2025 Change in Maine Law
This partial list of new laws passed this term by the Maine Legislature and signed into law by the Governor was compiled by Attorney O’Mara. It features very short summaries of laws that might be of interest to the student population or are otherwise newsworthy and should not be used as legal advice. There is also a statutory reference and a link to a PDF of the law. If you are an undergraduate student at UMaine and would like to discuss any of these laws and their potential impacts, please book an appointment. Here is a link to the full list of new laws for reference: https://legislature.maine.gov/ros/LawsOfMaine/#Law/132/S1/ACTPUB/499
Minimum pay established for showing up to work – set at 2 hours or whole shift whichever is less - 26 MRSA 626-A
Parking ticket fine amounts for lots open to the public must be reasonable and conspicuously posted - Sec. 1. 10 MRSA c. 239
Bans bots in resale of concert tickets, must include a refund if not delivered in time or defective, can upcharge only 10% - 8 MRSA c. 37
Must be able to cancel health club memberships as easily as signing up - 10 MRSA c.205B
Mobile home park residents now must receive 90 days’ notice for any rent or fee increases with an opportunity to access mediation - Sec. 1. 10 MRSA §9093, sub-§2
Addition of artificially generated sexually explicit images to the definition of harassment - 5 MRSA 4651
Hours accrued but not used under Earned Paid Leave can’t reduce hours the subsequent year - 26 MRSA 637
Access to vaccines program for children extended to adults - Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §1066
Non-prescription hormonal birth control must be covered by insurance - 24 MRSA 2332 J
Mainecare must now cover lactation services in the home for those eligible - Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §3174-PPP
Carriers must now provide coverage for non-formulary prescription medications to treat serious mental illness when formulary medications are unavailable - Sec. 1. 24-A MRSA §4304, sub-§2-C
Access is clarified and expanded to HIV prevention medications, such as by no out-of-pocket costs through insurance carrier in-network coverage - Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §3197
Prosecutors can now decide to charge a Class E crime as a civil violation in most cases - 17-A MRSA 19-A
Court explicitly granted the authority in Protection From Abuse orders to grant restrictions based on proximity or location - Sec. 1. 19-A MRSA §4110, sub-§3
The maximum small claims amount has been increased from $6k to $10k effective 1/1/2026 - Sec. 1. 14 MRSA §7482, first ¶
Naloxone and other overdose reversing medications explicitly available with or without a prescription - Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §2353, sub-§2
Relocation assistance has been expanded for victims of serious crimes, such as sexual assault, those injured in a robbery, or from a vehicular crime among others - Sec. 1. 5 MRSA §3360, sub-§4
Medical debt holders are prohibited from reporting that medical debt to the credit bureaus - Sec. 1. 10 MRSA §1308, sub-§3-A
Businesses are required to disclose usage of an AI chatbot when a reasonable consumer might mistake that they are dealing with a person - Sec. 1. 10 MRSA c. 239
Respite for Me pilot program made permanent with small grants to family caregivers of people with Alzheimer’s or related dementias - Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §7308
Fees from banks and financial institutions prohibited for receiving paper statements - Sec. 1. 10 MRSA §9420, sub-§2 (this section repealed for this purpose)
Requirement for outreach to identify vulnerable individuals in a power outage dependent on certain medical devices that require power - Sec. 3. 35-A MRSA §3144, sub-§2, ¶G
Courts are permitted to appoint private attorneys for indigent persons in cases involving their fundamental rights if no public attorney is available until February 2026 - Sec. 1. 4 MRSA §1805-A, sub-§1
Miscarriage reporting requirement is eliminated - Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §1596
Minimum age for a marriage license raised to 18 from 17 - Sec. 1. 19-A MRSA §652
An act permitting charges for Covid-19 vaccine shots for the uninsured to allow access now that federal support has ended - Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §1718-G
Reciprocal licensure of professional engineers without further examination is permitted if consistent with an agreement with another state and if qualifications are substantially similar - Sec. 2. 32 MRSA §1352-A, sub-§1, ¶B-1
Courts may now consider the existence of a military protective order in state protection order cases - Sec. 1. 5 MRSA §4651, sub-§3-A
Mobile Home residents are now explicitly covered by rent-to-own provisions - Sec. 1. 14 MRSA §6203-H, sub-§1, ¶A
Public utilities are not permitted to require a deposit based solely on the income of the customer/applicant - Sec. 1. 35-A MRSA §705, sub-§1
In-person absentee voting set for 30 days prior to an election - Sec. 1. 21-A MRSA §753-B, sub-§8
The sale of self-administered sexual assault forensic kits is banned; however the ban does not affect the admissibility in court of evidence collected by kits purporting to serve this function - Sec. 1. 25 MRSA §2915-A
Municipalities are barred from banning homeless shelters - Sec. 1. 30-A MRSA §4357-B
An amendment allowing a protection order to be reinstated after expiration if the court finds that there is good cause such as a failure to serve the other party, is within a reasonable period of time, and the underlying facts support extension to a hearing - Sec. 2. 19-A MRSA §4111, sub-§1-A
Defendants subject to a final order in a protection from abuse case may not file a motion to dissolve the order, and judges may dismiss without hearing such filings - Sec. 1. 19-A MRSA §4111, sub-§4
An update to the self-storage act that permits the owner to consider abandoned property left unlocked and worth less than $750, or left locked 15 days after the expiration of the lease - Sec. 1. 10 MRSA §1372, sub-§1-A
Athletic Trainers are no longer required to have completed a college or university course of study but instead must hold a certification from the “Board of Certification for the Athletic Trainer” approved by the state - Sec. 1. 32 MRSA §14352, sub-§4-A
Law enforcement departments must develop written policies to facilitate assisting prosecutors in complying with Brady obligations to hand over exculpatory or impeaching evidence, and evidence that is material to the guilt or innocence of the defendant or to the punishment of the crime (the obligation to hand over to the defense evidence that could help their case) - Sec. 3. 25 MRSA §2803-B, sub-§1, ¶P
The unemployment laws were amended to provide additional protections for those providing assistance to disabled or ill family members, and additional rules regarding approved training - Sec. 11. 26 MRSA §1192-A
Health care providers are no longer required to request data on an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity if they are under 19 years of age - Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §265, first ¶
Reporting is now required detailing the use of inmate segregation, such as what is generally referred to as solitary confinement - Sec. 1. 30-A MRSA §1660, sub-§5
Condominium and residence associations cannot unreasonably restrict approval for electric vehicle charging stations - Sec. 1. 33 MRSA §576-A
Maine’s Death with Dignity Act was amended as to process to ensure access to qualified patients - Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §2140, sub-§11
Net-Neutrality has been added to the laws governing internet service providers in the state - Sec. 1. 10 MRSA c. 239
Ability of the public to comment at regularly scheduled municipal meetings protected - Sec. 1. 30-A MRSA §2608
Starting in 2030, tenants may terminate their lease with 30 days notice if they don’t receive an energy-efficiency disclosure – 14 MRSA 6030
It is made explicitly illegal to dox a minor - 5 MRSA 4651
Age of offender at time of conduct can now be taken into consideration at sentencing - 17-A MRSA 1602
An act permitting liquor licenses to tenant breweries or wineries - Sec. 1. 28-A MRSA §1355-A, sub-§1
Home Resiliency Program instituted to help homeowners or permanent residents update their rooves or seal their foundations, 2026 Q1 grant start - Sec. A-1. 24-A MRSA c. 101
An amendment allowing medicinal abortion drug providers to omit their names and instead list their health care facility - Sec. 1. 32 MRSA §13794, first ¶
An act permitting the Secretary of State to directly collect excise vehicle tax for the unhoused as they otherwise may not have a municipality with which to register - Sec. 1. 36 MRSA §1484, sub-§3, ¶A
January 6th established as a “Day to Remember,” honoring the resiliency of democracy - Sec. 1. 1 MRSA §150-W
Drivers are no longer required to surrender their physical licenses for temporary suspensions under numerous state statutes
Making personal electrical installations in your own home is now permitted so long as it conforms to NEC standards - Sec. 1. 32 MRSA §1102-C, sub-§5
Municipalities that charge a fee for credit card payment are required to accept cash - Sec. 1. 10 MRSA c. 239
Municipalities and counties are no longer able to prohibit the keeping of female chickens on residential property - Sec. 1. 7 MRSA §219-D
An act requiring children under 13 years of age wear a Coast Guard approved life-jacket while above-deck on water-craft - Sec. 1. 12 MRSA §13068-A, sub-§4, ¶A