Maine guides flexed their muscles during a public hearing earlier this month and effectively derailed a bad idea from the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.

The rule changes would have forced guides to pass a criminal background check before they could qualify for a license. Any offense, no matter how minor, could have cost a guide his or her livelihood. It would have applied to new applications and renewals, and set the bar too low for disqualification.

About 100 guides showed up in Bangor to protest the changes.

To the department’s credit, its representatives realized quickly that the proposal went too far and was addressing a problem that doesn’t exist.

“If we move forward with a rule, it’s not going to be in this fashion,” DIF&W Commissioner Roland Martin told the crowd.

Maine guides are often some of the best ambassadors to visitors the state has. But that doesn’t mean that they should be held to a higher standard of the law than other people. The law should apply equally to everyone, guides included.

What’s most impressive about the way this played out is that Maine residents, once they learned of a potential misstep by their state government, were able to stand up and put a stop to it. It goes to show the power of public hearings and the ability of residents to overcome government’s momentum.