§ 1448. Municipal delegation
(a) Municipal shoreland bylaws or ordinances. The Secretary shall delegate authority to permit the construction, creation, or expansion
of impervious surface or cleared area under this chapter to a municipality that has
adopted a shoreland bylaw or ordinance if:
(1) the municipality adopts a bylaw or ordinance regulating construction of impervious
surface or creation of cleared area in a protected shoreland area;
(2) the municipal bylaw or ordinance is, as determined by the Secretary, functionally
equivalent to the requirements under sections 1444, 1445, 1446, and 1447 of this title; and
(3) the Secretary determines that the municipality provides adequate resources for administration
and enforcement of the bylaw or ordinance.
(b) Delegation agreement.
(1) Delegation under subsection (a) of this section shall be by agreement between the
Secretary and the delegated municipality. The delegation agreement shall set the terms
for revocation of delegation.
(2) Under the delegation agreement, the Secretary and the municipality may agree, in instances
where a delegated municipality does not or cannot address noncompliance, that the
Secretary, after consultation with the municipality, may institute enforcement proceedings
under chapter 201 of this title.
(3) The delegation agreement shall require the municipality to:
(A) have or establish a process for accepting, reviewing, and processing applications
and issuing permits for construction of impervious surface or creation of cleared
area in protected shoreland areas;
(B) take timely and appropriate enforcement actions;
(C) commit to reporting annually to the Secretary on a form and date determined by the
Secretary;
(D) comply with all other requirements of the rules adopted under this chapter; and
(E) cure any defects in such bylaw or ordinance or in the administration or enforcement
of such bylaw or ordinance upon notice of a defect from the Secretary.
(4) A municipality that seeks delegation under subsection (a) of this section shall be
presumed to satisfy the requirements of this subsection for a permit process and enforcement
if the municipality has designated a municipal zoning administrator or other municipal
employee or official as responsible for the permitting and enforcement of the construction,
creation, or expansion of impervious surface or cleared area within the municipality. (Added 2013, No. 172 (Adj. Sess.), § 2.)