An Act Concerning Voter Registration
Maine Legislature, Session 123, LD 1549
Committee: Legal and Veterans Affairs
Sponsors: FITTS, CEBRA, CURTIS, ROBINSON
Amends: 21-A MRSA §121, 21-A MRSA §122

Legislative Document 
No. 1549 
H.P.1074 
House of Representatives, March 20, 2007 
An Act Concerning Voter Registration 
Reference to the Committee on Legal and Veterans Affairs suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Representative FITTS of Pittsfield. 
1J1~ 
1?7.7!!0£~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Cosponsored by Representatives: CEBRA of Naples, CURTIS of Madison, ROBINSON of 
Raymond. 
Primed on recycled paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 21-A MRSA §121, sub-§l-A, as amended by PL 2005, c. 453, § 12, is 
further amended to read: 
I-A. Identification and proof. Registration applications taken by outside agencies 
must be transferred to the Secretary of State within 5 days of receipt. An applicant who 
attempts to register within 30 days of an election must be advised that the registrar might 
not receive the application before that election, but that the applicant may register in 
person before or on election day. 
Registration applications received by the Secretary of State from outside agencies 30 days 
or more before an election must be transferred to the appropriate registrar's office within 
II 
business days of receipt. Registration applications received by the Secretary of State 
from outside agencies less than 30 days before an election must be transferred to the 
appropriate registrar's office within 5 business days of receipt. Registration applications 
by mail or by a 3rd person must be received in the registrar's office by the close of 
business on the 21 st day before election day in order for persons' names to appear on the 
incoming voting list for that election. The 20-day period before the election is the closed 
period for outside registrations. The registrar shall send the notice required by section 
to all voters whose applications were received by mail or a 3rd person by the 21 st 
day before election day no later than the 18th day before election day. 
A person who registers during the 20 days before election day or OR eleetioR day shall 
register in person and show proof of identity and residency. If satisfactory proof of 
identity and residency can not be provided to the registrar or deputy, the person's name is 
entered into the central voter registration system and placed on the incoming voting list 
and the person casts a challenged ballot. 
Sec. 2. 21-A MRSA §122, first ~, as a~ended by PL 2003, c. 584, §3, is further 
amended to read: 
A person may register as a voter by appearing before the registrar, proving that the 
person meets the qualifications of section III, subsections 1 to 3, and filing an 
application provided by the registrar containing the information required by section 152 
or 154, if applicable. Township residents may register as provided in section 156. A 
person may not vote in an election if the person registers under this section within 5 days 
of the election. 
Sec. 3. 21-A MRSA §122, sub-§4, as amended by PL 2005, c. 453, § 16, IS 
repealed. 
Sec. 4. 21-A MRSA §122, sub-§5, as amended by PL 2005, c. 453, § 17, is 
further amended to read: 
5. Alternative registration schedule for absentee voters. If the clerk receives a 
properly completed absentee ballot application that is signed by a person who is not a 
registered voter in the municipality, a presumption of the person's qualification as a voter 
is established. 
The clerk shall send an absentee ballot to the voter at the address 
I 
indicated, along with a voter registration application under section 152. The completed 
registration application must be returned to the clerk by the close of the polls on at least 6 
days prior to election day in order for the ballot to be counted and may not be sealed with 
the voted absentee ballot. If the application is received during the closed period and the 
registrar is not· satisfied as to the person's qualification as a voter, the registrar shall 
follow the requirements of section 121, subsection I-A to place the person's name on the 
incoming voting list and challenge the absentee ballot. 
SUMMARY 
This bill prohibits a person from voting in an election if the person registers to vote 
within 5 days of the election. 
Fage 2 - 123LR1652(OI)-1