An Act to Support Municipal Enforcement of Residential
Maine Legislature, Session 132, LD 2225
Committee: Housing and Economic Development
Amends: 10 MRSA §9722, 10 MRSA §9726, 25 MRSA §2450-A, 30-A MRSA §4451

Legislative Document
No. 2225
S.P. 908
In Senate, March 3, 2026
An Act to Support Municipal Enforcement of Residential 
Construction Laws, Codes and Regulations
Reported by Senator CURRY of Waldo for the Joint Standing Committee on Housing and 
Economic Development pursuant to Resolve 2025, chapter 64, section 2.
Reference to the Committee on Housing and Economic Development suggested and 
ordered printed pursuant to Joint Rule 218.
DAREK M. GRANT
Secretary of the Senate
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  10 MRSA §9722, sub-§6, ¶B, as amended by PL 2019, c. 391, §4, is further 
amended by amending subparagraph (8) to read:
(8)  ASHRAE Standard 90.1 Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise 
Residential Buildings; and
Sec. 2.  10 MRSA §9722, sub-§6, ¶B, as amended by PL 2019, c. 391, §4, is further 
amended by amending subparagraph (9) to read:
(9)  Standard Practice for Radon Control Options for the Design and Construction 
of New Low-Rise Residential Buildings published by the American Society for 
Testing and Materials.; and
Sec. 3.  10 MRSA §9722, sub-§6, ¶B, a amended by PL 2019, c. 391, §4, is further 
amended by enacting a new subparagraph (10) to read:
(10)  International Code Council and Modular Building Institute 1200-2021 
Standard for Off-site Construction: Planning, Design, Fabrication and Assembly.
Sec. 4.  10 MRSA §9726 is enacted to read:
§9726.  Code changes and enforcement
Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter to the contrary, beginning January 1, 
2027, the effective date of any changes made by the board to the Maine Uniform Building 
and Energy Code or to the codes and standards listed in section 9725 between January 1st 
and June 30th is December 1st of that same calendar year.  The effective date of changes 
made between July 1st and December 31st is June 1st of the next calendar year.
Sec. 5.  25 MRSA §2450-A, as amended by PL 2025, c. 388, Pt. D, §31, is further 
amended to read:
§2450-A.  Surcharge on plan review fee for Uniform Building Codes and Standards 
Fund
In addition to the fees established in section 2450, a surcharge of 4¢ 6¢ per square foot 
of occupied space must be levied on the existing fee schedule for new construction, 
reconstruction, repairs, renovations or new use for the sole purpose of funding the activities 
of the Technical Building Codes and Standards Board with respect to the Maine Uniform 
Building and Energy Code, established pursuant to Title 10, chapter 1103, the activities of 
the Division of Building Codes and Standards under chapter 314 and the activities of the 
Maine Office of Community Affairs under Title 30‑A, section 4451, subsection 3‑A, except 
that the fee for review of a plan for the renovation of a public school, including the fee 
established under section 2450, may not exceed $450. Revenue collected from this 
surcharge must be deposited into the Uniform Building Codes and Standards Fund 
established by section 2374.
Sec. 6.  30-A MRSA §4451, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2025, c. 388, Pt. D, §38, is 
further amended to read:
3.  Training and certification of code enforcement officers.  In cooperation with 
code enforcement officer professional associations, the Maine Community College System, 
the Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Health and Human 
Services, except as otherwise provided in paragraph H, the Maine Office of Community 
Affairs shall establish a continuing education program for individuals engaged in code 
enforcement.  This program must provide training in the technical and legal aspects of code 
enforcement necessary for certification.  The training program must include training to 
provide familiarity with the laws and ordinances related to the structure and practice of the 
municipal code enforcement office, municipal planning board and appeals board 
procedures, application review and permitting procedures, inspection procedures and code 
enforcement techniques, including enforcement of codes regulating industrialized housing. 
For the purposes of this subsection, "industrialized housing" means a structure designed to 
be used for residential housing that consists of or is constructed using one or more modular 
buildings, modular components or panelized systems that is wholly or in substantial part 
fabricated or assembled in a manufacturing plant for installation, or assembly and 
installation, on a separate building site and has been manufactured in such a manner that 
all parts or processes cannot be inspected at the installation site without disassembly of, 
damage to or destruction of the structure.
H.  If funding is not available to support the training and certification program 
authorized under this subsection, the Maine Office of Community Affairs shall 
discontinue training and certification activities related to laws and ordinances 
referenced in subsection 2‑A, paragraphs A and B and shall adopt by routine technical 
rules under Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2‑A a program to register code enforcement 
officers that meet training and education qualifications.  The Maine Office of 
Community Affairs shall publish the list of persons registered for code enforcement 
who have submitted evidence of required qualifications.  Persons registered under this 
paragraph must meet the requirements for training and certification under this 
subchapter.  The Maine Office of Community Affairs shall consult with the 
Department of Health and Human Services for the purposes of carrying out training 
and certification activities related to laws and ordinances referenced in subsection 2‑A, 
paragraphs C and D.  Within one month of discontinuation of training and certification 
under this paragraph, the Maine Office of Community Affairs shall report to the joint 
standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over appropriations and 
financial affairs and the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction 
over state and local government matters a recommendation for funding the training and 
certification program or for further changes in program requirements.
Sec. 7. Regionalized code enforcement pilot project.  The Maine Office of 
Community Affairs, through the Housing Opportunity Program established in the Maine 
Revised Statutes, Title 5, section 3241, shall conduct a 3-year pilot project to promote, 
incentivize and support the adoption of regionalized approaches to code enforcement by 
municipalities.  The Maine Office of Community Affairs shall administer the pilot project 
and establish guidelines for the administration of the pilot project as follows.
1. The pilot project must start no later than January 1, 2027 and continue for no more 
than 3 years.
2. The Maine Office of Community Affairs shall conduct an ongoing evaluation of the 
pilot project to determine the efficacy and effect of adopting a regionalized approach to 
code enforcement for participating municipalities.
3. No later than January 15th of each year for the duration of the pilot project, and no 
later than 60 days following the end of the pilot project, the Maine Office of Community 
Affairs shall submit a report on the status of the pilot project to the joint standing committee 
of the Legislature having jurisdiction over building code matters. The final report must 
include, but is not limited to, the total number of participating municipalities; the reported 
effects of adopting a regionalized approach to code enforcement; any barriers to the success 
of the pilot project; and recommendations, including any suggested legislation, for adopting 
a regionalized approach to code enforcement.
Upon receipt of any report required by this section, the joint standing committee of the 
Legislature having jurisdiction over building code matters may report out legislation based 
on the report to the legislative session in which the report is received.
Sec. 8. Transfer from Maine Budget Stabilization Fund; Housing 
Opportunity Program, Other Special Revenue Funds account. Notwithstanding 
any provision of law to the contrary, on or before June 30, 2027, the State Controller shall 
transfer $1,000,000 from the Maine Budget Stabilization Fund within the Department of 
Administrative and Financial Services to the Housing Opportunity Program, Other Special 
Revenue Funds account for a pilot project to provide regionalized building code 
enforcement.
Sec. 9.  Appropriations and allocations.  The following appropriations and 
allocations are made.
MAINE OFFICE OF COMMUNITY AFFAIRS
Division of Building Codes and Standards Z419
Initiative: Provides funding for the proposed reorganization of one Public Safety Inspector 
III position to a Public Service Manager II position.
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS
2025-26
2026-27
Personal Services
$0
$28,003
__________
__________
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS TOTAL
$0
$28,003
Division of Building Codes and Standards Z419
Initiative: Establishes one Senior Planner position for regional technical assistance for local 
code enforcement.
GENERAL FUND
2025-26
2026-27
POSITIONS - LEGISLATIVE COUNT
0.000
1.000
Personal Services
$0
$95,147
All Other
$0
$8,000
__________
__________
GENERAL FUND TOTAL
$0
$103,147
Division of Building Codes and Standards Z419
Initiative: Establishes one Resource Management Coordinator position and provides 
funding for training and support for local code enforcement officers.
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS
2025-26
2026-27
POSITIONS - LEGISLATIVE COUNT
0.000
1.000
Personal Services
$0
$122,761
All Other
$0
$13,000
__________
__________
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS TOTAL
$0
$135,761
Division of Building Codes and Standards Z419
Initiative: Provides funding for the approved reclassification of one Public Safety Inspector 
III position to a Public Safety Inspector Supervisor position retroactive to August 21, 2024 
and transfers All Other to Personal Services one time to fund the retroactive portion of the 
reclassification. This initiative also provides funding for authorized overtime.
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS
2025-26
2026-27
Personal Services
$0
$94,594
All Other
$0
($9,282)
__________
__________
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS TOTAL
$0
$85,312
Housing Opportunity Program Z418
Initiative: Provides one-time funding for a 3-year pilot project to provide regionalized 
building code enforcement.
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS
2025-26
2026-27
All Other
$0
$1,000,000
__________
__________
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS TOTAL
$0
$1,000,000
MAINE OFFICE OF COMMUNITY AFFAIRS
DEPARTMENT TOTALS
2025-26
2026-27
GENERAL FUND
$0
$103,147
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS
$0
$1,249,076
__________
__________
DEPARTMENT TOTAL - ALL FUNDS
$0
$1,352,223
SUMMARY
This bill is reported out by the Joint Standing Committee on Housing and Economic 
Development pursuant to Resolve 2025, chapter 64.  The bill implements the 
recommendations of the working group to address regulatory barriers to housing 
construction by:
1. Adding the International Code Council and Modular Building Institute 1200-2021 
Standard  for Off-site Construction: Planning, Design, Fabrication and Assembly to the list 
of codes that make up the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code;
2. Establishing consistency for when updates to the Maine Uniform Building and 
Energy Code and other similar codes go into effect;
3. Amending the training requirements for code enforcement officers to include 
training on industrialized housing;
4. Directing the Maine Office of Community Affairs, through the Housing Opportunity 
Program, to conduct a 3-year pilot project to promote, incentivize and support the adoption 
of regionalized approaches to code enforcement by municipalities; and
5. Increasing from 4¢ to 6¢ per square foot the surcharge on the plan review fee. The 
surcharge is deposited into the Uniform Building Codes and Standards Fund.
The joint standing committee has not taken a position on the substance of this bill.  By 
reporting this bill out, the committee is not suggesting and does not intend to suggest that 
it agrees or disagrees with any aspect of this bill.  The committee is reporting the bill out 
for the sole purpose of having a bill printed that can be referred to the committee for an 
appropriate public hearing and subsequent processing in the normal course.  The committee 
is taking this action to ensure clarity and transparency in the legislative review of the 
proposals contained in the bill.