LD 2180

APPROVED  CHAPTER
  APRIL 13, 2026  663
  BY GOVERNOR  PUBLIC LAW
  STATE OF MAINE
  _____
  IN THE YEAR OF OUR LORD
  TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-SIX
  _____
  H.P. 1467 - L.D. 2180
   An Act to Make Changes to the Laws Regarding the Department of
Administrative and Financial Services, Bureau of Human Resources and the
  State Civil Service Appeals Board
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
  PART A
    Sec. A-1. 4 MRSA §807, sub-§3, ¶U, as amended by PL 2025, c. 97, §2, is further
amended to read:
    U. Practice, pursuant to a rule of the Supreme Judicial Court, by a law student enrolled
    in a law school accredited by the American Bar Association; or
    Sec. A-2. 4 MRSA §807, sub-§3, ¶V, as enacted by PL 2025, c. 97, §3, is amended
to read:
    V. An attorney certified by the judge advocate general of that attorney's respective
    military branch representing Maine National Guard members in proceedings conducted
    pursuant to Title 37‑B, section 415‑A.;
    Sec. A-3. 4 MRSA §807, sub-§3, ¶W is enacted to read:
    W. A person who is not an attorney but is representing the State before the State Civil
    Service Appeals Board as described in Title 5, section 7081 on a reclassification,
    reallocation or reorganization appeal; or
    Sec. A-4. 4 MRSA §807, sub-§3, ¶X is enacted to read:
    X. A person who is not an attorney but is representing the State before an arbitrator
    related to a grievance filed under a collective bargaining agreement.
  PART B
    Sec. B-1. 5 MRSA §7083, as corrected by RR 2023, c. 2, Pt. B, §§73 to 76, is
amended to read:
§7083. Procedure for settlement
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    A grievance or dispute between a state employee and the agency of the State by whom
the state employee is employed must be entertained by the appeals board upon the
application of the employee, as long as there has been compliance with the following
requirements:
    1. Adjust dispute. That the employee aggrieved or the employee's representative, or
both, have attempted to adjust the dispute through oral communication with the employee's
immediate supervisor within 7 working days of the time that the employee is aware of the
grievable incident. The immediate supervisor is then required to render an oral decision to
the employee within 3 working days;
     2. Grievance in writing. If the employee is dissatisfied with the oral decision of the
employee's immediate supervisor, the employee or the employee's representative, or both,
may, before the end of the 10th working day following the day of the oral decision, present
the grievance to the employee's supervisor again, this time in written form. The supervisor
is then required to make a decision in writing and present it to the employee within 10
working days;
    3. Appeal Submission of grievance or dispute to department or agency head. If
the employee is dissatisfied with the supervisor's written decision, the employee or the
employee's representative, or both, then may, before the end of the 20th working day
following receipt of the decision, appeal in writing to the department head. The Within 21
days of the employee becoming aware of the grievance or dispute, the employee or the
employee’s representative, or both, shall submit the grievance or dispute in writing to the
department or agency head describing the employee’s desired resolution. Within 21 days
of receiving the employee’s written notice of the grievance or dispute, the department or
agency head shall meet with the employee or the employee's designated representative, or
both, within 20 working days of receipt of the employee's notice of dissatisfaction and
attempt to adjust the dispute. Within 5 working days of meeting with the employee or the
employee’s representative, or both, the department or agency head shall render a decision
in writing to the aggrieved employee and or the employee's representative;, or both.
If the department or agency head issues a written decision after conducting a due process
meeting with the employee or the employee’s representative, or both, at which the
employee was afforded an opportunity to present information relating to proposed
disciplinary action issued by the department or agency head, the written decision must be
treated as the final written decision of the department or agency head for the purposes of
this subsection. Upon receipt of the written decision following the due process meeting, no
further action by the employee is required at the department or agency level, and the
employee may appeal the written decision to the officer pursuant to subsection 4 if the
employee is a classified employee or the employee may appeal the written decision directly
to the appeals board pursuant to subsection 5 if the employee is an unclassified employee;
    4. Appeal to State Human Resources Officer. If the classified employee is
dissatisfied with the written decision following the meeting with of the department or
agency head, the employee or the employee's representative, or both, may appeal in writing
to the State Human Resources Officer within 7 working days of meeting with the
department head 21 days of receiving the written decision. The officer shall within 10
working 21 days reply in writing to the aggrieved employee, or the employee's
representative, or both, and the department or agency head involved stating the officer's
decision, based on the Civil Service Law and rules;
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     5. Submission to board. In the event the grievance is not satisfactorily adjusted under
subsections 1 to 3 and 4, within the time limits in those subsections, the dispute may be
submitted to the appeals board within 10 working 21 days following receipt of the officer's
written decision of the last relevant written decision from the employer pursuant to
subsection 3 or 4. The appeals board shall investigate the matters in controversy, shall hear
all interested persons who come before it and shall make a written decision, which is
binding on the parties involved. The appeals board's written decision must be issued within
30 working days after the hearing on the dispute is concluded, unless both parties agree
that an extension of the time limit should be allowed; and
    6. Procedure. Any member of the appeals board may administer oaths and subpoena
and require the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, papers, public records
and other relevant documentary evidence or certified copies of the evidence by the
department or agency head pertinent to the dispute and shall do so if requested in writing
by any party to the dispute or the party's representative. A witness summonsed by subpoena
is entitled to witness fees and travel allowance in the amount allowed for appearance in
District Court, the costs of which must be advanced by the party requesting the subpoena
prior to issuance of the subpoena. A state employee subpoenaed under this subsection may
not lose pay to which the employee would otherwise be entitled.
    Sec. B-2. 5 MRSA §7084, sub-§1, as corrected by RR 2023, c. 2, Pt. B, §77, is
amended to read:
     1. Application for extension. The chair of the appeals board may extend any time
limit specified in section 7083, subsections 1 3 to 4 5, upon written application of either
party, as long as the application is submitted within the time provided for in the applicable
step. Failure of an employee to pursue a grievance within the prescribed time limits
constitutes an acceptance of the last response by the department or agency head. Failure
of the department or agency head to respond within the stipulated time limits provided for
in the applicable step constitutes an automatic waiver of that step and the employee may
proceed to the next step as outlined in this section.
    A. At least one day prior to the presentation submission of the employee's grievance
    to the employee's supervisor department or agency head, the employee's representative,
    if any, may have access to the work location of the employee involved during the
    working hours for the purpose of investigating the grievance.
    B. The department or agency head may designate a representative, with authority to
    take appropriate action, who must be at the deputy or assistant department or agency
    head or labor specialist level to represent the department or agency head in section
    7083, subsections 2 and 3 and 4.
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