132nd MAINE LEGISLATURE
		LD 600		LR 1204(01)
	An Act to Initiate Recounts in Tied Elections
	Preliminary Fiscal Impact Statement for Original Bill
	Sponsor: Rep. Malon, II of Biddeford
	Committee: Veterans and Legal Affairs
	Fiscal Note Required: Yes
Preliminary Fiscal Impact Statement
Potential State Mandate - Unfunded Minor cost increase - General Fund
State Mandates
	Required Activity				Unit Affected	Local Cost
	Requires municipal clerks to automatically initiate recounts in the case of tie votes when secret ballots are used for elections of town officials or for municipal referenda elections at town meetings.				Municipality	Insignificant statewide
	The required local activities in this bill may represent a state mandate pursuant to the Constitution of Maine. If the bill does require a local unit of government to expand or modify its activities so as to necessitate additional expenditures from local revenue, the state mandate provisions of the Constitution of Maine require either: (1) General Fund appropriations be provided to fund at least 90% of any additional necessitated local costs of the mandate; or (2) a Mandate Preamble be added to the bill and two-thirds of the members of each House vote to exempt the mandate from the funding requirement. If the bill does represent a state mandate and neither one of these actions occurs, the local units of government will not be required to implement the mandated activities.
Fiscal Detail and Notes
	Any additional costs to the Department of Secretary of State associated with this legislation are expected to be minor and can be absorbed within existing budgeted resources.