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An Act To Expand the Authorized Operation of All-terrain Vehicles on Roads
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 12 MRSA §13155, sub-§1-A, ¶A, as amended by PL 2009, c. 184, §2, is further amended to read:
 
A. The following exceptions apply.
 
(1) Registration is not required for an ATV operated on land on which the owner lives or on land on which the owner is domiciled, as long as the ATV is not operated elsewhere within the jurisdiction of the State.
 
(2) Registration is not required for an ATV operated by a commercial ski area for the purpose of packing snow or for rescue operations on the commercial ski area, unless the ATV is required to cross a public way during that operation.
 
(3) An ATV owned and operated in the State by the Federal Government, the State or a political subdivision of the State is exempt from registration fees but must be registered and is required to display registration numbers.
 
(4) An ATV registration for the farm use specified in Title 29-A, section 501, subsection 8, paragraph E or for the landscaping and property maintenance purposes specified in Title 29-A, section 501, subsection 8, paragraph F is not required for a vehicle registered with the Secretary of State under Title 29-A, section 501, subsection 8.
 
(5) An ATV registered in another state or in a Canadian province may be operated without being registered pursuant to this section at a special event organized to occur in this State if the special event organizer submits a request in writing to the commissioner 60 days prior to the special event and provides the commissioner with a map of the trails to be used during the special event and the commissioner approves the request.
 
(6) An ATV owned or under the control of an ATV manufacturer may be operated without a Maine registration at a demonstration event organized to occur in this State if such operation is approved by the commissioner. An ATV manufacturer or a representative of an ATV manufacturer must submit a request in writing to the commissioner at least 60 days prior to the demonstration event and shall include a description and the location of the event.
Sec. 2.  29-A MRSA §501, sub-§8, ¶F  is enacted to read:
 
F.  Notwithstanding paragraph E, a person may operate an ATV on a public way when that ATV is used for landscaping or property maintenance purposes. Operation of an ATV pursuant to this paragraph is limited to travel between properties that are being landscaped or maintained. An ATV operated on a public way pursuant to this paragraph may be operated only on the extreme right of the traveled way and in the same direction as motor vehicle traffic.
 
SUMMARY
This bill allows the Secretary of State to issue a special registration permit allowing the limited operation of an ATV on a public way. The operation of the ATV on a public way is limited to travel from one property to another for the purpose of landscaping or property maintenance.