An Act to Require the Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices to Produce a Register of All Registered Lobbyists Net Cost (Savings) General Fund Revenue General Fund
Maine Legislature, Session 122, LD 1822
Committee Amendment CA_A_H822 (House)
Amends: 3 MRSA §312-A, 3 MRSA §313, 3 MRSA §315-A, 3 MRSA §316, 3 MRSA §317, 3 MRSA §319, 3 MRSA §320, 3 MRSA §321

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT ·A" to H.P. 1262, L.D. 1822, Bill, "An 
Act To Require the Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election 
Practices To Produce a Register of All Registered Lobbyists" 
Amend the bill by striking out everything after the enacting 
clause and inserting in its place the following: 
• Sec. I. 3 MRSA §312-A, sub-§9, as amended by PL 1993, c. 446, 
Pt. A, §5, is further amended to read: 
9. 
Lobbying. 
"Lobbying" means to communicate directly with 
any official in the Legislature for the purpose of influen:.ing 
any legislative action or with the Governor for the purpose of 
influencing the approval or veto of a legislative action when 
reimbursement for expenditures or compensation is made for those 
activities. 
It includes the time spent to prepare and submit to 
the Governor, a Legislator or a legislative committee oral and 
written proposals for, or testimony or analyses concerning, 
a 
legislative action. 
It also includes 
cOmmunicating with the 
Governor r 
a Legislator or an official in the legislative branch 
with regard to an issue or topic that is not the subject of 
legislative action when the purpose of the communication is to 
influence the position of the Governor, the Legislator or the 
official in the legislative branch. 
Sec. 2. 3 MRS A §312-A, sub-§IO, as repealed and replaced by PL 
1993, c. 691, §S, is amended to read: 
10. 
Lobbyist. 
"Lobbyist" 
means 
any 
person 
who 
specifically employed by another person for the purpose of 
is 
and 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT ·A" to H.P. 1262, L.D. 1822 
who engages in lobbying 
ia-~-e£--8--~-6--i-a--any--ea!eae1ar 
Rleat:ar or any individual who, as a regular employee of another 
person, expends an amount of time in excess of 8 hours in any 
calendar 
month 
in 
lobbying. 
"Lobbyist" 
does 
not 
include 
a 
lobbyist associate. 
Sec. 3. 3 MRSA §312-A, sub-§13-A is enacted to read: 
I3-A. 
Quarter. 
"Ouarter" means a 3-month period of a year, 
with the first quarter beginning December 1st. 
Sec. 4. 3 MRSA §313, as amended by PL 1999, c. 745, §l, is 
further amended to read: 
§3I3. 
Registration of lobbyists and employers 
Every employer of a lobbyist and every lobbyist and lobbyist 
associate who lobbies on behalf of that employer shall register 
jointly at the office of the commission no later than l§ 10 
business 
days 
after 
commencement 
of 
lObbying 
and 
pay 
a 
registration fee of $200 for the registration of each lobbyist 
and $100 for the registration of each lobbyist associate or such 
other amounts as the commission determines approximate the cost 
to the commission of administering and enforcing the provisions 
of this chapter. 
Sec. 5. 3 MRS A §314, as corrected by RR 1993, c. 1, §1, 
lS 
amended to read: 
§3I4. Duration of registration 
Each 
joint registration filed pursuant 
to this 
chapter 
automatically expires on the last day of the year during which 
the person was registered to lobby, unless as otherwise provided. 
A joint registration expires if the employer notifies the 
commission in writing that the lobbyist is no longer engaged by 
the 
employer to lobby. 
If 
t:e~Rliaat:iea--eee~~s the employment 
relationship between the employer and the lobbyist terminates 
prior to November 30th, the notification must be given to the 
commission within 30 days of the termination. 
The employer and the lobbyist are responsible for completing 
and submitting any outstanding quarterly reports at the time of 
the termination of employment. 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "/+' to H.P. 1262, L.D. 1822 
6i~ReQ-~-~~-lessyi6s-~-~~~~--se'eFe-~--~~-±s 
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ARy After the lobbyist's employment has been terminated, a 
new joint registration must be filed pursuant to section 313 
before any lobbying is commenced a~seF-~~-~~~-effi~±eyffieas 
aas-seeR-seFffiiaasee on the employer's behalf. 
Sec. 6. 3 MRS A §315, as amended by PL 1993, c. 691, §§14 and 
15, is repealed. 
Sec. 7. 3 MRSA §315-A is enacted to read: 
§315-A. Registration docket; disclosure website 
1. 
Registration. 
The commission shall prepare and maintain 
a 
docket for the registration of lobbyists and employers of 
lobbyists required to register pursuant to this chapter. 
The 
registration docket and all supplementary files of information 
and materials filed pursuant to this chapter must be open to 
public inspection during the office hours of the commission. 
The 
docket must contain the name of the lobbyist and the person 
employing the lobbyist, the business address of each, the nature 
of the business of the person employing the lobbyist and 
a 
statement as to the compensation that the lobbyist will receive 
for lobbying services or, if an exact amount is unascertainable, 
the basis upon which the lobbyist will charge for services. 
This 
docket must be updated on a weekly basis and arranged and indexed 
as follows: 
A. 
An 
alphabetical 
listing of 
those 
persons 
who 
nave 
employed a lobbyist, which listing must indicate the names 
of all lobbyists employed by the employer; and 
B. 
An alphabetical listing of those persons employed as 
lobbyists, which listing must indicate the names of all 
persons by whom each lobby!st is employed. 
The docket must be reestablished annually by the commission and 
the docket for any year must be maintained and be available for 
public inspection in the office of the commission for 4 years 
from the expiration of the docket. 
Z. 
Disclosure website. 
The 
commission shall develop 
and 
maintain a publicly accessible website that displays: 
A. A list of all persons who have employed a lobbyist during 
the current year; 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
·.,1,~ 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT An to H.P. 1262, L.D. 1822 
B. 
A 
list 
of 
all 
lobbyists 
and 
lobbyist 
associates 
registered for the year; 
C. 
A 
profile of 
each registered lobbyist 
and 
lobbyist 
associate, including contact information, the name of the 
lob:Qyist's §!mployer or employers and, if provided by the 
lobbyist or lobbyist associate, a photograph of the lobbyist 
or lobbyist associate; 
D. A profile of §!ach person employing a lobbyist, including 
contact 
information 
for 
th§! 
employer, 
and 
a 
list of 
lobbyists and lobbyist associates engaged by the employer; 
E. 
FQr each employer, 
a list of all legislative actions, 
issues and tQpics that have been the subject of lobbying for 
the y§!ar, including byperlinks to the summary pag§! of the 
Legislature's 
publicly 
accessi:Qle 
website 
for 
each 
legislative dQcument listed. 
Sec. 8. 3 MRSA §316, sub-§4, as amended by PL 1993, c. 446, 
Pt. A, §13 and affected by §20, is further amended to read: 
4. 
Bature of business. 
A description of the nature of the 
business of the person employing that lobbyist and the general 
interest areas in which that employer will lobby; and 
Sec. 9. 3 MRSA §317, as amended by PL 2005, c. 301, §4, 
lS 
further amended to read: 
§317. Reports 
Reports required by this section must be on forms prescribed 
or approved by the commission. The forms must provide for a sworn 
statement that the persons signing the report acknowledge the 
truth and completeness of all the information contained therein. 
1. 
Quarterly reports. 
gQr~a~--~ae--per~ea--~a--wh~ea--~ae 
be~is*a~Qre-~~-~-~&&~&r-every ~ 
registered lobbyist shall 
file 
with 
the 
commission, 
no 
later 
than 
calendar 
days 
subsequent to the conclusion of the preceding meat:h quarter, a 
report concerning the lobbyist's activities for 
the previous 
meat:h quart§!r regarding each employer. 
Every lobbyist shall report that lobbyist's lobbying activities 
for each meat:a--t.-ba-t-4:-he--be~3:s*a~Q!'e--:i-6--in--sessiea quarter, even 
if 
no 
lobbying 
has 
been 
performed 
or 
compensation 
or 
reimbursement for expenses received for the meat:a quarter. In the 
case 
of 
a 
lobbyist 
representing 
multiple 
employers, 
if 
no 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT ,A .. to H.P. 1262, L.D. 1822 
lobbying or services in support of lobbying were performed, one 
report listing each employer on whose behalf no lobbying was 
conducted may be submitted. The 
fReB~a~y quarterly report must 
contain the following information: 
A. 
The fReB~a quarter to which the report pertains; 
B. 
The name and address of the lobbyist and the employer; 
C. 
The names of the individuals who lobbied during the 
fReB~a quarter; 
D. 
The 
specific dollar amount of 
compensation Feeeivea 
earned during the quarter for the preparation of documents 
and 
research 
for 
the 
primary 
purpose 
of 
influencing 
legislative action and for lobbying; 
In the case of a lobbyist who is a regular employee, the 
specific dollar amount must be computed by multiplying the 
number of hours devoted to the preparation of documents and 
research for the primary purpose of influencing legislative 
action and to lobbying by the employee's regular rate of pay 
based on a 40-hour week; 
E. 
The specific dollar amount of expenditures made during 
the 
fReB~a quarter that is the subject of the report with 
regard to the preparation of documents and research for the 
primary purpose of influencing legislative action and to 
lobbying for which the lobbyist has been or expects to be 
reimbursed; 
F. 
The total amount of money expended directly to or on 
behalf of one or more officials of the legislative branch, 
including members of the official's immediate family, 
and 
the amount, if any, 
for which the lobbyist has been or 
expects to be reimbursed; 
G. 
The name of an official in the legislative branch or a 
member of that official's immediate family on whose behalf 
an expenditure or expenditures totaling $25 or more were 
made in any eRe calendar month during the quarter and the 
date, amount and purpose of the expenditure or expendituresT 
G-l. 
The date, a description of the event, a list of all 
officials of the legislative branch or administrative agency 
or members of an official's immediate family and the total 
amount of expenditures for the event, if the total amount of 
the expenditures for officials and family members total is 
$250 or more; 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT ·A .. to H.P. 1262, L.D. 1822 
H. 
A list of 
each legislative actionL 
by 
Legislative 
Document number or, if unknown, by Senate Paper or House 
Paper number~ eFr-4~-~BkBewBr-by issue, topic or nominationL 
or by section designation or topic in a budget bill, in 
connection with which the lobbyist is engaged in lobbying 
for the quarter; 
H-l. A reasonable estimate of the number of hours spent on 
lo:Qbying for each legislative action, issue or topic, or 
other matter reported for the quarter; 
H-2. For each legislative action, issue or topic or other 
matter reported for the quarter, the employer' s position, 
whether in favor or opposition, neither in favor or in 
opposition, partially in favor or opposition, or undecided, 
and whether the employer is monitoring that legislative 
action, issue, topic or other matter; 
I. 
A list specifically identifying each legislative action, 
Legislative 
Document, 
Senate 
Paper, 
House 
Paper 
or 
nomination; budget bill section designation or topic; or 
issue or topic that is not the subject of a legislative 
action for which the lobbyist was compensated or expects to 
be compensated, or expended in excess of $1,000 for lobbying 
activities related to those actions and a statement of the 
amounts compensated or expended for each; and 
J. 
If the lobbyist is required to make a specific list of 
items under paragraph I, a list of all original sources of 
any money received from that employer must be included. 
If 
the employer or person who contributes to an employer 
~ s a 
corporation formed under Title 13 or 13-C or former Title 
13-A, 
nonprofit corporation formed 
under Title 
13-B 
or 
limited 
partnership 
under 
Title 
31, 
the 
corporation, 
nonprofit 
organization 
or 
limited 
partnership, 
not 
the 
individual 
members 
or 
contributors, 
is 
listed 
as 
the 
original source. 
I-A. Rotification of initiation of lobbying. 
Within 
business days of commencing lobbying on any legislative action, 
topic or issue or other matter, 
a 
lob:Qyist shall notify the 
commission regarding each legislative action. topic or issue or 
other matter that is the subject of 
the 
lobbying activity, 
including the position taken by the employer. whether in favor or 
opposition, neither in favor or opposition, partially in favor or 
opposition. or undecided, and whether the employer is monitoring 
a particular legislative action. The report must be submitted in 
a manner prescribed or approved by the commission. 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT ·A .. to H.P. 1262, L.D. 1822 
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2-A. Electronic filing. 
Be~iaaiB~-...J..a.Ji-\+ao~y--l-,--2~~.e"7--a b. 
lobbyist shall file 
mea~Aly--sessiea quarterly reports 
under 
subsection 1 
aaQ-~~-~epe~~~--~aQe.~-~~~-6 through an 
electronic 
filing 
system 
developed 
by 
the 
commission. 
The 
commission 
may 
make 
an exception to this electronic fiJing 
requirement if a lobbyist submits a written request that states 
that 
the 
lobbyist 
lacks 
access 
to 
the 
technology 
or 
the 
technological 
ability 
to 
file 
reports 
electronically. 
The 
request for an exception must be submitted at least 10 days prior 
to the deadline for 
the first report that the lobbyist is 
required to file for the lobbying year. 
The commission shall 
grant all reasonable requests for exceptions. 
3. 
Facsimile copies. 
The commission may, by rules adopted 
pursuant to the Maine Administrative Procedure Act, Title 
5, 
chapter 375, establish procedures and fees by which facsimile 
copies of duly executed reports required by this section may be 
received and filed with the commission. 
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COMM/rrEE AMENDMENT 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT ,A" to H.P. 1262, L.D. 1822 
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Sec. 10. 3 MRSA §319, sub-§3, as amended by PL 1993, c. 446, 
Pt. B, §13, is repealed. 
Sec. 11. 3 MRSA §320, first 1f, as amended by IB 1995, c. 1, §8, 
is further amended to read: 
Fees collected pursuant to this chapter must go 
iR-~l:l:a± 
pe~ti9R6-te-tae-geReFa*-~HRa-aRa to the commission. 
Sec. 12. 3 MRSA §321, sub-§5, as amended by PL 1993, c. 69 L 
§24, is further amended to read: 
5. 
Acceptance or rejection of forms. 
The commission may 
prescribe 
forms 
for 
all 
documents 
and 
reports 
required 
or 
permitted to be filed with the commission and may refuse to 
accept documents and reports not filed on those forms.' 
SUMMARY 
This amendment replaces the bill, which is a concept draft. 
It is the minority report of the committee. The amendment makes 
changes to the lobbyist disclosure laws and also requires 
a 
lobbyist disclosure website. 
It 
amends 
the 
definition 
of 
"lobbying" 
to 
include 
communicating with the Governor or an official in the legislative 
branch with regard to an issue or topic that is not the subject 
of legislative action when the purpose of that communication is 
to influence the position of the Governor, 
a Legislator or an 
official in the 
legislative branch. 
It requires 
that 
upon 
termination of employment of a lobbyist, the employer and the 
lobbyist 
are 
responsible 
for 
completing 
and 
submitting 
any 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
: .... , 
-, . 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT A .. to H.P. 1262, L.D. 1822 
outstanding reports. 
It requires quarterly reporting as opposed 
to monthly reporting required by current law and strikes the 
annual reporting and monthly nonsession reporting requirements. 
The amendment strikes a provision that exempts a lobbyist from 
the penalty for failure to file if the lobbyist failed to file 
during a special session when no lobbying was performed. 
It 
requires that within 10 days of commencing lobbying activity, the 
lobbyist 
notify 
the 
Commission 
on 
Governmental 
Ethics 
and 
Election Practices of the legislative action, issue or topic that 
is subject to lobbying activity, including the position on the 
topic. 
It adds the following to what is currently required by 
lobbying activity reports: 
1. 
Lobbying activity on a particular issue relative to a 
part of a budget bill; 
2. 
A reasonable estimate of the number of hours spent 
lobbying on each legislative action, issue, topic or other matter 
reported; 
3. 
The position stated by the lobbyist on behalf of the 
employer, whether it be in favor, opposed, partially in favor or 
opposed or neither for nor against, or whether the issue is just 
being monitored by the lobbyist; and 
4. 
That if $1,000 or more was spent on actions regarding a 
budget bill or topic not the subject of legislative action, that 
activity must be reported. 
The amendment requires the commission to create a publicly 
accessible website that includes: 
1. 
A list of all persons who employed a lobbyist for the 
year; 
2. 
A 
list of 
all 
lobbyists 
and 
lobbyist 
associates 
registered for the year; 
3. 
A profile of lobbyists, 
names 
of 
those 
employing 
the 
photographs; 
including 
lobbyists 
contact information, 
and, 
if 
provided, 
4. 
A profile of employers of lobbyists, including contact 
information and a list of the lobbyists they employ; and 
5. 
For each employer, 
a listing of legislative actions, 
issues and topics that were the subject of lobbying that year. 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT ·A .. to H.P. 1262, L.D. 1822 
This amendment also provides that the commission may keep 
all of the lobbyist registration fees it collects to cover the 
cost of administering the expanded reporting requirements and the 
lobbyist registration website. 
Under current law half of those 
fees goes to the General Fund. 
FISCAL ~OTE REQL'lRED 
(See attached) 
Page lO-LR2879(2) 
COMMITTEE, AMENDMENT 
Approved: 03/03/06 .;:t:!?ac:.. 
LD 1822 
LR2879(02) 
An Act to Require the Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices to Produce a 
Register of All Registered Lobbyists 
Net Cost (Savings) 
General Fund 
Revenue 
General Fund 
Fiscal Note for Bill as Amended by Committee Amendment A" 
Committee: Legal and Veterans Affairs 
Fiscal Note Required: Yes 
Minority Report 
Fiscal Note 
2005-06 
$0 
2006-07 
$55,000 
Projections 
2007-08 
$55,000 
Other Special Revenue Funds 
$0 
$0 
($55,000) 
$55,000 
($55,000) 
$55,000 
Fiscal Detail and Notes 
Projections 
2008-09 
$55,000 
($55,000) 
$55,000 
Beginning in fiscal year 2006-07, allowing the Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices to keep all 
of the lobbyist registration fees that it collects as Other Special Revenue Funds revenue will result in the estimated 
annual loss of$55,000 in General Fund revenue and an equivalent gain of the same amount in dedicated revenue. 
LR2879(2) - Fiscal Note - Page 1 of 1