Maine Legislature, Session 127, LD 0891
Committee Amendment CA_A-HA_A_H304 (House)
Amends: 30-A MRSA §3106-A

HOUSE AMENDMENT "If, to COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to H.P. 610, 
L.D. 891, Bill, "An Aet To Help Municipalities Dispose of Certain Abandoned Property" 
Amend the amendment by striking out all of section 1 and inserting the following: 
'Sec. 1., 30-A MRSA §3106-A is enacted to read: 
§3106-A. Municipal authority to manage abandoned mobile homes 
1. Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the 
following terms have the following meanings.. 
A. "Mobile home" has the same meaning as in Title 10, section 9091, subsection 1. 
B. "Property defect" means a condition that. in the judgment of the municipality, 
contributes to blight as a result of the continued lack of care, maintenance or security 
of a propenL 
C. "Responsible party" includes the owner or owners of record for a mobile home, 
not including a mortgagee. 
2. Municipal authority. In accordance with this section, the municipal officers or 
their designees may regulate the care, maintenance and security of a mobile home 
determined to be abandoned under subsection 4 if the responsible parties fail to address 
the property defects after notice and an opportunity to comply, and the municipality may 
recover its dosts from the responsible parties. The authority established by this section 
may not be construed to rep face or supplant any municipal authority to provide for basic 
necessities lUlder Title 14, section 6026-A or address dangerous buildings under Title 17, 
chapter 91, subchapter~: Municipal action under this section may not be interpreted to 
bestow any responsibility on the municipality to safeguard or otherwise preserve or 
protect an abandoned mobile home. A municipality is authorized to takc corrcctivc 
action in accordance with this section, up to and including taking possession of and 
disposing of an abandoned mobile home and all related personal property. 
3. 
Notice of foreclosure; designation of representative. 
When initiating a 
foreclosure action on a property, a foreclosing mortgagee shall notify the municipality 
where the property is situated 'and desigllate an in-state representative responsible for 
responding to municipal inquiries regarding the property. The foreclosing mortgagee 
HOUSE AMENDMENT 
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HOUSE AMENDMENT" R· to COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to H.P. 610, L.D. 891 
shall provide the municipality where the property is located with the contact information 
for the mortgagee's in-state representative: For the purposes of this subsection, "contact 
information" means both a mailing address and a direct telephone number with a 
functioning voicemailbox.aswellasthein~staterepresentative.sdirect e-mail address 
when available. 
4. Determination of abandon·m:ent. Before a municipality may initiate corrective 
measures to address property defects' pursuant to this section, either a court or the 
municipal officers must have determined that the mobile home has been abandoned 
according to the evidence of abandonment described ill Title 14, section 6326, subsection 
2, paragraph A, C, D, E,F, G or H. 
A. The municipal officers shall provide notice to the responsible party and hold a 
hearing before makinga determination that a mobile home has been abandoned. The 
notice of hearing m,ust: 
. 
(1) State the sc'heduled date, time and location of the hearing: and 
(2) 
Inform the responsible party that, upon a finding of abandonment, the 
municipality may require the responsible party to correct any property defects 
within 60 days of issuing a notice to correct. 
B. A hearing under paragraph A must' be held not less than 7 days after receipt or 
publication of the notice: 
C. An ;rder issued by the muni~ipality determining that a m~bile home is abandoned 
may be combined with the notice to correct set forth in subsection 5. 
5. Notice to correct. Upon a finding of abandonment, the municipal officers may 
give written notice to the responsible party to correct the property defect. The municipal 
notice to correct under this subsection must': 
A. Identify the property defect; 
B. 
State the municipality's intention to take appropriate preventive' or corrective 
measures to address the propertY defect; 
C. Identify the measures the municipality will take if the responsible party has not 
remedied the.property defect identified within 60 days.ofthe notice to correct; 
D. 
State the municipality's intention to subsequently recover the municipality's 
direct, legal and administrative costs from the responsible party; 
. 
E. 
Inform the responsible party of the responsible party's ability to avert the 
municipality's actions by remedying the property defect as identified in the notice; 
and . 
. 
F. State the municipality's intention to take possession of and dispose of the mobile 
home and all related personal property' if the responsible party has not remedied the 
property defect identified within 60 days of the notice to correct. 
6,' Notice process. A notice required to be given under this section is governed by 
the following. 
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HOUSE AMENDMENT" {f:to COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to H.P. 6[0, L.D. 891 
A. 
Notice must be hand-delivered or mailed by certified mail, return receipt 
requested, to the responsible party, 
Notice is sufficient if the signed receipt is 
return cd or the certified mail is ret,urned as refused by the recipient. 
B, If the name or address of the responsible party cannot be determined with 
reasonable diligence, or notice was otherwise not successful pursuant to paragraph A, 
the notice must be published twice consecutively in a daily or weekly newspaper 
having general circulation in the municipaiity in which the mobile home is located, 
7. Costs. A respqnsible party is jointlY and severally liable to a municipality for its 
direct, legal and administrative costs' incurred while remedying or attempting to remedy 
the property defect pursuant to this. section, The responsible party shall reimburse the 
municipality for its costs within 30 days after demand, or a special tax may be assessed 
against the property in the amount of those costs and may be collected in the same 
manner as other state, countyand municipal taxes are collected, 
8. Appeals. An appeal to a detennination of abandonment by the municipal officers 
pursuant to subsection 4 is to the Superior Court pursuant to the provisions of the Maine 
Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 80B.' 
SUMMARY 
This amendment amends Committee Amendment "A" and makes several changes, 
1,. It clarifies the definition cif "r~sponsible partY" to prOvide that there may be more 
than one owner of a mobil'e home who is a responsible party, to strike a reference to a 
lienholder and to add that a mortgagee is not included as a: responsible party, 
2, It requires a foreclosing mortgagee initiating a foreclosure action on a property to 
notify' the municipality where the property is situated and designate an in-state 
representative responsible' for responding to municipal inquiries regarding the property, 
3, It removes the requirement that a municipality first adopt an ordinance before it 
may avail itself of the authority granted under the statute, 
4, It removes 2 types of evidence from being used in making a detennination of 
abandonment: rubbish, trash or debris that has observably accumulated on the mortgaged 
premises and other reasonable indicia of abandonment. 
5, It eliminates municipal authority to fine a responsible party, 
6, It requires that a responsib1e party reimburse the muniCipality for its costs within 
days after demand and allows the penalty for nonpayment to be a special tax assessed 
against the property to be collected in the same manner as other state,' county and 
municipal taxes are collected. 
7, It removes the provision in the committee amendment that requires a municipality 
to investigate a suspected abandoned mobile home upon petition by a landowner in the 
municipality, 
HOUSE AMENDMENT 
HOUSE AMENDMENT" (r'ta COMMT1jEI3 AMENDMENT "A" to H.P, 610, L.D, 891 
8, It removes the reqUiremen~at a notice to correct be attached to the mobile home. 
SPONSOMDllY: ~.i:::>~ 
(Representative M 
R) 
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TOWN: Calais 
HOUSE AMENDMENT