S.P. 708 - L.D. 2017
An Act to Allow the Taking of Endangered or Threatened Species Under the Authority of the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 12 MRSA §7756, as amended by PL 1987, c. 175, §2, is further amended to read:
For the purposes of this section, "to take, take and taking" means the intentional or negligent act or omission that results in the death of any endangered or threatened species.
1. Misuse of endangered or threatened species. A person is guilty, except as provided in subsection 2, of misuse of an endangered or threatened species if that person does any of the following:
A. Exports Imports into the State or exports out of the State any endangered or threatened species from the State;
B. Hunts, takes, traps or possesses any endangered or threatened species within the State;
C. Possesses, processes, sells, offers for sale, delivers, carries, transports or ships, by any means whatsoever, any endangered or threatened species or any part of an endangered or threatened species; or
D. Deliberately feeds, sets bait for or harasses any endangered or threatened species, except as allowed under subsection 2, paragraph A. A warning shall must be issued for the first violation. The 2nd violation shall be is punishable as a Class E crime.
2. Exceptions. Notwithstanding subsection 1, the commissioner may:
A. Under such terms and conditions as he the commissioner may prescribe, permit any act prohibited by this section, for educational or scientific purposes or to enhance the propagation or survival of an endangered or threatened species; and
B. Under such terms and conditions as he the commissioner may prescribe, permit any endangered or threatened species which that enters the State and is being transported to a point outside the State to be so entered and transported without restriction in accordance with the terms of any federal or state permit.;
C. Permit the taking of any endangered species or threatened species if:
(1) Such taking is incidental to, and not the purpose of, carrying out an otherwise lawful activity;
(2) The taking will not impair the recovery of any endangered species or threatened species; and
(3) The person develops and implements an incidental take plan approved by the commissioner to take an endangered species or threatened species pursuant to paragraph D; and
D. Allow a plan that minimizes the incidental taking of an endangered species or threatened species that specifies the following:
(1) A description of the specific activities sought to be authorized by the incidental take permit and an analysis of potential alternatives;
(2) The individual and cumulative effects that may reasonably be anticipated to result from the proposed actions covered by the plan;
(3) The recovery measures the applicant will implement to prevent, minimize and mitigate the individual and cumulative effects and any provisions that are necessary to prevent, minimize and mitigate circumstances that are likely to impair the recovery of any endangered or threatened species covered by the plan;
(4) The procedures for monitoring the effectiveness of the recovery measures in the plan;
(5) The anticipated costs of implementing the plan and the availability of necessary funding for the applicant to implement the plan; and
(6) Other modifications to the plan or other additional measures, if any, that the department may require and such other matters as the department determines to be necessary for the recovery of species consistent with this section.
3. Plan review. The department shall seek input from knowledgeable individuals or groups on each incidental take plan for endangered or threatened species.
4. Failure to comply. If any person fails to abide by the terms of any permit authorizing the incidental taking of an endangered or threatened species, the permit must be immediately suspended or revoked.
Effective September 18, 1999, unless otherwise indicated.
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