The state’s highest court has affirmed the Legislature’s power to force towns to adopt denser, transit-friendly zoning. In 2021, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Communities Act (G. L. c. 40A, § 3A) amended...
On December 5, 2024, Governor Janet Mills announced her intent to nominate former state senator and representative Heather Sanborn to serve as the next Public Advocate of the State of Maine. Sanborn, of Portland...
On January 14, 2025, the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (“DEP”) issued a new Maine Construction General Permit (“MCGP”). The new permit replaces the prior 2006 MCGP, which expired and had been administratively continued...
Join Verrill's Jonathan Dunitz at the Maine State Bar Association's 2025 Summer Bar Conference in Bar Harbor. Jonathan will be featured on the Normalizing Attorney Well-Being by Eliminating Stigma panel. One of the major...
On February 18, 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order 14215 “Ensuring Accountability for All Agencies,” Section 7 of which provides that: “[t]he President and the Attorney General’s opinions on questions of law are controlling...
Beginning in May of 2026, [1] owners of brands selling packaged products and importers of foreign-produced packaged products sold in Maine will be required to adhere to Maine’s Stewardship Program for Packaging. [2] Beginning...
Despite having over 130 years of collective environmental law experience, Verrill’s environmental group is very cautious in making predictions about the future. But sometimes we identify a trend that seems so obvious that we...
On November 20, 2024, Governor Maura Healey signed the Massachusetts Leads Act, engrossing House Bill 5100 (the “MA Leads Act”), which, among many funding provisions, contains two changes that will significantly benefit project developers...
On the first day of his Presidency, among 26 other Executive Orders that day, Donald Trump issued his Unleashing American Energy Executive Order rescinding President Biden’s Executive Order 14096 of April 21, 2023 (Revitalizing...
The Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry issued final rules on Permitting Solar Energy Developments on High Value-Agricultural Land , with an effective date of April 20, 2025 (the “Rule”). The Rule implements...