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PUBLIC LAWS OF MAINE
First Regular Session of the 121st

CHAPTER 448
S.P. 402 - L.D. 1196

An Act To Clarify the Definition of Independent Expenditures Under the Election Laws

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:

     Sec. 1. 21-A MRSA §1014-B, sub-§2, ¶D, as enacted by PL 2001, c. 416, §1, is amended to read:

     Sec. 2. 21-A MRSA §1019, as amended by PL 2001, c. 465, §1, is repealed.

     Sec. 3. 21-A MRSA §1019-B is enacted to read:

§1019-B. Reports of independent expenditures

     1. Independent expenditures; definition. For the purposes of this section, an "independent expenditure":

     2. Rebutting presumption. A person presumed under this section to have made an independent expenditure may rebut the presumption by filing a signed written statement with the commission within 48 hours of making the expenditure stating that the cost was not incurred with the intent to influence the nomination, election or defeat of a candidate, supported by any additional evidence the person chooses to submit. The commission may gather any additional evidence it deems relevant and material and must determine by a preponderance of the evidence whether the cost was incurred with intent to influence the nomination, election or defeat of a candidate.

     3. Report required; content; rules. A person, party committee, political committee or political action committee that makes independent expenditures aggregating in excess of $100 during any one candidate's election shall file a report with the commission. In the case of a municipal election, a copy of the same information must be filed with the municipal clerk.

     Sec. 4. 21-A MRSA §1020-A, sub-§5-A, ¶A, as enacted by PL 2001, c. 714, Pt. PP, §1 and affected by §2, is amended to read:

     Sec. 5. 21-A MRSA §1125, sub-§9, as enacted by IB 1995, c. 1, §17, is amended to read:

     9. Matching funds. When any campaign, finance or election report shows that the sum of a candidate's expenditures or obligations, or funds raised or borrowed, whichever is greater, alone or in conjunction with independent expenditures reported under section 1019 1019-B, exceeds the distribution amount under subsection 8, the commission shall issue immediately to any opposing Maine Clean Election Act candidate an additional amount equivalent to the reported excess. Matching funds are limited to 2 times the amount originally distributed under subsection 8, paragraph A or C, whichever is applicable.

Effective September 13, 2003, unless otherwise indicated.

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