Maine · Freedom of Access Act

The Maine Freedom of Access Act, with its 5-working-day clock built in

AccessPoint manages Freedom of Access Act requests under 1 M.R.S. § 401 et seq. — the 5-working-day acknowledgment and denial standard, the § 402(3)(A)–(X) exclusions, and the Ombudsman-to-Superior-Court appeal path — pre-configured for Maine and running inside your own Microsoft 365 tenant.

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Maine at a glance

Response standard
Acknowledgment and any written denial within 5 working days of receipt; production within a reasonable time thereafter (1 M.R.S. § 408-A)
Enforcement
Public Access Ombudsman review (advisory) or direct appeal to Maine Superior Court within 30 days of denial
Exemptions
The § 402(3)(A)–(X) exclusions — an enumerated list, with no general privacy exemption
Charges
10¢ per standard page; first two hours of staff time free, then up to $25 per hour
Oversight
Public Access Ombudsman (advisory) and Maine Superior Court on appeal
Languages
English

Built for Maine

One platform for the whole access-and-privacy mandate, pre-configured for this regime and running in your own Microsoft 365 tenant.

FOAA request lifecycle

Intake to release under the Freedom of Access Act (1 M.R.S. § 401 et seq.) — no written request required, the 5-working-day acknowledgment, and inspection or copies — all on Microsoft 365.

The § 402(3) exclusions

FOAA withholds only what the § 402(3)(A)–(X) list names — there is no catch-all personal-privacy exemption. AccessPoint tags every record against the enumerated exclusions so nothing is withheld on a basis the Act doesn't provide.

The 5-working-day clock

Acknowledge every request, and issue any written denial, within 5 working days of receipt, then produce the records within a reasonable time — computed and reminded for you.

Redaction by exclusion

Apply the § 402(3) exclusions line by line on a colour-coded, audit-trailed redaction record — each redaction tied to its specific lettered exclusion.

FOAA charges

Charge 10¢ per standard page and staff time at up to $25 per hour after the first two free hours — computed and itemised on request.

In your own tenant

Every request and record stays inside your own Microsoft 365 and Azure tenant — no third-party cloud, no cross-border transfers, and no per-user fees.

No general privacy exemption

Maine withholds only what § 402(3) names — there is no catch-all privacy exemption.

Most public records laws pair an enumerated exclusion list with a broader, discretionary privacy or public-interest exemption a custodian can invoke case by case. Maine's Freedom of Access Act does not. Section 402(3) lists the excluded categories from (A) through (X) — legislative work papers, certain personnel and security records, and the like — and if a record doesn't fall on that list, it is public. AccessPoint tags every record against the lettered exclusions so a request is never denied on a ground the statute doesn't provide.

An enumerated list, not a standard Section 402(3)(A)–(X) names the excluded categories; nothing broader applies.
No catch-all privacy exemption If a record isn't on the list, FOAA does not let a custodian withhold it.
5 working days to acknowledge or deny Every request gets a written response — access or denial — inside the standard.

Configured out of the box

Installing the us-me-foaa jurisdiction pack seeds your tenant with everything this regime needs — a starting point you can adjust, not a lock-in.

Pack content last reviewed: 2026-09-03

Related guide: FOI Workflow Quick Check
  • The Maine Freedom of Access Act (1 M.R.S. § 401 et seq.) as the legal-authority and citation spine
  • The Maine state-holiday calendar and the 5-working-day acknowledgment and denial due-date rules
  • The § 402(3)(A)–(X) exclusions mapped and colour-coded for redaction, with no catch-all privacy ground applied by default
  • FOAA charges — 10¢ per standard page and staff time at up to $25 per hour after the first two free hours
  • The Public Access Ombudsman complaint workflow for advisory review of a denial
  • The Superior Court appeal workflow — the 30-day filing deadline for de novo review
  • Maine timeliness tracking and the acknowledgment/denial due-date reminders
  • FOAA correspondence templates with statutory wording
A jurisdiction pack's detail panel in AccessPoint settings, showing the pack description, version, what's new, and the checklist of items it imports: legal authorities, calendars, request statuses, request types, extension reasons, requestor categories and consultation types Click to enlarge
What a pack looks like in Settings (the Ontario municipal pack shown): the description, the version and what changed in it, and every item it imports with its statutory basis. Anything you have customized is never overwritten on update.

Maine Questions

When must a Maine agency respond to a FOAA request?
Within 5 working days of receipt, the agency must acknowledge the request and, if it intends to deny access, provide written notice of the denial. Production of the records itself follows within a reasonable time after that. AccessPoint computes both points and drafts the acknowledgment or denial notice.

Does a FOAA request have to be in writing?
No. Maine's FOAA allows any person to request records without submitting a written request, though a written request creates a clear record of the 5-working-day clock. AccessPoint logs the request and starts the clock the moment it's received, however it arrives.

What makes Maine different — no general privacy exemption?
Yes. FOAA withholds a record only if it falls within the § 402(3)(A)–(X) exclusions — there is no broader, catch-all personal-privacy or public-interest exemption a custodian can invoke. AccessPoint tags each record against the enumerated exclusions so nothing is withheld on a ground the statute doesn't provide.

Where does data reside?
Entirely within your own Microsoft 365 and Azure tenant. Requests, documents, and audit history never leave your control — no third-party cloud, no vendor access, and no cross-border data transfers.

Go deeper

AccessPoint for Alabama A brand-new response clock, layered on Alabama's 1981 Stone balancing test AccessPoint for Alaska Silence is a denial, then a two-step appeal — agency head, then superior court AccessPoint for Arizona Open records on a balancing test, no exemption list FOI request management software The full request lifecycle — computed deadlines, records collection, redaction, audit. AccessPoint vs. GovQA Granicus Records Request Management — requests only, vendor cloud. AccessPoint vs. NextRequest CivicPlus's public-records platform — strong portal, vendor cloud only.

Flat annual pricing, published in full. Every feature in every size — access requests, privacy impact assessments, breach response, complaints, video & audio redaction, and AI Assist. No per-user or per-module fees.

  • Under 500 employees$2,990/yr
  • 500–2,000 employees$7,990/yr
  • Over 2,000 employees$14,990/yr

See full pricing Build the business case

Run the Maine Freedom of Access Act in One Platform

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