2023 Maine Revised Statutes › TITLE 29-A: MOTOR VEHICLES AND TRAFFIC › Chapter 3: SECRETARY OF STATE › Subchapter 2: MUNICIPAL AGENTS, RENEWAL AGENTS AND REGISTRATION AGENTS › 29-A §201. Municipal officials as agents

§201. Municipal officials as agents
1.  Appointment of agents by Secretary of State; scope of authority.
With the approval of the municipal officers, the Secretary of State may appoint a municipal tax collector, or other persons designated by a municipality, to collect excise taxes on vehicles and to receive applications for new registrations and renewals of registrations of motor vehicles, trailers and semitrailers. The Secretary of State may authorize a municipal agent to issue new registrations and renewals of registrations or may limit the agent's authority to the issuance of renewals only.
[PL 2023, c. 271, §1 (AMD).]
2.  Issuance of registrations or renewals.
An agent appointed in accordance with subsection 1 may:
A. Issue renewals of registration for school buses operated by school administrative units or private contractors;   [PL 1993, c. 683, Pt. A, §2 (NEW); PL 1993, c. 683, Pt. B, §5 (AFF).]
B. Issue registration renewals for all motor vehicles and trailers, except for those required to be registered directly through the Bureau of Motor Vehicles as designated by the Secretary of State; and   [PL 1993, c. 683, Pt. A, §2 (NEW); PL 1993, c. 683, Pt. B, §5 (AFF).]
C. If authorized to issue registrations and renewals of registrations, issue:
(1) Registrations for pickup trucks registered for 10,000 pounds or less gross vehicular weight, automobiles, trailers, semitrailers and farm tractors; and
(2) Registrations for trucks of greater gross weight than provided in subparagraph (1), after the agent has satisfactorily participated in special training as prescribed by the Secretary of State.   [PL 2015, c. 473, §3 (AMD).]
[PL 2015, c. 473, §3 (AMD).]
3.  Service fees.
Municipal agents appointed in accordance with subsection 1 may charge service fees for registrations and renewals of registrations as follows.
A. A municipal agent may charge an applicant a fee not to exceed $5 over the required fee for each renewal of a registration issued and a fee not to exceed $6 over the required fee for each new registration issued.   [PL 2023, c. 271, §2 (AMD).]
B. In a municipality in which agents are authorized to issue registrations for applicants from another municipality or from an unorganized territory, the agent may charge those applicants $1 in addition to the fees authorized by this subsection for each registration or renewal.   [PL 2023, c. 271, §2 (AMD).]
C. A municipal agent authorized to issue temporary registration permits may charge an applicant a fee not to exceed $1 over the required permit fee.   [PL 1993, c. 683, Pt. A, §2 (NEW); PL 1993, c. 683, Pt. B, §5 (AFF).]
D. A municipal agent authorized to process permits and decals for vehicles with gross vehicle weight in excess of 6,000 pounds may charge a fee not to exceed $1 over the required fee for each permit or decal issued.   [PL 2017, c. 475, Pt. A, §46 (AMD).]
E. A municipal agent may charge a fee not to exceed $1 over the required fee for the issuance of a duplicate registration.   [PL 2023, c. 271, §2 (AMD).]
F. [PL 2017, c. 229, §10 (RP).]
G. A municipal agent may charge an applicant a fee not to exceed $2 over the required fee when an applicant is requesting issuance of a set of plates designated as specialty license plates by the Secretary of State to replace previously issued plates.   [PL 2023, c. 271, §2 (AMD).]
H. The Secretary of State may authorize municipal agents to charge a fee not to exceed $1 over the required fee for other transactions that the municipal agent carries out on behalf of the Secretary of State and that are not listed in this subsection.   [PL 2005, c. 573, §2 (NEW).]
The municipality may retain all service fees authorized in this subsection.
[PL 2023, c. 271, §2 (AMD).]
4.  Training.
The Secretary of State shall provide necessary training for municipal agents. A municipal agent may not be appointed for specific duties unless the agent has successfully completed the appropriate training program.
[PL 1993, c. 683, Pt. A, §2 (NEW); PL 1993, c. 683, Pt. B, §5 (AFF).]
5.  Duration of appointment; revocation of appointment.
Unless revoked, the appointment of an agent continues as long as the agent holds that office or employment. An appointment may be revoked:
A. If the municipal officers that approved the appointment request that it be revoked; or   [PL 1993, c. 683, Pt. A, §2 (NEW); PL 1993, c. 683, Pt. B, §5 (AFF).]
B. For cause by the Secretary of State.   [PL 1993, c. 683, Pt. A, §2 (NEW); PL 1993, c. 683, Pt. B, §5 (AFF).]
[PL 1993, c. 683, Pt. A, §2 (NEW); PL 1993, c. 683, Pt. B, §5 (AFF).]
6.  Rules.
The Secretary of State may adopt rules to implement the provisions of this section. The rules may include requirements for agent training, accounting standards, inventory control processes and the collection and transmission of data and funds between agents and the bureau. Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2‑A.
[PL 2021, c. 216, §9 (NEW).]
SECTION HISTORY
PL 1993, c. 683, §A2 (NEW). PL 1993, c. 683, §B5 (AFF). PL 1995, c. 482, §B1 (AMD). PL 1997, c. 776, §6 (AMD). PL 2005, c. 573, §2 (AMD). PL 2015, c. 473, §3 (AMD). PL 2017, c. 229, §§9, 10 (AMD). PL 2017, c. 475, Pt. A, §46 (AMD). PL 2019, c. 255, §1 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 216, §9 (AMD). PL 2023, c. 271, §§1, 2 (AMD).