An Act to Enhance the Use of Critical Incident Stress Management Teams and to Require Peer Team Support
Maine Legislature, Session 131, LD 1742
Committee: Criminal Justice and Public Safety
Sponsors: GRAMLICH, STEWART, COPELAND, GEIGER, O'CONNELL, SALISBURY, STOVER, BEEBE-CENTER
Amends: 25 MRSA §4201, 25 MRSA §4202, 25 MRSA §4203, 37-B MRSA §704

Legislative Document
No. 1742
H.P. 1121
House of Representatives, April 20, 2023
An Act to Enhance the Use of Critical Incident Stress Management 
Teams and to Require Peer Team Support
Reference to the Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety suggested and ordered 
printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative GRAMLICH of Old Orchard Beach.
Cosponsored by Senator STEWART of Aroostook and
Representatives: COPELAND of Saco, GEIGER of Rockland, O'CONNELL of Brewer, 
SALISBURY of Westbrook, STOVER of Boothbay, Senator: BEEBE-CENTER of Knox.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  25 MRSA §4201, sub-§1, as amended by PL 2019, c. 89, §1, is further 
amended to read:
1.  Critical incident.  "Critical incident" means a work-related incident that causes or 
has the potential to cause an employee or member of a public safety agency, a fire 
department or an organization involved in emergency care or response, a corrections officer 
as defined in section 2801‑A, subsection 2, a firefighter or an employee of a county jail or 
a detention or correctional facility operated by the Department of Corrections to experience 
emotional or physical stress.  "Critical incident" includes, but is not limited to, use-of-force 
encounters that may result in the death of or serious injury to another person or an officer, 
firefighter, member or employee, fires or other public safety emergencies, fatal motor 
vehicle accidents, child abuse investigations, emergency care or response operations and 
death investigations.
Sec. 2.  25 MRSA §4201, sub-§1-A, as enacted by PL 2019, c. 89, §2, is amended 
to read:
1-A.  Critical incident stress management peer support.  "Critical incident stress 
management peer support" means services provided to an employee or member of a public 
safety agency, a fire department or an organization involved in emergency care or response, 
a corrections officer as defined in section 2801‑A, subsection 2, a firefighter or an employee 
of a county jail or a detention or correctional facility operated by the Department of 
Corrections when that person has been involved in a critical incident that can reasonably 
have a devastating, long‑lasting effect on that person.  "Critical incident stress management 
peer support" includes assisting the employee, member, firefighter or officer to 
appropriately process the trauma and stress and connecting that person to appropriate 
resources.
Sec. 3.  25 MRSA §4201, sub-§3-A is enacted to read:
3-A.  Fire department.  "Fire department" means the Office of the State Fire Marshal, 
a municipal fire department as defined in Title 30-A, section 3151, subsection 1, a volunteer 
fire association as defined in Title 30-A, section 3151, subsection 3 or a fire district under 
Title 30-A, chapter 164.
Sec. 4.  25 MRSA §4201, sub-§3-B is enacted to read:
3-B.  Firefighter.  "Firefighter" has the same meaning as in Title 39-A, section 328-B, 
subsection 1, paragraph C.
Sec. 5.  25 MRSA §4202, sub-§1, as amended by PL 2019, c. 89, §6, is further 
amended to read:
1.  Information confidential.  Except as provided in subsection 2, all proceedings, 
communications and records, including, but not limited to, information concerning the 
identity of a person seeking or being furnished assistance, connected in any way with the 
work of a critical incident stress management team, including critical incident stress 
management peer support persons, are confidential and are not subject to compulsory legal 
process or otherwise discoverable or admissible in evidence in any civil action unless the 
confidentiality is waived by the affected person person seeking or being furnished 
assistance.  Statistical data not identifying a the person seeking or being furnished the 
assistance of a critical incident stress management team must be made available for 
statistical evaluation and may not be made available for any other purpose.
Sec. 6.  25 MRSA §4203 is enacted to read:
§4203.  Critical incident stress management and peer team support services for public 
safety employees
1. Definitions.  As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the 
following terms have the following meanings.
A. "Affected person" means a firefighter or employee or member of a provider.
B. "Director" means the Director of the Maine Emergency Management Agency within 
the Department of Defense, Veterans and Emergency Management.
C. "Peer team" means a team of employees or members of a public safety agency, fire 
department or organization involved in emergency care or response that provides peer 
team support to affected persons and that is trained in accordance with standards 
established by rule by the director.
D.  "Peer team support" means the provision of behavioral health resources to an 
affected person by a peer team for the purpose of addressing issues resulting from stress 
and trauma associated with being an affected person but not necessarily related to a 
critical incident.
E.  "Provider" means a public safety agency, fire department or organization involved 
in emergency care or response in the State.
2.  Critical incident stress management team services.  The director shall ensure that 
critical incident stress management team services are available to all affected persons, 
including by:
A.  Supporting the establishment of a critical incident stress management team for 
every provider or through a collaboration of more than one provider;
B.  Providing critical incident stress management team services for every provider that 
does not have a critical incident stress management team;
C.  Establishing a program for critical incident stress management training for at least 
one firefighter in every fire department and at least one employee or member of every 
public safety agency or organization involved in emergency care or response; 
D.  Beginning July 1, 2024 and as part of preservice and in-service training under 
chapter 341, providing educational, training and promotional programs and materials, 
including, but not limited to, programs and materials related to trauma, to all affected 
persons to increase awareness of or provide support for critical incident stress 
management team services; and
E. Providing access to behavioral health care services for all affected persons 
immediately after a critical incident in which the affected person or provider has 
provided care, response or services.  
3.  Peer team support services.  The director shall ensure that peer team support 
services are available to all affected persons.
4.  Access to critical incident stress management training and behavioral health 
care and peer team support. A provider shall employ or have as an active member at least 
one person who has received critical incident stress management training pursuant to 
subsection 2, paragraph C, shall provide education and access to ongoing behavioral health 
care services related to any post-traumatic stress resulting from a critical incident 
experienced by an affected person and shall, within existing department resources, maintain 
a critical incident stress management team and a peer team, which may include 
collaboration with another provider.
5.  Collaboration; implementation.  The director shall collaborate with a nonprofit 
organization representing professional firefighters in the State and other governmental and 
nonprofit organizations that have an interest in law enforcement, firefighting, emergency 
care or response or emergency management or stress management in carrying out the 
purposes of this section.  The director shall designate a full-time employee of the 
Department of Defense, Veterans and Emergency Management, Maine Emergency 
Management Agency to oversee the implementation of this section, including, but not 
limited to, assisting with rulemaking and coordination among providers.  In overseeing 
implementation of this section, the director shall, to the extent appropriate, contract for 
training and ancillary services with employee organizations of providers that have 
experience and expertise in providing such training and services.
6.  Rules.  The director may 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. 7.  37-B MRSA §704, sub-§11, as enacted by PL 2013, c. 146, §7, is amended 
to read:
11.  Comprehensive emergency management plan.  Develop and maintain a 
comprehensive emergency management plan for the State that is in conformance with 
guidance developed under subsection 10; and
Sec. 8.  37-B MRSA §704, sub-§12, as enacted by PL 2013, c. 146, §7, is amended 
to read:
12.  Additional duties and authority.  Carry out any additional duties and assume 
such additional authority as may be prescribed by the commissioner or the Governor.; and
Sec. 9.  37-B MRSA §704, sub-§13 is enacted to read:
13.  Critical incident stress management and peer team support services.  Ensure 
that critical incident stress management team services and peer team support services are 
provided to affected persons pursuant to Title 25, section 4203.
SUMMARY
This bill directs the Director of the Maine Emergency Management Agency within the 
Department of Defense, Veterans and Emergency Management to provide critical incident 
stress management team services and peer team support services to all firefighters and 
employees or members of a public safety agency, fire department or organization involved 
in emergency care or response in the State by supporting the establishment of critical 
incident stress management teams; providing critical incident stress management team 
services; establishing a program for critical incident stress management training; providing 
educational, training and promotional programs and materials, including programs and 
materials related to trauma; providing access to behavioral health care services after a 
critical incident; and providing peer team support for providing behavioral health resources 
for issues not necessarily related to a critical incident. The bill also requires the director to 
designate a full-time employee of the Maine Emergency Management Agency to oversee 
implementation of these services. The bill also requires public safety agencies, fire 
departments and organizations involved in emergency care or response to have at least one 
person who has received critical incident stress management training and to provide 
education and access to ongoing behavioral health care services related to any post-
traumatic stress resulting from a critical incident.