An Act To Make Technical Changes to Maine's Marine Resources Laws
Sec. 1. 12 MRSA §6302-B, sub-§3, as enacted by PL 2013, c. 485, §3, is amended to read:
Sec. 2. 12 MRSA §6409, as amended by PL 2009, c. 561, §14, is further amended to read:
§ 6409. Suspension of license for failure to appear, answer or pay
If a license is suspended pursuant to Title 14, section 3142, the suspension remains in effect and that person is ineligible to obtain or hold a license until the person pays the fine. On Except for a limited entry fishery, as defined in section 6310-A, subsection 2, upon payment of the fine and on condition of payment of a $25 administrative fee to the department, the suspension is rescinded and the person's eligibility to obtain or hold a license reinstated. For a limited entry fishery, as defined in section 6310-A, subsection 2, in order for the suspension to be rescinded and the person's eligibility to obtain or hold a license to be reinstated, the person must purchase the license and pay the $25 administrative fee to the department by no later than the end of the calendar year following the year in which the fine is paid. For the purposes of this section, "fine" has the same meaning as in Title 14, section 3141, subsection 1.
Sec. 3. 12 MRSA §6410, as amended by PL 2009, c. 561, §15, is further amended to read:
§ 6410. Suspension of license for failure to comply with court order of support
If a person's eligibility to obtain or hold a license or registration is suspended pursuant to Title 19-A, section 2201, the suspension remains in effect until the person is in compliance with a court order of support. On condition of Except for a limited entry fishery, as defined in section 6310-A, subsection 2, upon payment of a $25 administrative fee to the department, the suspension is rescinded and the person's eligibility to obtain or hold a license reinstated. For a limited entry fishery, as defined in section 6310-A, subsection 2, in order for the suspension to be rescinded and the person's eligibility to obtain or hold a license to be reinstated, the person must purchase the license and pay the $25 administrative fee to the department by no later than the end of the calendar year following the year in which the person is in compliance with the court order of support.
Sec. 4. 12 MRSA §6411, as enacted by PL 2009, c. 561, §16, is amended to read:
§ 6411. Refusal to renew or reissue license for failure to file or failure to pay state tax obligations
If a person's eligibility to obtain a license is suspended pursuant to Title 36, section 175, the suspension is in effect until the State Tax Assessor issues a certificate of good standing. On condition of Except for a limited entry fishery, as defined in section 6310-A, subsection 2, upon payment of a $25 administrative fee to the department, the suspension is rescinded and the person's eligibility to obtain a license reinstated. For a limited entry fishery, as defined in section 6310-A, subsection 2, in order for the suspension to be rescinded and the person's eligibility to obtain a license to be reinstated, the person must purchase the license and pay the $25 administrative fee to the department by no later than the end of the calendar year following the year in which the person is issued a certificate of good standing.
Sec. 5. 12 MRSA §6505-A, sub-§3-A, as amended by PL 2015, c. 131, §1, is further amended to read:
If persons issued licenses under this section collectively exceed the overall annual quota allocated to those persons pursuant to paragraph B, the number of pounds by which the license holders exceeded that overall annual quota must be deducted from the following year's overall annual quota allocated to persons licensed under this section. If the overage exceeds the overall annual quota allocated to persons licensed under this section for the following year, the overage must be deducted from the overall annual quota allocated to persons licensed under this section in subsequent years until the entire overage has been accounted for.
The commissioner may adopt or amend rules on an emergency basis if immediate action is necessary to establish and implement the elver individual fishing quota in advance of the beginning of the elver fishing season.
Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A.
Sec. 6. 12 MRSA §6575-K, sub-§1, as amended by PL 2015, c. 131, §2, is further amended to read:
Sec. 7. 12 MRSA §6575-K, sub-§2, as amended by PL 2015, c. 131, §2, is further amended to read:
Sec. 8. 12 MRSA §6851, sub-§2-A, as amended by PL 2009, c. 523, §8, is further amended to read:
SUMMARY
This bill makes technical changes to Maine's marine resources laws. It clarifies that it is the amount of quota, not the weight of elvers, sold through the elver transaction card system that is used to determine if an allocated quota has been exceeded. It clarifies that if a person holds a license in a limited entry fishery and that license has been suspended by the court, by the Department of Health and Human Services or by the Department of Administrative and Financial Services, Maine Revenue Services, the person, when the person becomes compliant, has the remainder of that calendar year and all of the following calendar year to purchase the license. It clarifies that a person who holds a wholesale seafood license with a lobster permit may remove lobster meat from the shell under either a lobster processor license or a lobster meat permit.