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Rep. Sarty Named to Group Studying ATV Enforcement Rules

AUGUSTA- State Rep. Ralph Sarty has been named to a work group that will evaluate a controversial new law that deals with the rights of law enforcement officers to stop and inspect all-terrain vehicles (ATVs).

The 16-member panel, formed in June under an executive order by Governor Baldacci, has been charged with a number of duties, such as clarifying the concerns of landowners and law enforcement officers regarding the new ATV “stop standard.” 

Under the new statute, law enforcement officers cannot stop an ATV on private land unless they have “reasonable and articulable” suspicion to believe that the operator has broken a law. When this stop standard is met, wardens may demand and inspect the operator’s certificate of registration or evidence that the operator has completed a training course, as required by law.

“I’m gratified to be part of this group, because this issue was not settled by the new law,” said Rep. Sarty (R-Denmark), a member of the Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Committee and a retired state game warden. “Wardens need the authority to stop ATV riders on private land without suspicion of a law violation, unless the rider is on an official ATV trail. The new law has angered a number of landowners, including farmers, who have threatened to post their land if the new law isn’t repealed or corrected.”

The law in question is based on LD 308, sponsored by Rep. John Martin (D-Eagle Lake) and passed last year. Legislation sponsored by Rep. Sarty, LD 1536, would have restored wardens’ authority to stop ATV riders on private land (but not public land) without suspicion of a law violation to proactively address safety and landowner issues.

The Sarty bill won support from many organizations involved in the action, such as the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine, the Maine Farm Bureau, the Maine Forest Products Council, the Maine Snowmobile Association, the Maine Professional Guides Association and the Small Woodland Owners Association of Maine. The bill ultimately failed, but the controversy has since intensified. As the governor noted in his executive order, “Strong views on this matter continue to generate conflict and uncertainty and threaten ATV access to certain private lands.”

The work group has been instructed to identify the various conflicts and draft any necessary legislation to address recommendations the group develops.

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