缅因州于7月29日解散了运营近50年的制造房屋委员会，将其四名员工及监管职能转移至新建立的社区事务办公室[1]。此举旨在加强对该州480个注册移动房屋公园的管理[1]，应对近年来出州投资者购买社区后居民投诉增加的问题[1]。
该委员会过去十年共采取118项执法行动，其中64项针对公园所有者[1]。根据现有法律，公园所有者因违反社区健康安全标准最高可被罚款5000美元，制造商最高可被罚款100万美元[1]，但只有9%的执法行动涉及听证会决议[1]。州长政策创新与未来办公室2023年12月的报告指出存在监管缺陷和居民系统性支持不足[1]。
为补强监管力量，律师总长办公室增聘一名律师专门处理移动房屋公园居民问题[1]，社区事务办公室也将新增两个职位：培训和认证协调员及技术外展助理[1]。社区事务办公室主任萨曼莎·霍恩表示："对于一个社区来说，问题看起来像一个问题，但从州政府的角度看，它实际上涉及七个不同的机构。"[1]虽然此举旨在改善监管协调，但业界担忧委员会解散可能导致行业知识的丧失[1]。
Maine has dismantled its nearly 50-year-old Manufactured Housing Board, transferring its regulatory functions to a newly established Office of Community Affairs effective July 29, 2024.[1] The four-person staff of the dissolved board moved to the new administrative structure under the Office of Community Affairs, which will gain two additional positions: a training and certification coordinator and a technical outreach assistant.[1]
The reorganization responds to mounting resident complaints following out-of-state investor acquisitions of mobile home communities.[1] Over the past decade, the former board took 118 enforcement actions, with 64 targeting park owners, though only 9 percent resulted in hearing resolutions.[1] Park owners face fines up to $5,000 for violations of community health and safety standards, while manufacturers can be penalized up to $1 million.[1] Maine currently has 480 registered mobile home parks.[1]
The Office of Community Affairs director, Samantha Horn, highlighted the coordination challenges inherent in mobile home regulation, stating: "For a community, a problem looks like one problem, but from a state government perspective, it actually involves seven different agencies."[1] Additionally, the attorney general's office has hired an additional attorney to address issues specific to mobile home park residents.[1] These moves follow a December 2023 report from the Governor's Office of Policy Innovation and the Future that identified regulatory shortcomings and systemic gaps in resident support.[1]