An Act To Clarify the Authority and Responsibility of Forest Rangers
Maine Legislature, Session 126, LD 1051
Committee: Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry
Sponsors: TIMBERLAKE, JACKSON
Amends: 12 MRSA §8901

Legislative Document 
No. 1051 
H.P. 744 
House of Representatives, March 19, 2013 
An Act To Clarify the Authority and Responsibility of Forest 
Rangers 
Submitted by the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry pursuant to Joint 
Rule 204. 
Reference to the Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry suggested and 
ordered printed. 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative TIMBERLAKE of Turner. 
Cosponsored by Senator JACKSON of Aroostook. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  12 MRSA §8901, sub-§2, as amended by PL 2011, c. 657, Pt. W, §7 and 
c. 682, §38, is further amended to read: 
2.  Powers and duties. Forest rangers and the state supervisor shall: 
A.  Subject to supervision of the director, supervise the state forest fire wildfire 
control program, including personnel and facilities of all types; 
B.  Have the final on-site authority and responsibility for the control of forest fires 
wildfires; 
C.  Develop and carry out a comprehensive program of forest fire wildfire prevention 
education and training of persons at all levels of command in order to meet 
supervisory needs during forest fire wildfire emergencies; 
D.  Enforce Title 36, chapter 701 relating to blueberries, all laws relating to forests 
and forest preservation, laws relating to the Maine Land Use Planning Commission 
and laws and rules relating to lands under the jurisdiction of the Division of Parks and 
Public Lands; 
E.  Investigate and gather evidence regarding the cause of forest fires wildfires; 
F.  Have the authority to set backfires to control forest fires wildfires; 
G.  Carry out such other duties as the director prescribes; and 
H.  Have rights of access to all lands within the State to carry out the duties they are 
authorized by law to administer and enforce.  Entry into private property under this 
paragraph is not a trespass.  This paragraph does not authorize entry into any building 
or structure. 
Forest rangers and the state supervisor may also exercise the powers in this subsection 
when appropriate for agricultural and park fires. 
Sec. 2.  12 MRSA §8901, sub-§3, ¶A, as amended by PL 2011, c. 657, Pt. W, §7 
and c. 682, §38, is further amended to read: 
A.  Forest rangers and the state supervisor, for the purpose of enforcing Title 36, 
chapter 701 relating to blueberries, forest and forest preservation laws, laws of the 
Maine Land Use Planning Commission and laws and rules relating to the lands under 
the jurisdiction of the Division of Parks and Public Lands, have statewide law 
enforcement powers equivalent to those of a sheriff, or a sheriff's deputy, in the 
sheriff's county, including the right to execute or serve criminal and civil violation 
processes against offenders, make warrantless arrests for crimes, investigate and 
prosecute offenders, require aid in executing forest ranger duties and deputize 
temporary aides; 
Sec. 3.  12 MRSA §8901, sub-§4 is enacted to read: 
4.  Definitions.  As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the 
following terms have the following meanings. 
A.  "Escaped prescribed fire" means an uncontrolled fire on wildland caused by a 
prescribed fire that escaped control efforts and burned unintended land area. 
B.  "Escaped wildland fire use" means an out of control fire caused by a wildland fire 
use that escaped control efforts and burned unintended land area. 
C.  "Prescribed fire" means a forest or land management practice using fire, applied 
in a knowledgeable manner to naturally occurring fuels on a specific land area under 
selected weather conditions to accomplish predetermined, well-defined management 
objectives. 
D.  "Wildfire" means an unplanned, unwanted wildland fire including an 
unauthorized human-caused fire, an escaped wildland fire use, an escaped prescribed 
fire and any other wildland fire with respect to which the Director of the Division of 
Forestry has determined that the objective is to put the fire out. 
E.  "Wildland" means an area in which development is essentially nonexistent, except 
for roads, railroads, powerlines and similar transportation facilities, and structures, if 
any, are widely scattered. 
F.  "Wildland fire use" means a management practice using a naturally occurring fire 
burning forest fuels on wildland that is not immediately controlled.  The fire is 
allowed to burn within a predetermined area and is used to promote certain 
wilderness or management objectives. 
SUMMARY 
This bill incorporates into the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 12, chapter 807 the 
authority of forest rangers contained in Title 36, chapter 701 to make inspections, conduct 
investigations, make arrests and otherwise enforce that chapter, which relates to 
blueberries and blueberry taxes.  It also clarifies the powers and duties of forest rangers 
regarding wildfires and agricultural and park fires, consistent with the current practice of 
forest rangers.