AUGUSTA – Maine’s Attorney General has issued a letter to the state’s newly named Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Darryl Brown saying it appears Brown is unqualified to remain in that post.

In a letter dated April 27 Attorney General William Schneider writes, “In the absence of new information, it appears you are unqualified to serve as Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection under Maine law.” 

According to a release issued by Schneider Wednesday, Brown’s personal attorney, Clint Boothby, wrote to both the Attorney General’s Office and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on April 22 following Boothby’s private review of documentation relating to Brown’s income during the preceding two years.

Boothby’s letter expresses concern about potential damage to Main-land Development’s business interests from the public disclosure of its client list and revenue information, and questions whether such records would become part of the public domain if submitted to the Attorney General’s Office for its review.

Schneider letter explains that documentation related to Brown’s income would become subject to Maine’s Freedom of Access Act if submitted to the Attorney General’s Office for review and that such records are presumptively available for public inspection.

Schneider also advises that if Brown  has a conflict he would be precluded from serving as commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection under Maine statute. 

Schneider states that “if in fact such a conflict exists, it would undermine your legal authority to act on any matter coming before you as Commissioner.”

Letter From AG to Darryl Brown