Section 385-110-3-19 - Violations1. Individual NonconformancesWhenever the authorized inspection agency has reason to believe that an individual building or dwelling unit fails to conform to the requirements of this chapter, the authorized inspection agency shall notify the manufacturer of the nonconformance and afford the manufacturer an opportunity to correct the nonconformance in a manner acceptable to the authorized inspection agency. If the possible nonconformance comes first to the attention of the board, the board shall notify the authorized inspection agency in order that that the authorized inspection agency can carry out its responsibilities under this Section.
2. Order of Correction; Disciplinary ActionIf the manufacturer fails or refuses to successfully resolve the problem or correct the nonconformance within 30 days, or such reasonable additional time as may be given by the authorized inspection agency, the authorized inspection agency shall notify the board of same. The executive director may order the manufacturer to correct the nonconformance. The order must be in writing, must include the reasons for such action and must inform the manufacturer of the time and manner in which an appeal to the board may be taken pursuant to Subchapter 6.
A manufacturer who fails to timely comply with or appeal from an order of correction is subject to disciplinary action and other penalties as set forth in the Act and 10 MRSA §8003(5-A).
3. Certificate of OccupancyIf the nonconformance involves a home for which a certificate of occupancy has not been issued, the authorized inspection agency shall affix or cause to be affixed an invalidation to the label and shall notify the local enforcement agency having jurisdiction that the label has been invalidated and that a certificate of occupancy should not be issued. Where the nonconformance does not create a real and present hazard to the health or safety of the intended occupants of the dwelling unit, the authorized inspection agency may advise the local enforcement agency that the invalidation should not prevent issuance of a temporary certificate of occupancy, provided, however, that the authorized inspection agency shall have fixed a time within which the nonconformance shall be corrected.
4. Class NonconformanceWhenever the executive director has reason to believe a class of manufactured homes may not conform to the requirements of this chapter, the executive director may order the manufacturer to correct the class nonconformance in all homes affected by it. The order must be in writing, must include the reasons for such action and must inform the manufacturer of the time and manner in which an appeal to the board may be taken pursuant to Subchapter 6.
A condition is considered to be a class nonconformance if:
A. The approved building system under which a State-certified modular home was constructed was not code-compliant, or a series of individual nonconformances establishes that there has been a failure of the approved compliance assurance program under which the State-certified modular home was constructed; andB. The nonconformance constitutes a real and present hazard to the health and safety of the occupants or intended occupants of the home, or the nonconformance constitutes a major structural defect that impairs the ability of any load-bearing portion of the home to carry the intended loads in accordance with the requirements of this chapter. A manufacturer who fails to timely comply with or appeal from an order of correction is subject to disciplinary action and other penalties as set forth in the Act and 10 MRSA §8003(5-A).
5. Program NonconformanceA. Whenever the board or an authorized inspection agency discovers a pattern or practice of serious failure or refusal to adhere to the provisions of an approved quality assurance program, or whenever the board discovers a serious violation of this chapter in an approved building system which cannot be corrected while production continues, the board may, after notice and opportunity for hearing, suspend or revoke approval of the building system or quality assurance program and may invalidate or cause to be invalidated all labels affixed to any State-certified modular home issued pursuant to such building system or quality assurance program. The hearing must be conducted in accordance with the provisions of the Maine Administrative Procedure Act applicable to adjudicatory hearings. The executive director has the burden of proving the program nonconformance at hearing.B. Suspension is appropriate when the board finds that production can resume once the pattern or practice, serious failure or refusal, or serious violation has been corrected.C. Revocation is appropriate when the board finds that the failure or refusal to adhere to the provisions of the approved quality assurance program has been habitual, whether that habitual failure or refusal has been deliberate or the result of negligence on the part of the manufacturer, its agents, or its employees.D. Upon suspension or revocation of any building system or quality assurance program, no further labels may be attached to any modular home manufactured pursuant to the building system or compliance assurance program. Upon reinstatement of approval after suspension, labels may be attached after the date on which approval is reinstated. Any modular home manufactured during a period of suspension for which an appeal is pending may not be labeled unless the appeal is resolved in favor of the manufacturer and the board or authorized inspection agency has approved or inspected such manufactured home and determined that all requirements for attachment of a label have been met.E. The manufacturer shall return all labels allocated for any modular home affected by a suspension or revocation to the issuing agency within 10 calendar days of the effective date of the suspension or revocation. The manufacturer is entitled to a refund of any applicable label fees which may have been paid for the returned labels.02-385 C.M.R. ch. 110, § 3-19