Law Commons^™

Endangered Whales Still Get Tangled In Fishing Gear: Let’S Change The Way We Approach The Problem, Tora Johnson

Maine Policy Review

The Gulf of Maine lobster industry has been roiled by conflict over whale entanglement for decades. With fewer than 350 North Atlantic right whales remaining, federal regulators are again seeking to implement new measures to protect them from tangling in fishing gear, while the lobster industry faces myriad challenges. My 2005 book Entanglements examined the complex and fraught debate between whale advocates and fishermen. Each side believed the other was inherently evil, greedy, and unduly powerful. Of course, the truth lay somewhere between. Between them were the brave souls who went to sea to wrestle fishing gear off of entangled …

Getting To The Shore On Foot: Sustaining Harvester Access, Bill Zoellick, Pauline V. Angione, Emily Farr, Ada Fisher, Jessica Gribbon Joyce, B Lauer, Marissa Mcmahan Ph.D., Michael Pinkham, Vicki Rea

Maine Policy Review

"Working Waterfront" conjures images of the Portland Fish Exchange, Belfast shipyards, or wharves and piers in Stonington. Ensuring that such sites continue as essential elements of Maine's marine economy is increasingly the focus of innovative action and policy development. But policies to address Maine's working waterfronts must also attend to waterfront access required by those who reach it on foot. Such access rights are rarely conferred by private ownership. Instead, they depend on public ownership and, more frequently, on informal social arrangements between harvesters and property owners. In this article, we describe the nature of the shore access needed by …

The Changing Tides Of Action To Address Ocean Acidification In Maine, Ivy L. Frignoca, Heather R. Kenyon

Maine Policy Review

As carbon dioxide emissions continue to rise worldwide, ocean acidification has become a consequence that threatens both human and natural processes. On a global scale, ocean acidification is relatively well understood. However, the complex ecosystem of the nearshore environment presents challenges for monitoring and addressing ocean acidification. In a state such as Maine, whose communities heavily depend on the health of the coastal environment, understanding this threat becomes critically important.

In 2014, Maine’s legislature established a six month study commission to investigate this problem and produce recommendations. The commission proposed a coast-wide monitoring network that could identify and use a …

Blunt Instruments, Glass Slippers, And Unicorns: Ocean Governance In A Climate-Changed Gulf Of Maine, Susan E. Farady

Maine Policy Review

Management and governance systems should ideally match the nature of the natural environment and the range of human uses. Today’s ocean and coastal governance system is made up of singular laws and government agencies, the product of years of evolution. This system was never intended to reflect the complexities of the marine ecosystem and varied human uses of marine resources. The resulting “silo-ed” management system has never worked particularly well, but as we face a rapidly changing Gulf of Maine, and accompanying changes in uses, this system’s limitations are increasingly obvious. An “ideal” ocean governance system would be comprehensive and …

Before And After The Clean Water Act: How Science, Law, And Public Aspirations Drove Seven Decades Of Progress In Maine Water Quality, David L. Courtemanch, Susan P. Davies, Eileen Sylvan Johnson, Rebecca Schaffner, Douglas Suitor

Maine Policy Review

In the 1950s, Maine established a water quality classification system creating the conceptual scaffolding of a tiered system of management. Passage of the federal Clean Water Act in 1972 drove dramatic advances in science, technology, and policy leading to systematic improvement for the next five decades. Today’s tiered classification system provides a range of management goals from natural to various allowable uses. The state assigns uses and standards for each classification, incorporating physical, chemical, and biological indicators. This system has brought steady improvement in water quality, ecological condition, and overall value for human use. Visible evidence of improvement and adoption …

Legislative Amendment Of Citizen Initiatives: Where The “Will Of The Voter” Meets The “Consent Of The Elector”, Derek P. Langhauser

Maine Policy Review

This article discusses the issues involved in legislative amendment of citizen initiatives in Maine by explaining the legislature’s authority to amend or repeal citizen initiatives, how and why the Maine Constitution specifically provides for that authority, and how and why that approach is conceptually consistent with numerous other provisions and principles of our Constitution. This article further suggests the types of issues that, regardless of the subject matter in question, the legislature should consider in deter­mining whether, and if so how and when, to change a directly democratic act of the people. Such considerations when earnestly applied can serve to …

The Importance Of Education And Trust Building For Wabanaki Self-Governance, Katie Tomer

Maine Policy Review

Education and trust building are inextricably intertwined parts of addressing failed efforts of the state of Maine and the Wabanaki tribes to resolve tribal self-governance issues. Lack of structural and financial support for the delivery of Wabanaki Studies Law content directly affects tribal-state relations and Wabanaki self-determination in Maine. This article examines legislative proposals, current laws, and scholarly research and explore how they relate to tribal self-governance. Maine needs strategies for trust building and increased educational experiences for all Maine residents about Wabanaki people and ways of knowing.

The Future Is Now: Legal Planning For Elders, Jennifer Eastman

Maine Policy Review

Legal planning for elders focuses on protecting retirement income and finding ways to pay for long-term health care. Jennifer Eastman discusses estate and tax planning and planning for retirement income, Social Security issues, and asset preservation. She notes that protecting elder adults requires planning and advocating for (or against) policy changes that could adversely affect elders.

Libraries And The First Amendment, Melora Norman

Maine Policy Review

Melora Norman reviews the history and challenges faced by libraries in dealing with citizen first amendment rights to freedom of speech, freedom to receive information, and privacy.

Book Publishers And Libraries: Historic Partners Facing A Disruptive Technology, Tom Allen

Maine Policy Review

The explosion of digital materials and e-readers has disrupted the historic partnership between book publishers and libraries. Tom Allen explains that the new business models required for more widespread e-lending will necessarily involve compromises. He suggests that e-lending pilot projects between individual publishers and libraries are a promising development.

Libraries And Book Publishers, Maureen Sullivan

Maine Policy Review

Although Maine is a rural state, it has had success in keeping pace with technological changes since the rise of the Internet 20 years ago. In this section, authors describe some of these successes and the challenges faced by both consumers and libraries in the new digital environment. New technologies and new forms of digital media pose challenges both for publishers and libraries, as discussed by Tom Allen and Maureen Sullivan in their articles on e-books. Allen presents the publisher’s perspective on this potentially disruptive technology, while Sullivan examines the issue from the perspective of libraries and their historic mission …

Maine State Law And Legislative Reference Library, John Barden

Maine Policy Review

The Maine State Law and Legislative Reference Library provides reference assistance to legislators, the judiciary, state agencies, members of the bar, and citizens across the state of Maine and beyond from its rich and unique collection of legal and legislative materials.

Public Collaboration In Maine: When And Why It Works, Diane Kenty, Ann R. Gosline, Jonathan W. Reitman

Maine Policy Review

Government by itself cannot address all complex public policy issues. The authors write that “public collabo­ration” can alter the discourse on divisive local, regional, and state issues. Public collaboration is a process in which people from multiple sectors (government, business, nonprofit, civic, and tribal) work together to find solutions to problems that no single sector is able to resolve on its own. The authors describe the common features of effective public collaboration and provide detailed case studies and analysis of five recent examples of public collaboration in Maine.

Putting Equity Back In Reverse Mortgages: Helping Seniors Retire With Dignity, Andrew C. Helman

Maine Policy Review

Policymakers can help some seniors age in place through policies to strengthen private-sector reverse mortgages. In reverse mortgages, individuals who may be “house rich but cash poor” can use their home’s equity to receive regular income or get money through a credit line. Andrew Helman argues that state legislatures can help seniors avoid the “tricks and traps” of reverse mortgages by estab­lishing programs in which lenders who agree to play by rules that ensure the safety and security of such mortgages are placed on a “preferred” list for seniors seeking a loan. He observes that laying the groundwork now can …

Native American Sovereignty In Maine, Stephen Brimley

Maine Policy Review

The nationally unique 1980 Maine Indian land claims settlement brought benefits to three of Maine’s tribes—the Penobscot Nation, Passmaquoddy Tribe, and Houlton Band of Maliseets. However, serious problems remain with the economic, health, and educational status of tribal members. Moreover, another group, the Aroostook Band of Micmacs, was not included in the original settlement. Brimley’s analysis of Native American sovereignty in Maine reviews the foundation of the land claims settlement, how it came to be enacted, its terms, and its impact on Maine’s tribes. He notes how the recent failure of tribal efforts to build a casino in the southern …

Tribal-State Relations, Donna M. Loring

Maine Policy Review

Donna Loring’s commentary provides an alternative perspective on Native American sovereignty in Maine, looking at the sometimes contentious process of tribal-state relations.

Smart Growth, State Policy And Public Process In Maine: The Dunstan Crossing Experience, Sylvia Most, Samuel B. Merrill, Jack D. Kartez

Maine Policy Review

Sprawling development in Maine’s growth areas continues in spite of the state’s emphasis on comprehensive planning over the past 20 years. In this article, the authors present some lessons to be learned from Scarborough’s Dunstan Crossing project, a planned development which would have incorporated many of the goals of the national “smart growth” movement. The project was approved by the elected town council (one of whom is co-author Sylvia Most), and it was in compliance with Scarborough’s town comprehensive plan. Nonetheless, the project for now has effectively been blocked after a lengthy period, described here, that saw a citizen referendum, …

Five Hundred Sixty Nations Among Us: Understanding The Basics Of Native American Sovereignty, Stephen Brimley

Maine Policy Review

Stephen Brimley presents a general background on the historical context of Native American tribal sovereignty on the national level, and the current political and legal environment in which tribal rights are defined. He describes how tribes have retained varying degrees of the rights they had prior to European contact, and the ways in which state power over tribes has been expanded through court action in the past several decades. Maine’s Native American groups are in a somewhat unique situation with regard to sovereignty, as defined in the Maine Indian Land Claims Settlement Act of 1980.

Bates And Olmstead: Court-Initiated Strategies To Implement Community Inclusion Of Persons With Psychiatric And Other Long-Term Disabilities, Theresa A. Laurie

Maine Policy Review

In this commentary, Theresa Laurie discusses the impact of the Bates and Olmstead court decisions regarding the rights of the disabled, and their applicability to people with psychiatric and other long-term disabilities. She notes that Maine will have to make policy adjustments in order to redefine program objectives based on these court decisions.

From Clean Water To Casinos: Why Sovereignty Is Important To Native Americans, Lisa K. Neuman

Maine Policy Review

Lisa Neuman’s commentary provides a further perspective on Native American sovereignty, focusing especially on how the situation in Maine compares with that of tribes elsewhere in the United States.

Negotiating Difference, Lawrence Rosen

Maine Policy Review

Lawrence Rosen’s commentary focuses on the legal aspect of Native American sovereignty throughout U.S. history, focusing on ramifications of the recent rise of casino gambling on Indian lands.

The Changing Nature Of Long-Term Care In Maine, Paul Saucier, Julie Fralich

Maine Policy Review

The increase in the proportion of older adults, many with one or more chronic medical conditions, will increase the demand for long-term care. Paul Saucier and Julie Fralich discuss the socio-demographic factors affecting long-term care policy, and describe various state and federal options for providing and financing long-term care. They note that Maine’s long-term care system has so far been able to absorb considerable growth in people by serving increasing numbers in lower-cost settings. Cost sharing has been introduced, and tax policy has been changed to provide incentives for long-term care insurance. Policymakers must now consider whether the current balance …

Campaign Finance Reform, Free Speech And The Supreme Court, Derek Langhauser

Maine Policy Review

In December 2003, the United States Supreme Court upheld all the key provisions of the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act (BCRA) of 2002. In their 5-4 decision, the justices deferred broadly to the limitations set by Congress on unregulated “soft money” and “issue ads” in political campaigns. Derek Langhauser, who worked in Senator Olympia Snow’s office as counsel in McConnell v FEC, as this case was called, gives a legal history of the challenge of balancing Congress’ interest in protecting the integrity of elections with the Constitution’s competitive rights of free speech and association. He describes in detail the Supreme …

Advancements In The Maine Superior Court, Nancy Mills

Maine Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Improving Maine’S Justice System: A Significant Effort In Progress: Introduction, Andrew Ketterer

Maine Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Court Re-Form: The Maine Way, Frank M. Coffin

Maine Policy Review

No abstract provided.

The Changing Face Of Justice In Maine’S Drug Courts, Jon D. Levy

Maine Policy Review

No abstract provided.

How Volunteers Saved Legal Aid In The 1990s, Calien Lewis

Maine Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Maine’S Family Division—Lighting A Dark Stairway, John David Kennedy, Wendy Rau

Maine Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Gun Control: State Versus Federal Regulation Of Firearms, William S. Harwood

Maine Policy Review

William Harwood addresses the complex question of whether gun control should be regulated by the federal or state government, or by some combination of both. In a thorough look at the history of federal and Maine state gun control—and at the various ways the issue of gun violence can be framed—Harwood concludes that neither level of government has a clear mandate to regulate exclusively. Rather, he argues for a more cooperative federal-state approach that allows the federal government to apply uniform regulations when appropriate and the states to experiment with further regulations if so desired.