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An Act To Promote Snowmobiling in Maine
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 12 MRSA §13104, sub-§7, ¶E, as enacted by PL 2017, c. 97, §1, is amended to read:
 
E. The commissioner may annually establish one 3-consecutive-day period, 2 days of which are weekend days, during which a nonresident may operate in the State a snowmobile that is not registered in this State if the nonresident's snowmobile has a valid registration from another state or a Canadian province and if the nonresident has submitted notification under paragraph F.
Sec. 2.  12 MRSA §13104, sub-§7, ¶F  is enacted to read:
 
F.  The commissioner shall establish an online notification process to promote seasonal nonresident snowmobile registration opportunities to nonresident snowmobile operators and to promote general snowmobile recreational activities in the State through regional state tourism organizations and a statewide organization with an interest in snowmobiling. The process must allow a nonresident who plans to operate in this State during the 3-consecutive-day period under paragraph E a snowmobile that is not registered in this State to provide information to the department using an electronic form accessible through the department's publicly accessible website. The commissioner may not require a fee to submit the electronic form. The electronic form must:
 
(1) Briefly describe the purpose of this process and clearly indicate that the notification process is free;
 
(2) Request the nonresident snowmobile operator's name, address, telephone number and e-mail address and the location or locations where the nonresident plans to operate the snowmobile during the 3-consecutive-day period under paragraph E; and
 
(3) Include a statement that by submitting the electronic form the person named on the electronic form authorizes the commissioner to share the information on the electronic form with the Department of Economic and Community Development, Office of Tourism after the end of the 3-consecutive-day period under paragraph E for purposes of promoting seasonal nonresident snowmobile registration opportunities to nonresident snowmobile operators and promoting general snowmobile recreational activities in the State through regional state tourism organizations and a statewide organization with an interest in snowmobiling.
 
The commissioner shall share the information collected on the electronic form under this paragraph with the Department of Economic and Community Development, Office of Tourism annually after the end of the 3-consecutive-day period under paragraph E for purposes of promoting seasonal nonresident snowmobile registration opportunities to nonresident snowmobile operators and promoting general snowmobile recreational opportunities in the State through regional state tourism organizations and a statewide organization with an interest in snowmobiling.
 
Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, failure to comply with this paragraph is not a violation of any law or rule administered by the department. Nothing in this paragraph relieves a person of the person's responsibilities under any law or rule regulating the ownership or operation of a snowmobile in the State.
Sec. 3. Production and distribution of promotional materials relating to seasonal nonresident snowmobile registration and snowmobile recreational opportunities. The Director of the Office of Tourism within the Department of Economic and Community Development shall, within existing budgeted resources, collaborate with the Commissioner of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife in the production and distribution through regional state tourism organizations and a statewide organization with an interest in snowmobiling of promotional materials relating to seasonal nonresident snowmobile registration and general snowmobile recreational opportunities using information collected pursuant to the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 12, section 13104, subsection 7, paragraph F.
Sec. 4. Effective date. This Act takes effect December 1, 2019.
 
SUMMARY
This bill directs the Commissioner of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife to establish an online notification process by which a nonresident who plans to operate in this State during the 3-consecutive-day period under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 12, section 13104, subsection 7, paragraph E a snowmobile that is not registered in this State may provide information, including the nonresident snowmobile operator's name, address, telephone number and e-mail address and the location or locations where the nonresident plans to operate the snowmobile, to the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife in order to promote seasonal nonresident snowmobile registration opportunities to nonresident snowmobile operators and to promote general snowmobile recreational activities in the State through regional state tourism organizations and a statewide organization with an interest in snowmobiling. It provides that failure to comply with the provision setting out the online notification process is not a violation of any law or rule of the department but that nothing in the provision relieves a person of the person's responsibilities under any law or rule regulating the ownership or operation of a snowmobile in the State.
It requires, as a condition of the 3-consecutive-day period during which a nonresident may operate an unregistered snowmobile in the State, use of the online notification process by the operator.
It also directs the Director of the Office of Tourism within the Department of Economic and Community Development to collaborate, within existing budgeted resources, with the Commissioner of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife in the production and distribution through regional state tourism organizations and a statewide organization with an interest in snowmobiling of promotional materials relating to seasonal nonresident snowmobile registration and general snowmobile recreational opportunities using the information collected by the notification process.
The legislation takes effect on December 1, 2019.