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An Act To Protect the Public from Dangerous Buildings
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 17 MRSA §2851, as amended by PL 1997, c. 6, §1, is further amended to read:
§ 2851.Dangerous buildings
Whenever theThe municipal officers in the case of a municipality, or the county commissioners in the case of the unorganized or deorganized areas in their county, find that a building or structure or any portion thereof or any wharf, pier, pilings or any portion thereof that is or was located on or extending from land within the boundaries of the municipality or the unorganized or deorganized area, as measured from low water mark, is structurally unsafe; unstable; unsanitary; constitutes a fire hazard; is unsuitable or improper for the use or occupancy to which it is put; constitutes a hazard to health or safety because of inadequate maintenance, dilapidation, obsolescence or abandonment; or is otherwise dangerous to life or property, they may after notice pursuant to section 2857 and hearing on this matter adjudge the samea building to be a nuisance or dangerous, in accordance with subsection 2-A, and may make and record an order, in accordance with subsection 3, prescribing what disposal must be made of that building or structure. The order may allow for delay of disposal if the owner or party in interest has demonstrated the ability and willingness to satisfactorily rehabilitate the building. If an appeal pursuant to section 2852 is not filed or, if an appeal pursuant to section 2852 is filed and the Superior Court does not order, stay or overturn the order to dispose of the building, the municipal officers or the county commissioners shall cause the nuisance to be abated or removed in compliance with the order.
For the purposes of this subchapter, "building" means a building or structure or any portion of a building or structure or any wharf, pier, pilings or any portion of a wharf, pier or pilings thereof that is or was located on or extending from land within the boundaries of the municipality or the unorganized or deorganized area, as measured from low water mark, and "parties in interest" has the same meaning as in Title 14, section 6321.
 
1.  Notice.     The notice must be served on the owner and all parties in interest, as defined in Title 14, section 6321, in the same way service of process is made in accordance with the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure.
 
2.  Notice; how published.     When the name or address of any owner or co-owner is unknown or is not ascertainable with reasonable diligence, then the notice must be published once a week for 3 successive weeks prior to the date of hearing in a newspaper generally circulated in the county, or if none, in the state paper.
 
2-A.  Standard.     To adjudge a building to be a nuisance or dangerous, the municipal officers or county commissioners must find that the building is structurally unsafe, unstable or unsanitary; constitutes a fire hazard; is unsuitable or improper for the use or occupancy to which it is put; constitutes a hazard to health or safety because of inadequate maintenance, dilapidation, obsolescence or abandonment; or is otherwise dangerous to life or property.
 
3. Recording of the order.  TheAn order made by the municipal officers or county commissioners under this section must be recorded by the municipal or county clerk, who shall cause an attested copy to be served upon the owner and all parties in interest in the same way service of process is made in accordance with the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure. If the name or address cannot be ascertained, the clerk shall publish a copy of the order in the same manner as provided for notice in subsection 2section 2857.
 
4. Proceedings in Superior Court.   In addition to proceedings before the municipal officers or the county commissioners, the municipality or the county may seek an order of demolition by filing a complaint in the Superior Court situated in the county where the structurebuilding is located. The complaint must identify the location of the property and set forth the reasons why the municipality or the county seeks its removal. Service of the complaint must be made upon the owner and parties-in-interestparties in interest in accordance with the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure. After hearing before the court sitting without a jury, the court shall issue an appropriate order and, if it requires removal of the structurebuilding, it shall award costs as authorized by this subchapter to the municipality or the county. Appeal from a decision of the Superior Court is to the law court in accordance with the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure.
Sec. 2. 17 MRSA §2852, as amended by PL 1997, c. 6, §2, is further amended to read:
§ 2852.Appeal; hearing
An appeal from a decision of the municipal officers or county commissioners under section 2851 or section 2856 must be to the Superior Court, pursuant to the provisions of the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 80B.
Sec. 3. 17 MRSA §2853, as amended by PL 1979, c. 27, §5, is further amended to read:
§ 2853.Recovery of expenses
If no appeal is filed, the municipal officers of such municipality shall cause said nuisance to be abated or removed in compliance with their order, and allAll expenses thereof shallincurred by a municipality or county related to an order issued under section 2851, including, but not limited to, expenses relating to the abatement or removal of a building, must be repaid to the municipality or county by the owner or co-owner within 30 days after demand, or a special tax may be assessed by the assessors against the land on which saidthe building was located for the amount of suchthe expenses and suchthat amount shallmust be included in the next annual warrant to the tax collector of said townthe municipality or county for collection, and shallmust be collected in the same manner as other state, county and municipal taxes are collected.
In the case of any claim for expenses incurred in the abatement or removal of any wharf, pier, pilings or any portion thereof whichthat extends beyond the low water mark, the special tax authorized by this section shallmust apply to the land from which suchthe wharf, pier or pilings extended or to which they were adjacent, providedif the owner of the land is also the owner of the said wharf, pier, pilings or portion thereof.
Expenses shall include, but not by way of limitationare not limited to, the costs of title searches, location reports, service or process, reasonable attorney's fees, costs of removal of the structurebuilding, any costs incurred in securing the structure,building pending its removal, and all other costs incurred by the municipality whichor county that are reasonably related to the removal of the structurebuilding. In addition to levying a special tax, the municipality or county may recover its expenses, including its reasonable attorney's fees, by means of a civil action brought against the owner.
Sec. 4. 17 MRSA §2856, as enacted by PL 1979, c. 27, §6, is amended to read:
§ 2856.Securing dangerous buildings
In addition to other proceedings authorized by this subchapter, a municipality shall havehas the right to secure structures whichbuildings that pose a serious threat to the public health and safety and to recover its expenses in so doing as provided in this subchaptersection 2853. If a building is secured under this section, notice, in accordance with section 2851, subsection 1, shall2857 must be given. This notice need not be given before securing the structurebuilding if the threat to the public health and safety requires prompt action.
Sec. 5. 17 MRSA §2857, as enacted by PL 1979, c. 27, §6, is amended to read:
§ 2857.Notice; recording
Notice required under section 2851 or section 2856 must be served on the owner and parties in interest in the same way service of process is made in accordance with the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure. When the name or address of an owner or party in interest is unknown or is not ascertainable with reasonable diligence, the notice must be published once a week for 3 successive weeks prior to the date of hearing in a newspaper generally circulated in the county, or if none, in the state paper.
The municipal or county clerk shall cause an attested copy of the notice to be recorded in the Registry of Deeds located within the county where the structurebuilding is situated. Recording of this notice shall be deemed to putputs any person claiming under the owner of a structurebuilding subject to proceedings under this subchapter on notice of the pendency of the proceedings.
Sec. 6. 17 MRSA §2858, as enacted by PL 1979, c. 27, §6, is amended to read:
§ 2858.Consent to removal
The owner and parties-in-interestor a party in interest of a dangerous structurebuilding may consent to its removal and to the recovery of the expenses incurred by a municipality or county by means of a special tax as set forth in this subchapter. Notices of the consent shallmust be recorded in the Registry of Deeds located in the county where the structurebuilding is situated.
Sec. 7. 17 MRSA §2859, sub-§1, as corrected by RR 2007, c. 2, §5, is amended to read:
 
1. Commencement of action.   A municipality, acting through its building official, code enforcement officer, fire chief or municipal officers, shall file a verified complaint setting forth such facts as would justify a conclusion that a building or structure is "dangerous," as that term is defineddescribed in section 2851;, and shall state in the complaint that the public health, safety or welfare requires the immediate removal of that building or structure.
Sec. 8. 17 MRSA §2859, sub-§2, ¶A, as enacted by PL 1981, c. 43, is amended to read:
 
A. Requiring the owner and all parties-in-interest, as that term is defined in the statutes governing foreclosure by civil action,parties in interest to appear and show cause why the building or structure should not be ordered demolished;
Sec. 9. 17 MRSA §2859, sub-§§4 and 5, as enacted by PL 1981, c. 43, are amended to read:
 
4. Hearing.   After hearing, the court shall enter judgment. If the judgment requires removal of the building or structure, the court shall award costs to the municipality as authorized by this subchapter. The award of costs may be contested and damages sought in a separate action to the extent permitted by subsection 7.
 
5. Appeal.  NoA judgment requiring demolition issued pursuant to this section may not be appealed. The owner of a building or structure whichthat is the subject of an order issued under this section, or a party-in-interest,party in interest may appeal the award of costs, if any, or seek damages for wrongful removal pursuant to subsection 7.
Sec. 10. 17 MRSA §2859, sub-§7, as amended by PL 1995, c. 450, §6, is further amended to read:
 
7. Damages.   Any complaint that either seeks damages for the wrongful removal of a building or structure or challenges the award of costs must be filed no later than 30 days from the date of the judgment or order that is the subject of the appeal. The damages that may be awarded for wrongful demolition are limited to the actual value of the structurebuilding at the time of its removal. The provisions of Title 14, section 7552 do not apply. If the municipality should prevailprevails, the court may award it its costs in defending any appeal, which may include, but are not limited to, reasonable attorney's fees.
 
Effective 90 days following adjournment of the 128th Legislature, First Regular Session, unless otherwise indicated.