An Act to Improve Family Court Procedure
Maine Legislature, Session 131, LD 0580
Committee Amendment CA_B_S85 (Senate)
Amends: 19-A MRSA §1653, 19-A MRSA §1653-B

COMJ\.1ITTEE AMENDMENT "B " to SP 248, L D 580, "An Act to Improve 
Family Court Procedure" 
Amend the bill by stnkmg out everythmg after the enactmg clause and msertmg the 
followmg 
'Sec. 1. 19-A MRSA §1653, sub-§3, ,o, as amended by PL 2021, c 647, Pt B, 
§46 and affected by §65, is further amended to read 
A parent's pnor willful misuse of the emergency parental nghts and responsib1ht1es 
order process m section 1653-B or the protect10n from abuse piocess m former chapter 
or chapter 103 m order to gam tactical advantage m a proceedmg mvolvmg the 
determmat10n of parental nghts and respons1b1httes of a mmor child 
Such willful 
misuse may be considered only 1f established by cleat and convmcmg evidence and 1f 
1t 1s further found by clear and convmcmg evidence that, m the particular circumstances 
of the parents and child, that willful misuse tends to show that the actmg parent will m 
the future have a lessened ability and w1llmgness to cooperate and work with the other 
parent m therr shared responsib1httes for the child The court shall articulate findmgs 
of fact whenever relymg upon this factor as part of its determmat1on of a child's best 
mterest The voluntary d1sm1ssal of a motion for an emergency parental nghts and 
respons1b1ht1es order or a protect10n from abuse petition may not, taken alone, be 
treated as evidence of the willful misuse of the emergency parental nghts and 
respons1b1httes order process or the protection from abuse process, 
Sec. 2. 19-A MRSA §1653-B 1s enacted to read 
§1653-B Emergency parental rights and respons1b1bt1es order 
1. Motion. A party to an action under this Title concemmg parental nghts, mcludmg 
actions for divorce, legal separation, pa1 entage or parental nghts and respons1b1ht1es and 
post-mdgment proceedmgs ansmg out of these actions, may file a motion requestmg that 
the court issue an emergency parental nghts and respons1b1ht1es order with respect to a 
child on an ex parte basis upon a showmg of immediate and present nsk of substantial harm 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
ROS 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT" 13" to S P 248, L D 580 ( .5 .. g-5"°) 
to the health or safety of the child A motion may not be filed under this section as part of 
a protection from abuse proceedmg under chapter 103 
2. Affidavit regmred. A motion for an emergency parental nghts and respons1b1hties 
order must be accompamed by an affidavit made under oath allegmg 
A The conditions estabhshmg an immediate and present nsk of substantial harm to 
the health or safety of the child, and 
B The actions taken by the party filmg the request to mform the other party or parties 
to the proceedmg of the motion or the reasons why the court should consider the request 
without requmng !1ot1ce to the other party 
3. Temporary rehef. The court may, m an ex parte proceedmg, enter an emergency 
parental nghts and respons1b1hties order contammg any rehef that the court considers 
necessary to address the 1mmed1ate and present nsk of substantial harm to the health or 
safety of the child An order 1Ssued under this subsection may mclude 
A An allocat10n of parental nghts and respons1b1hties between the parties, 
B Cond1t10ns govemmg parent-child contact, mcludmg but not hm1ted to proh1b1tmg 
parent-child contact, 
C Directives regardmg the residence of the child, mcludmg but not hm1ted to 
authonzmg or proh1b1tmg relocat10n of the child, and 
D Any other rehef determmed appropnate m the d1scret10n of the court 
4. Demal of motion Before denymg a motion for an emergency parental nghts and 
responsib1hties order, the court shall 
A Allow the movmg party to be heard, accompamed by a person of the party's ch01ce, 
and 
B Advise the movmg party of the reasons for the demal 
5. Service. 
A party who files a motion for an emergency parental nghts and 
responsibilities order under this sect10n shall 
A If the court issues an order under subsection 3, arrange for the mot10n, affidavit and 
order to be personally served on the other party m a manner allowed by the applicable 
rule of civil procedure along with the ongmal complamt or post-mdgment motion that 
accompamed the motion, 1f any, or 
B If the court demes the motion under subsect10n 4, arrange for the motion, affidavit 
and order denymg the motion to be served on the other party m a manner allowed by 
the applicable rule of civil procedure along with the ongmal complamt or post-
mdgment mot10n that accompamed the motion, 1f any 
6. Hearmg. If the court enters an order under subsect10n 3, the court shall hold a 
hearmg w1thm 21 days of the 1Ssuance of the order The scope of the hearmg is hm1ted to 
the necessity of contmumg the temporary rehef granted m the emergency parental nghts 
and responsibilities order Nothmg m this section hmits the court's discretion to contmue 
the hearmg upon the court's own motion or upon the motion of either party If the court 
dem.es the motion under subsection 4, the parties are not entitled to a hearmg under this 
subsection and the court may enter a schedulmg order or any other order that the mterests 
of mst1ce reqmre 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
ROS 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT" p_," to S P 248, L D 580 { :y25' S) 
7. D1ssolut10n or modification. A party whose parental rights are affected by an 
emergency parental rights and responsibilities order issued under subsection 3, other than 
the party who requested the order, may appear and move for the dissolution or mod1ficat10n 
of the order before the scheduled hearing The motion must be accompamed by a sworn 
affidavit The court shall schedule a hearmg on the mot10n as exped1t10usly as the mterests 
of mstice require 
8. Jur1sd1ct1on; procedure. A mot10n for an emergency parental rights and 
responsibilities order under this sect10n may be reviewed and an order may be issued by a 
Distnct Court Judge or a family law magistrate The clerk shall present the motion to a 
D1stnct Court Judge or family law magistrate upon docketmg If no mdge or family law 
magistrate 1s available at the courthouse m which the request 1s made, the clerk shall 
forward the motion to any available mdic1al officer w1thm the State 
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Sec. 3. Working group. The Mame Commission on Domestic and Sexual Abuse, 
established m the Mame Revised Statutes, Title 5, section 12004-I, subsection 74-C, shall 
convene a workmg group of stakeholders mcludmg comm1ss1on members, representatives 
of the Judicial branch, family law practitioners, members of the Family Law Advisory 
Comm1ss10n established m Title 5, section 12004-I, subsection 52-A, representatives of a 
statewide coalition to end domestic v10lence and any others that the comm1ss1on determmes 
to be necessary participants To the extent possible, the membe1s of the workmg group 
must be the same as the members of the workmg group established pursuant to Resolve 
2021, chapter 99 
1. Duties The workmg group shall review data provided by the Jud1c1al branch for at 
least 2 years followmg 1mplementat10n of this Act, mcludmg data on the number ofrequests 
for emergency parental rights and respons1b1lities orders filed, the number of emergency 
parental rights and responsibilities orders issued, the average time between the fihng of a 
request and the hearing on that request, if any, and any other data determmed by the Judicial 
branch to be useful for evaluatmg efficacy of the new process 
Report; leg1slat10n. The commission shall submit a report to the Jomt standmg 
committee of the Legislature havmg Junsd1ct10n over Judiciary matters no later than 
November 4, 2026 The report must identify the workmg group's part1c1pants, summanze 
the activities of the workmg group and mclude any conclusions made by the workmg group 
regardmg the effectiveness of the emergency parental nghts and respons1b1lities order 
process established m Title 19-A, section 1653-B The report may mclude the workmg 
group's recommendations for further 1mprovmg the family court response to families with 
urgent safety concerns The Jomt standmg committee of the Legislature havmgJunsd1ction 
over Judiciary matters may report out legislation to the 133rd Legislature m 2027 based on 
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the report 
Sec. 4. Appropriations and allocat1ons. The followmg appropnat10ns and 
9 
allocat10ns are made 
JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT 
Courts - Supreme, Superior and District 0063 
Imt1at1ve Provides one-t1me fundmg for pnntmg costs to update A Guide to Family 
Separation m Mame 
GENERAL FUND 
2023-24 
2024-25 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "(3" to S P 248, L D 580 ( S ~ (5 ~} 
All Other 
GENERAL FUND TOTAL 
Courts - Supreme, Superior and District 0063 
$10,000 
$0 
$10,000 
$0 
Irutiatlve Establishes one Judge pos1t1on, one Deputy Marshal position and one Assistant 
Clerk position effective January 1, 2024 and provides fundmg for related All Other costs 
GENERAL FUND 
2023-24 
2024-25 
POSITIONS - LEGISLATIVE COUNT 
000 
000 
Personal Services 
$182,885 
$380,951 
All Other 
$31,530 
$15,930 
GENERAL FUND TOTAL 
JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT 
DEPARTMENT TOTALS 
GENERAL FUND 
DEPARTMENT TOTAL-ALL FUNDS 
$214,415 
2023-24 
$224,415 
$224,415 
Sec. 5. Effective date. This Act takes effect January 1, 2024 ' 
$396,881 
2024-25 
$396,881 
$396,881 
Amend the bill by relettermg or renumbermg any nonconsecutive Part letter or section 
number to read consecutively 
SUMMARY 
This amendment, which 1s the mmority report of the committee, replaces the bill, which 
1s a concept draft Begmrung January 1, 2024, the amendment authorizes a party to a 
divorce, legal separation, parentage or parental rights and respons1bihties proceedmg or a 
post-Judgment motion arismg out of one of these actions to file a motion requestmg that 
the court issue an ex parte emergency parental rights and respons1bilit1es order on the basis 
that there 1s an immediate and present risk of substantial harm to the health or safety of the 
child The order may be issued by a D1stnct Court Judge 01 a family law magistrate and 
may mclude a temporary allocat10n of parental nghts and respons1b1ht1es between the 
parties m the underlymg act10n, cond1t10ns of parent-child contact and directives regardmg 
the residence of the child If a Judge or magistrate issues an emergency parental nghts and 
respons1b1ht1es order ex parte, the court shall hold a hearing w1thm 21 days to detenmne 
the need fo1 contmuat1on of the temporary rehef granted m the order In the meantime, a 
party affected by the emergency parental rights and responsibilities order, other than the 
party that requested the order, may file a mot10n to modify or to dissolve the order, which 
the court must hear as expedit10usly as the mterests of Justice reqmre 
The amendment also directs the Mame Comm1ss1on on Domestic and Sexual Abuse to 
convene a workmg group of stakeholders, snmlar to the workmg group estabhshed by 
Resolve 2021, chapter 99, to review data fi om the Judicial branch gathered for at least 2 
years followmg Implementation of the emergency parental nghts and responsibilities order 
process established m this legislation to evaluate the efficacy of the process 
The 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
ROS 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT" CJ" to SP 248, L D 580 ( ~~ ~) 
amendment directs the commiss10n to submit a report regardmg the workmg group's 
findmgs to the JOmt standmg committee of the Legislature havmg JUnsdiction over 
Judiciary matters by November 4, 2026 The committee may report out legislat10n to the 
133rd Legislature m 2027 m response to the report 
FISCAL NOTE REQUIRED 
(See attached) 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
Approved 04/10/23 ;fiPaC!. 
LD580 
LR 792(03) 
An Act to Improve Family Court Procedure 
Fiscal Note for Bill as Amended by Committee Amendment "i~ LS--cSS) 
Committee: Judiciary 
Net Cost (Savings) 
General Fund 
Appropriations/ Allocations 
General Fund 
Fiscal Detail and Notes 
Fiscal Note Reqmred: Yes 
Fiscal Note 
FY 2023-24 
FY 2024-25 
$224,415 
$396,881 
$224,415 
$396,881 
Projections 
FY 2025-26 
$410,595 
$410,595 
ProJections 
FY 2026-27 
$424 '"''"'"' 
$424,803 
Begmmng January 1, 2024, this bill authonzes a party to a family matter mvolvmg a child to file a mot10n requestmg 
that the court issue an ex parte emergency parental nghts and respons1b1httes order under certam ctrcumstances and 
reqmres the court to hold a heanng 21 days after issuance on the need for contmuat10n of the order 
The bill mcludes General Fund appropnat10ns to the Judicial Department of $224,415 m fiscal year 2023-24 and 
$396,881 m fiscal year 2024-25 to estabhsh one Judge pos1t10n, one Deputy Marshal pos1t10n and one Assistant Clerk 
pos1t10n, effective January 1, 2024, to implement the aforementioned process 
Any add1t1onal costs to the Mame Commission on Domestic and Sexual Abuse associated with estabhshmg a 
workmg group to evaluate the efficacy of the process for the emergency parental nghts and respons1b1httes order are 
expected to be mmor and can be absorbed w1thm ex1stmg budgeted resources 
LR0792(03) - Fiscal Note - Page 1 of 1