Maine Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in Maine, with full citations and the original source on every page.
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Could the Maine Public Utilities Commission refuse a municipality's or county's request to switch its Public Safety Answering Point (911 dispatch) service provider?
The Maine AG concluded that even though 25 M.R.S.A. § 2926 does not expressly say the PUC may refuse a PSAP-change request, the Emergency Services Communication Bureau's site-identification authority …
Did Maine's mandatory reporting law require professionals to report all underage sexual activity that could constitute a crime, even consensual conduct between near-age minors with no sign of harm?
No. The AG concluded that 22 M.R.S.A. § 4011-A required a report only when the mandated reporter had reasonable cause to suspect a threat to a child's health or welfare. Mere knowledge that minor sexu…
Could the Maine AG prosecute legislative staff for documents found on Capitol computers under the state-computer-misuse statute?
No prosecution recommended. The AG analysis concluded none of the four categories of documents found on legislative computers would support a § 1890-B prosecution: political documents that did not adv…
Did Maine's new constitutional protection for the Maine State Retirement System also protect the separate Maine Judicial Retirement System from legislative deappropriations?
No. The AG concluded that the Maine Judicial Retirement System is a separate corporation from the Maine State Retirement System. When voters added the anti-diversion sentence to Article IX, § 18 in No…
Could a Maine school board defer state-mandated education programs in 1991 because the state had not restored aid to 1990 levels?
No. The mandate-deferral provision in P.L. 1991, c. 9 was not triggered, because the FY 1990-91 state aid (about $521 million, 56.76% of total allocation) already exceeded the FY 1989-90 levels (about…
When the Maine Governor fills a vacancy in a county Register of Deeds office by appointment, does the appointee have to be from the same political party as the vacating officer?
No. AG Tierney concluded 33 M.R.S.A. § 601, which governs Register of Deeds vacancies, is silent on political party. The Governor may appoint a person of any political party. In contrast, the County C…
Does the Baxter State Park Authority have to get the Maine Bureau of Purchases to sign off before buying equipment or hiring contractors for the park?
No. The AG memo concluded the Park Authority is an independent trust authority, not a state department or agency, so the central purchasing approval rule in 5 M.R.S.A. § 1816 does not reach it. The Pa…
Which version of Maine's Site Location Law definition of 'subdivision' should the Department of Environmental Protection use when the supplement prints two competing texts?
Use the version on page 242 of the 1988 Supplementary Pamphlet, the one enacted by P.L. 1987, c. 812, § 7. The earlier P.L. 1987, c. 737 amendment, which only updated a cross-reference to the recodifi…
When the Governor appoints someone from the State Board of Education or the University of Maine System Board of Trustees to also serve on the Maine Vocational-Technical Board, does that person have to step down from the Voc-Tech Board if they lose their seat on the original board, or do they keep their four-year term?
They keep the full four-year term. AG Tierney concluded that 20-A M.R.S.A. § 12705 contemplated a fresh four-year appointment confirmed by the Legislature for each Voc-Tech trustee, including those dr…
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Attorney general opinions in Maine are written by the Maine Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.