OUI in Maine: the law, the limits and the device
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Maine calls it OUI — operating under the influence, and you will see DUI and drunk driving used for the same offense. What follows is what this state sets, taken from its own published rules rather than from a national summary.
What Maine law actually requires
In Maine the device is voluntary — it exists to get your license back early. A first OUI suspension of 150 days drops to 30 served if you fit one for the rest of the term, and a second offense falls from three years to nine months. You must petition the Secretary of State and get written approval before installation.
- First offense: Reinstatement after 30 days of a 150-day suspension, with the device for the remaining term; a second offense reinstates after 9 months of three years, a third after 3 years of six
- Lockout threshold: Set by the device approved by the Secretary of State
- Program run by: Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles (Secretary of State)
Source: www.maine.gov, checked 2026-08-23
DUI vs OUI in Maine
Maine uses OUI, and the difference from plain DUI is worth getting right: both describe driving impaired, and locally the charge is written as OUI — operating under the influence
Whatever it is called, the licensing consequence is the same shape: a suspension, then the device as the condition of driving again. All six abbreviations, side by side →
Can you get a OUI on a bike or a horse in Maine?
It turns on one word in the statute. Where the law says “vehicle”, no engine is required and the charge can reach a bicycle, a horse or a mobility scooter. Where it says “motor vehicle”, the analysis is different. This is decided by your state’s own wording, not by national custom, and it is the first thing to check before assuming a bike ride home is safe.
How often this happens in Maine
Federal crash records show the scale the state is legislating against, and how it compares with the country.
Cases are heard where the stop happened, and volume shapes local practice. These ME counties record the most:
Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System, 2020–2022. Counts crashes where police recorded that a driver had been drinking, which is narrower than the federal 0.08 measure and therefore understates the real figure. Maine runs above the national share.
What it costs to get driving again in Maine
Maine does not publish a price cap we could verify, so the quote is the number and your only leverage is a competitor nearby. The national reference points are installation and a monthly fee, with calibration visits every 30 to 60 days.
The two clocks in Maine
The court case and the licensing case run separately. The licensing side moves first, and in the strictest states the window to request a hearing is measured in days — it runs whether or not you have hired anyone.
Maine cities
The county that hears your case is set by where the stop happened, and local practice differs across the state.
OUI questions in Maine
Is it called DUI or OUI in Maine?
Maine uses OUI — operating under the influence. You will also see DUI, drunk driving used for the same thing. The label follows the state, not the seriousness of what happened, so paperwork from elsewhere may say something different about identical conduct.
What is the legal limit in Maine?
0.08% for drivers 21 and over, as in every state except Utah, which sits at 0.05%. Below the limit you can still be charged if an officer documents impairment. The reading that triggers the interlock here is a separate number: Set by the device approved by the Secretary of State
How long does the interlock stay on after a first offense in Maine?
Reinstatement after 30 days of a 150-day suspension, with the device for the remaining term; a second offense reinstates after 9 months of three years, a third after 3 years of six The program is run by Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles (Secretary of State).
Can you get an OUI on a horse or a bicycle in Maine?
The answer is in whether the statute says “vehicle” or “motor vehicle”. Where it says vehicle, no engine is needed and the charge can reach a bike or a horse; where it says motor vehicle, it cannot. This is one of the most searched questions in the whole subject and one of the most confidently answered wrongly — the wording of your own state decides it.
When a charge becomes a felony → The test and the refusal → SR-22 and FR-44 →
Attorney advertising. InterlockDeviceNearMe is not a law firm, does not practice law, and does not give legal advice. Nothing here creates an attorney-client relationship. Requesting a consultation connects you with an independent attorney or a legal referral service, who decide separately whether to take your case. Case outcomes depend on facts we do not know, and no result is ever promised. Deadlines in DUI cases are short and vary by state — speak to a licensed attorney in your state before relying on anything you read here.