An Act To Allow Anadromous Fish Passage through Beaver Dams
Maine Legislature, Session 127, LD 0773
Committee: Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
Sponsors: PIERCE, MIRAMANT, BATTLE, BLUME, DEVIN, HAWKE, SAWICKI, TUCKER, BAKER
Amends: 12 MRSA §12764, 38 MRSA §480-Q

Legislative Document 
No. 773 
H.P. 526 
House of Representatives, March 10, 2015 
An Act To Allow Anadromous Fish Passage through Beaver Dams 
Reference to the Committee on Inland Fisheries and Wildlife suggested and ordered 
printed. 
ROBERT B. HUNT 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative PIERCE of Dresden. 
Cosponsored by Senator MIRAMANT of Knox and 
Representatives: BATTLE of South Portland, BLUME of York, DEVIN of Newcastle, 
HAWKE of Boothbay Harbor, McCREIGHT of Harpswell, SAWICKI of Auburn, TUCKER 
of Brunswick, Senator: BAKER of Sagadahoc. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  12 MRSA §12764 is enacted to read: 
§12764.  Construction of a fishway or a passageway through a beaver dam 
1.  Permit required; prohibition.  A person may not construct, repair or alter a 
fishway or a passageway through a beaver dam for the purpose of allowing the passage of 
anadromous fish without a valid permit issued by the commissioner or the Commissioner 
of Marine Resources.  The commissioner or the Commissioner of Marine Resources may 
place permit-specific conditions on a permit as necessary to minimize impacts to the 
beaver dam and the surrounding ecosystem while providing reasonable passage for 
anadromous fish.  The permit holder is solely responsible for maintaining or removing the 
fishway or passageway as required under the permit. 
2.  Penalties.  The following penalties apply to violations of this section. 
A.  A person who violates this section commits a civil violation for which a fine of 
not less than $100 nor more than $500 may be adjudged. 
B.  A person who violates this section after having been adjudicated as having 
committed 3 or more civil violations under this Part within the previous 5-year period 
commits a Class E crime. 
3.  Rules.  The commissioner shall adopt rules to carry out the purposes of this 
section. Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection are routine technical rules as defined in 
Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A. 
Sec. 2.  38 MRSA §480-Q, sub-§21-A is enacted to read: 
21-A.  Fish passage through a beaver dam.  Construction, repair or alteration of a 
fishway or a passageway through a beaver dam as permitted by the Commissioner of 
Inland Fisheries and Wildlife or the Commissioner of Marine Resources under Title 12, 
section 12764, as long as: 
A.  Efforts are made to minimize erosion of soil and fill material from disturbed areas 
into a protected natural resource; 
B.  Efforts are made to minimize alteration of undisturbed portions of a wetland or 
water body; and 
C.  Wheeled or tracked equipment is operated in the water only for the purpose of 
crossing a water body to facilitate the construction and maintenance of a fishway or a 
passageway through a beaver dam.  Where practicable, wheeled or tracked equipment 
may cross a water body only on a rock, gravel or ledge bottom. 
This exemption includes the draining of a freshwater wetland resulting from the 
construction, repair or alteration of a fishway or a passageway through a beaver dam.  It 
does not include removal or alteration of a beaver house. 
For purposes of this subsection, "fishway" has the same meaning as in Title 12, section 
10001, subsection 25. 
SUMMARY 
This bill gives the Commissioner of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and the 
Commissioner of Marine Resources the authority to issue a permit to a person to 
construct a fishway or a passageway through a beaver dam for the passage of anadromous 
fish.