| | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: |
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| | | Sec. 1. 21-A MRSA §1017-B is enacted to read: |
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| | | §1017-B.__Publication or distribution of communications |
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| | | If a party committee intends to publish for the first time a | | communication designed to influence an election within the 10 | | days preceding the election, the party committee shall first | | submit the communication to the commission and make the | | communication available to the public not less than 72 hours | | before publication of the communication.__For purposes of this | | section, "publish" means to disseminate to the public by any | | means, including to mail; broadcast by Internet, radio, | | television or other electronic media; telephone; insert or | | print in a newspaper, magazine or other periodical; or | | distribute by hand.__The publication of a communication in | | violation of this section may result in a civil penalty of no | | more than $200.__Enforcement and collection procedures must be | | in accordance with section 1062-A. |
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| | | Sec. 2. 21-A MRSA §1055, as amended by PL 2001, c. 430, §9, is | | further amended by inserting after the 2nd paragraph a new | | paragraph to read: |
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| | | If a political action committee intends to publish for the | | first time a communication designed to influence an election | | within the 10 days preceding the election, the political | | action committee shall first submit the communication to the | | commission and make the communication available to the public | | not less than 72 hours before publication of the | | communication.__For purposes of this section, "publish" means | | to disseminate to the public by any means, including to mail; | | broadcast by Internet, radio, television or other electronic | | media; telephone; insert or print in a newspaper, magazine or | | other periodical; or distribute by hand. |
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| | | This bill requires political action and party committees to | | submit to the Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election | | Practices and make available to the general public at least 72 | | hours before publication any communication designed to | | influence an election that is intended to be published for the | | first time within the 10 days preceding the election. |
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