ELR Citation: ELR 20616
No(s). 921 (Me. Jun 4, 1973)

The Maine Supreme Court upholds the constitutionality of the Coastal Conveyance Act of 1970, which imposes an annual license fee on operators of oil terminal facilities receiving shipments of oil by sea. The one-half cent per barrel charge, paid into a fund for the containment and cleanup of oil spills and the compensation of persons harmed by such spills, is a valid exercise of the state's police power. The Import-Export Clause of the U.S. Constitution is not violated, as the tax is not upon the imported oil itself, but rather on the environmentally hazardous act of off-loading oil from tankers to land facilities. The statute, which renders operators absolutely liable for spills occurring within the 12-mile limit from vessels destined for their facilities, does not contravene the Equal Protection Clause, as the legislature could reasonably determine that harmful spills are more likely to result from oil tankers and terminals than from vessels and shoreline facilities not engaged in the large-scale transport and storage of oil. Although the act states that determinations of a Board of Arbitration will be binding as to the amount of damages, this refers to disbursements from the fund to injured parties, rather than to repayments to the fund by licensees, who may litigate the issue of damages before a jury, and thus suffer no denial of procedural due process. Objections to the statute on Commerce and Admiralty Clause grounds are also rejected.

Attorneys for Plaintiffs
Gerald M. Amero
Fred C. Scribner Jr.
Bruce A. Coggeshall
Pierce, Atwood, Scribner, Allen & McKusick
1 Monument Square
Portland, ME 04111

Attorneys for Defendants
E.Stephen Murray
John M.R. Paterson Assistant Attorneys General
State House
Augusta, ME 04330

Roberts B. Owen
William H. Allen
Richard B. Herzog
Covington & Burling
888 16th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20006