An Act To Clarify Appeals of Municipal Land Use Decisions
Maine Legislature, Session 128, LD 1381
Committee: State and Local Government
Sponsors: MONAGHAN
Amends: 30-A MRSA §2691, 30-A MRSA §4482, 30-A MRSA §4482-A

Legislative Document
No. 1381
H.P. 960
House of Representatives, April 11, 2017
An Act To Clarify Appeals of Municipal Land Use Decisions
Reference to the Committee on State and Local Government suggested and ordered printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative MONAGHAN of Cape Elizabeth.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  30-A MRSA §2691, sub-§3, ¶C, as enacted by PL 1987, c. 737, Pt. A, §2 
and Pt. C, §106 and amended by PL 1989, c. 6; c. 9, §2; and c. 104, Pt. C, §§8 and 10, is 
further amended to read: 
C.  The board may provide, by regulation which shall must be recorded by the 
secretary, for any matter relating to the conduct of any hearing, provided except that 
the chair may waive any regulation upon good cause shown.  Unless otherwise 
established by charter or ordinance, the board shall conduct a de novo review 
pursuant to paragraph D.  If a charter or ordinance provides for an appellate review, 
the board shall limit its review to the record established by the board or official 
whose decision is the subject of the appeal and to the arguments of the parties.  The 
board may not accept new evidence as part of an appellate review. 
Sec. 2.  30-A MRSA §2691, sub-§3, ¶F, as amended by PL 2003, c. 635, §1, is 
further amended to read: 
F.  The board may reconsider any decision reached under this section within 45 days 
of its prior decision.  A request to the board to reconsider a decision must be filed 
within 10 days of the decision that is to be reconsidered.  A vote to reconsider and the 
action taken on that reconsideration must occur and be completed within 45 days of 
the date of the vote on the original decision.  The board may conduct additional 
hearings and receive additional evidence and testimony as provided in this 
subsection. 
Notwithstanding paragraph G, appeal of a reconsidered decision must be made within 
days after the decision on reconsideration or within the applicable time period for 
any final decision if the request is also the subject of another municipal 
administrative review process. 
Sec. 3.  30-A MRSA §2691, sub-§3, ¶H is enacted to read: 
H.  For purposes of this section, a final decision occurs when the request has received 
all required municipal administrative approvals by the board of appeals, the planning 
board or municipal review authority, a site plan or design review board, a historic 
preservation review board and any other review board created by municipal charter or 
ordinance.  If the final municipal administrative review is by a board other than the 
board of appeals, the time for appeal is that set out under section 4482-A.  Any denial 
of the request by the board of appeals must be considered a final decision even if 
other municipal administrative approvals are required for the request, and the 
decision must be appealed within 45 days of the date of the vote to deny or within 15 
days of final action on a reconsideration that results in a denial of the request. 
Sec. 4.  30-A MRSA §4482, sub-§1, as enacted by PL 2015, c. 459, §1, is 
amended to read: 
1.  Review of significant municipal land use decision.  A complaint may be filed 
either in the general docket of the Superior Court for the county in which the municipality 
is located or directly in a docket designated by the Supreme Judicial Court for business 
matters.  Any complaint filed in the general docket of the Superior Court for the county in 
which the municipality is located must be transferred upon request of any party to the 
proceeding to a docket designated by the Supreme Judicial Court for business matters. An 
appeal under this section may not be filed until the issuance of a final decision by the 
municipality pursuant to section 2691 or 4482-A.  
Sec. 5.  30-A MRSA §4482-A is enacted to read: 
§4482-A.  Review of municipal administrative land use decision 
This section governs the process for seeking review of municipal administrative land 
use decisions other than a significant municipal land use decision under section 4482 or a 
decision of a board of appeals under section 2691. 
1.  Review of municipal administrative land use decisions.  A party may take an 
appeal within 30 days of the date of the vote on a final decision to the Superior Court, 
except that the time period may be extended by the court upon motion for good cause 
shown.  The hearing before the Superior Court must be without a jury. 
2.  Final decision.  For purposes of this section, a final decision occurs when an 
application has received all required municipal administrative approvals by the board of 
appeals, the planning board or municipal review authority, a site plan or design review 
board, a historic preservation review board and any other review board created by 
municipal charter or ordinance.  No appeal may be made prior to review and final 
approval by each applicable municipal administrative review board.  A denial of an 
application must be considered a final decision even if other municipal administrative 
approvals are required and must be appealed in accordance with the requirements of the 
Maine Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 80B.  If the final municipal administrative decision 
is by the board of appeals, the time for appeal is that set out under section 2691. 
Sec. 6.  Maine Revised Statutes headnote amended; revision clause.  In the 
Maine Revised Statutes, Title 30-A, chapter 190, in the chapter headnote, the words 
"judicial review of significant municipal land use decision" are amended to read "judicial 
review of significant municipal land use decisions and municipal administrative land use 
decisions" and the Revisor of Statutes shall implement this revision when updating, 
publishing or republishing the statutes. 
SUMMARY 
This bill amends the laws regarding municipal boards of appeal and regarding 
appeals of municipal land use decisions to reflect the holding of the Law Court in "Susan 
E. Bryant v. Town of Camden et al.," which relates to when a local land use decision is 
ripe for appeal.  It provides that a final decision occurs when an application has received 
all required municipal administrative approvals by a municipality’s board of appeals, 
planning board or municipal review authority, a site plan or design review board, a 
historic preservation review board and any other review board created by municipal 
charter or ordinance and that an appeal to the Superior Court may not be made until a 
final decision occurs.