §5, is amended to read: 
§2526.  Drug recognition experts 
1.  Training program.  The board of trustees of the Maine Criminal Justice 
Academy shall establish: 
A.    A program that meets the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 
guidelines for training and certification of drug recognition technicians experts; and 
B.    Eligibility standards for admission of law enforcement officers to the program 
that are consistent with National Highway Traffic Safety Administration guidelines 
and that ensure that trainees are: 
(1)  Law enforcement officers who have demonstrated proficiency and 
experience in standardized field sobriety testing and the ability to complete the 
training and function as drug recognition technicians experts; and 
(2)  Employed by law enforcement agencies that have the facilities, equipment 
and other resources necessary for the effective functioning of drug recognition 
technicians experts. 
2.  Selection of trainees.  The Commissioner of Public Safety shall select for training 
as drug recognition technicians experts members of the State Police and other law 
enforcement officers who meet the eligibility requirements. 
3.  Qualifications.  Only those law enforcement officers who successfully complete 
the training and certification program established under this section may conduct drug 
impairment assessments and offer testimony as drug recognition technicians experts 
under section 2525. 
SUMMARY 
Under current law, the Secretary of State is authorized to immediately suspend a 
license of a person determined to have operated a motor vehicle with an excessive alcohol 
level.  This bill authorizes the Secretary of State to also administratively suspend driver's 
license of a person determined to have operated a motor vehicle after ingesting drugs or 
while under the influence of intoxicants.  This bill also changes the designation "drug 
recognition technicians" to "drug recognition experts."