An Act to Address Identified Gaps in the Laws Governing Erosion Control and the Natural Resources Protection Act
Maine Legislature, Session 131, LD 2034
Committee: Environment and Natural Resources
Sponsors: BRENNER
Amends: 38 MRSA §420-C, 38 MRSA §480-R

Legislative Document
No. 2034
S.P. 862
In Senate, December 13, 2023
An Act to Address Identified Gaps in the Laws Governing Erosion 
Control and the Natural Resources Protection Act
Submitted by the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry pursuant to Joint 
Rule 203.
Received by the Secretary of the Senate on December 11, 2023.  Referred to the Committee 
on Environment and Natural Resources pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed.
DAREK M. GRANT
Secretary of the Senate
Presented by Senator BRENNER of Cumberland.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  38 MRSA §420-C, 2nd ¶, as enacted by PL 1997, c. 748, §1, is amended 
to read:
A person who owns property in an organized area of this State that is subject to erosion 
because of a human activity before July 1, 1997 involving filling, displacing or exposing 
soil or other earthen materials shall take measures in accordance with the dates established 
under this paragraph to prevent unreasonable erosion of soil or sediment into a protected 
natural resource as defined in section 480‑B, subsection 8.  Adequate and timely temporary 
and permanent stabilization measures must be taken and maintained on that site to prevent 
unreasonable erosion and sedimentation.  This paragraph applies on and after July 1, 2005 
to property that is located in the watershed of a body of water most at risk as identified in 
the department's storm water rules adopted pursuant to section 420‑D and that is subject to 
erosion of soil or sediment into a protected natural resource as defined in section 480‑B, 
subsection 8.  This paragraph applies on and after July 1, 2010 to other property that is 
subject to erosion of soil or sediment into a protected natural resource as defined in section 
480‑B, subsection 8.
Sec. 2.  38 MRSA §420-C, 3rd ¶, as enacted by PL 1995, c. 704, Pt. B, §2 and 
affected by Pt. C, §2 and amended by PL 2011, c. 682, §38, is further amended to read:
This section applies to a project or any portion of a project located within an organized 
area of this the State.  This section does not apply to agricultural fields.  Forest management 
activities, including associated road construction or maintenance, conducted in accordance 
with applicable standards of the Maine Land Use Planning Commission Department of 
Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, Bureau of Forestry, are deemed to comply with 
this section.  This section may not be construed to limit a municipality's authority under 
home rule to adopt ordinances containing stricter standards than those contained in this 
section.
Sec. 3.  38 MRSA §480-R, sub-§2, as amended by PL 2003, c. 414, Pt. B, §71 and 
affected by c. 614, §9, is further amended to read:
2.  Enforcement.  In addition to department staff, inland fisheries and wildlife game 
wardens, Department of Marine Resources marine patrol officers and, all other law 
enforcement officers enumerated in Title 12, section 10401 and, pursuant to their delegated 
authority, the Maine Land Use Planning Commission and the Department of Agriculture, 
Conservation and Forestry, Bureau of Forestry shall enforce the terms of this article.
SUMMARY
This bill amends the laws governing erosion control to extend the requirement for 
preventing unreasonable erosion of soil or sediment statewide instead of applying only in 
the organized areas of the State.  The bill does not extend the application of the retroactive 
provisions of the laws regarding erosion because of human activity, which currently apply 
only in the organized areas of the State, to the unorganized areas of the State.
The bill also clarifies that the Maine Land Use Planning Commission and the 
Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, Bureau of Forestry have 
enforcement authority pursuant to their delegated authority under the Natural Resources 
Protection Act.