| This bill makes several changes to Maine's arborist |
| licensing laws designed to simplify the current arborist |
| licensing laws and to provide the public with additional |
| protection against unprofessional conduct of arborists doing |
| business in the State. The changes bring the current law into |
| conformity with actual practices in the arborist profession |
| and allow individuals who are certified by the International |
| Society of Arboriculture, ISA, which currently maintains a |
| testing and certification process as rigorous as the |
| Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Resource's |
| examination, providing the ISA testing process does not drop |
| below the standards set forth in the State's arborist |
| licensing law. The bill provides the department with the |
| opportunity to suspend, revoke or refuse to issue or renew an |
| arborist license, pursuant to other relevant statutes or |
| provides the District Court with the opportunity to suspend, |
| revoke or refuse to renew a license, if an arborist pursues a |
| continued course of unprofessional conduct as demonstrated by |
| repeated verified complaints against the licensed arborist. |