Code of Maine Rules › 19 - DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT › 498 - OFFICE OF TOURISM AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT › Chapter 300 - CERTIFICATION STANDARDS FOR MUNICIPAL CODE ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS AND THIRD-PARTY INSPECTORS › Section 498-300-3 - GENERAL PROVISIONS

Current through 2024-29, July 17, 2024
A municipality may not appoint an individual who is not
				  certified by the Office to perform the duties of a code enforcement officer,
				  except as provided below:
1.
Grace Period
Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph, a
				  duly-appointed municipal code enforcement officer shall be certified by the
				  Office within twelve (12) months of the date of that officer's employment in
				  the specific areas of the officer's job responsibility. The 12-month grace
				  period expires at the end of the month in which the municipal code enforcement
				  officer's one-year anniversary falls.
An individual shall acquire certification in the specific
				  areas of internal plumbing and subsurface wastewater disposal prior to
				  municipal appointment except that an individual may be temporarily authorized
				  in writing by the Department of Human Services, Division of Environmental
				  Health to be employed as a local plumbing inspector for a period not to exceed
				  six (6) months in accordance with department rule, 10-144 CMR 240.
A code enforcement officer who is appointed by the
				  municipality to administer an additional specific area of responsibility has
				  twelve (12 months) to be certified in that additional specific area. The
				  12-month grace period expires at the end of the month of the twelfth month
				  following the assumption of the additional specific area of responsibility.
2.
Extension of
				Grace Period
Municipalities may petition the Office for up to a twelve
				  (12)-month extension of the original grace period in cases where:
the municipality can demonstrate that the necessary
					 training or examination was not available within that time period;
										 the necessary training or examination is suspended by
					 the Office under section 10 of this chapter; or
										 the certification process would impose a hardship on
					 the municipality.
The Office determines whether the petitioning municipality
				  has met the criteria for an extension in all specific areas, except an
				  individual shall abide by the requirements of the Department of Health and
				  Human Services, Division of Environmental Health to be employed as a plumbing
				  inspector.
Within 20 days of receipt of the petition, the Office shall
				  issue a decision in writing whether the extension has been granted with the
				  reasons for approval or denial.
A.
Appeal
A municipality whose petition for an extension is denied may
				  appeal. A municipality may request a review of the extension decision from the
				  Director of the Office of Community Development in writing within 20 days of
				  notification of the decision on the municipality's petition.
The Director may delegate the appeal to another senior staff
				  person who was not involved in the original hardship decision.
In considering an appeal, the Director shall:
(1) examine the municipality's petition
				against the standards in this section and section 2.18; and
(2) determine whether the Office followed the
				required process and reasonably interpreted the facts to reach the conclusion
				upon which the extension decision under appeal was based.
Within 20 days of the request for appeal, the Director shall
				  make a decision and notify the municipality in writing whether the appeal is
				  granted. The decision of the Director constitutes final agency action.
A duly appointed code enforcement officer may continue to
				  serve in that capacity until a final agency decision is rendered on the
				  appeal.