Abstract
The 1960s brought nationwide concern about the environmental impact of post-World War II development and industrial growth. Efforts to protect the environment took many different forms. Part of Maine's response to the growing need for environmental improvement measures was the Legislature's enactment in 1970 of the Site Location of Development Law (Site Law). The Site Law gives the state control over the location of developments that would substantially affect the environment, rather than leaving such decisions to single towns and individual developers. The Law also addresses concerns beyond those dealt with in air and water pollution control legislation. The Site Law initiated an ambitious statewide program, and it is not surprising that the Legislature has amended the statute numerous times since its original passage. The most recent amendment was in 1988, when the Legislature clarified the Law's meaning and provided the state agencies responsible for administering the Site Law sufficient scope, oversight, and enforcement capability to achieve its goals. Nonetheless, whether the Site Law has achieved its purposes and has actually given the state some control over developments is a matter of some debate. It is therefore appropriate to analyze the purposes of the Site Law and the legislated means to achieve those purposes, particularly in light of the substantial 1988 amendments which attempt to clarify and streamline the procedures mandated by the Site Law. The following discussion describes the provisions of the Site Law and demonstrates that the Legislature confers general discretion on state agencies to fulfill the statute's broad mandate.
First Page
1
Recommended Citation
Tybe A. Brett,
General Discretion Under Maine's Site Location of Development Law,
41
Me. L. Rev.
1
(1989).
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.mainelaw.maine.edu/mlr/vol41/iss1/2