10- 144 C.M.R. ch. 242, § 5

Current through 2024-51, December 18, 2024

Section 144-242-5 - MEANS OF APPEAL

A. This section governs the means of appealing a decision made by the Department to the Administrative Hearings Unit pertaining to an interpretation of the Department's laws, rules or procedures under 32 M.R.S.A. §1405 and these rules. Appeals of decisions made by local authorities must be made to the relevant municipal officials.

B.Scope. A person whose interest in abutting or adjacent property is directly affected by a decision of the Department is entitled to bring an action challenging the validity of the decision. Appeals by an aggrieved party must be based on adverse Department decisions affecting the aggrieved party. Appeals contending that a decision by the Department misapplies laws, procedures, or rules; or is based upon a significant factual error to the detriment of the aggrieved party may be filed.

C.Procedure for Filing an Appeal

Hearing requests must be directed to the Maine Center for Disease Control , Division of Environmental Health, at 11 State House Station, 286 Water Street, 3rd Floor, Augusta, Maine 04333-0011.

(1) The request must state in writing the specific issues being appealed and be filed within 30 days of the Department's decision.

(2) Within 14 days of receiving the request, the Department representative responsible for administering these rules will forward the request for an administrative hearing to the Administrative Hearing Unit, to the attention of the Chief Hearings Officer, Office of Administrative Hearings, 11 State House Station, Augusta, Maine 04333-0011.

(3) Upon receipt of a request for hearing, the Department will submit to the Administrative Hearings Unit an administrative hearings report that contains the decision on appeal and the administrative record for the Department's decision.

(4) The Administrative Hearings Unit at the Office of Administrative Hearings may deny appeals filed more than 30 days after the Department's decision.

D.Procedure for Hearing

A hearing officer at the Department's Administrative Hearings Unit at the Office of Administrative Hearings will conduct the administrative hearing.

(1) The hearing will be conducted pursuant to the Rules of the Office of the Administrative Hearings, as set forth in the Administrative Hearings Manual, and in conformity with the Administrative Procedures Act, 5 M.R.S.A. §§8001 - 11008.

(2) A notice will inform the aggrieved party of the time, date, and place of the hearing. The hearing will be held at the Department's office nearest to the party requesting the hearing. The hearing date will be no sooner than 20 days after the date of the notice of the administrative hearing.

(3) The hearing officer will issue a written decision of the administrative hearing to all parties.

(4) The burden of persuasion for administrative hearings lies with the party who asserts the truth of a claim that such a claim is true. A burden of persuasion is by a preponderance of the evidence, as stated in 10-144 CMR, Chapter 1 (VII)(B).

(5) Parties to a formal administrative hearing may negotiate a mutually acceptable settlement at any point of the procedure.

E.Civil Appeals

Any person or party dissatisfied with the hearing officer's decision, other than the Department, has the right of judicial review under Rule 80C of the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure and 5 M.R.S.A. §11001.

TABLE A

MINIMUM PERMITTING CONDITIONS AND MINIMUM DESIGN REQUIREMENTS

Note: "Not Allowed" indicates THAT A SEASONAl CONVERSION is not allowed.

Limiting Factor Depth, in inches	Bedrock Limiting Factor Condition	Soil Drainage Limiting Factor Condition [a]
>48	B
15 to 48	AIII	C
10 to <15	AII - Not Allowed	D
<10	AI-Not Allowed	E-Not Allowed

[a.] Pursuant to the Maine Subsurface Wastewater Disposal Rules, 10-144 CMR 241.

TABLE B

SEPTIC TANK CAPACITY PER DWELLING UNIT

Number of bedrooms per dwelling unit	Minimum septic tank liquid capacity
1 Bedroom	750 gallons
2 Bedrooms	750 gallons
3 Bedrooms	1,000 gallons
4 Bedrooms	1,000 gallons
5 Bedrooms	1,250 gallons or greater
For each additional bedroom	250 gallons per bedroom

TABLE C

SUBSTANTIAL COMPLIANCE FOR SITE CONDITIONS

Depth to restrictive layer/bedrock	15 inches
Depth to Seasonal High Groundwater Table	9 inches
Maximum slope	25 % grade

TABLE D

ALLOWED SETBACKS FOR SEASONAL CONVERSIONS

SITE FEATURES	DISPOSAL FIELDS(total design flow)			TREATMENT TANKS(total design flow)
Less than 1,000 gpd	1,000 to 2000 gpd	Over 2,000 gpd	Less than 1,000 gpd	1,000 to 2000 gpd	Over 2,000 gpd
Wells with water usage of 2000 or more gpd or public water system wells	300 feet	300 feet	300 feet	150 feet	150 feet	150 feet
Potable Water Supply	80 feet	160 feet	240 feet	50 feet	50 feet	50 feet
Water supply line	10 feet	10 feet	10 feet	10 feet	10 feet	10 feet
Water body/course, major	80 feet	160 feet	240 feet	40 feet	40 feet	40 feet
Water body/course, minor	40 feet	80 feet	120 feet	40 feet	40 feet	40 feet
Drainage ditches	20 feet	40feet	60 feet	20 feet	20 feet	20 feet
Edge of fill extension-- Coastal wetlands, wetlands of special significance, significant vernal pools	25 feet	25 feet	25 feet	25 feet	25 feet	25 feet
Slopes greater than 3:1	10 feet	14 feet	20 feet	N/A	N/A	N/A
No full basement [e.g. slab, frost wall, columns]	15 feet	28 feet	40 feet	8 feet	14 feet	20 feet
Full basement [below grade foundation]	20 feet	30 feet	40 feet	8 feet	14 feet	20 feet
Property lines	10 feet	14 feet	20 feet	8 feet	14 feet	20 feet
Burial sites or graveyards, measured from the toe of the fill extension	25 feet	25 feet	25 feet	25 feet	25 feet	25 feet
Stormwater infiltration systems	80 feet	160 feet	240 feet	50 feet	50 feet	50 feet
Wetponds, retention ponds, and detention basins (excavated below grade); Soil filters, underdrained swales, underdrained outlets, and similar structures	50 feet	100 feet	150 feet	50 feet	50 feet	50 feet
Stormwater detention basins (basin bottom at or above predevelopment grade)	20 feet	40 feet	60 feet	20 feet	20 feet	20 feet

10- 144 C.M.R. ch. 242, § 5