An Act To Amend the Election Laws and Other Related Laws
Maine Legislature, Session 126, LD 0504
Committee: Veterans and Legal Affairs
Sponsors: TUTTLE, LUCHINI, CAIN, DILL, FARNSWORTH, PETERSON, RUSSELL, STUCKEY, TIPPING-SPITZ
Amends: 5 MRSA §152, 21-A MRSA §23, 21-A MRSA §122, 21-A MRSA §144, 21-A MRSA §161, 21-A MRSA §196-A, 21-A MRSA §303, 21-A MRSA §354, 21-A MRSA §503, 21-A MRSA §601, 21-A MRSA §606, 21-A MRSA §663, 21-A MRSA §695, 21-A MRSA §698, 21-A MRSA §760-B, 21-A MRSA §780

Legislative Document 
No. 504 
S.P. 194 
In Senate, February 19, 2013 
An Act To Amend the Election Laws and Other Related Laws 
Submitted by the Secretary of State pursuant to Joint Rule 204. 
Reference to the Committee on Veterans and Legal Affairs suggested and ordered printed. 
DAREK M. GRANT 
Secretary of the Senate 
Presented by Senator TUTTLE of York. 
Cosponsored by Representative LUCHINI of Ellsworth and 
Senator: CAIN of Penobscot, Representatives: DILL of Old Town, FARNSWORTH of 
Portland, McCABE of Skowhegan, PETERSON of Rumford, RUSSELL of Portland, 
STUCKEY of Portland, TIPPING-SPITZ of Orono. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  5 MRSA §152, as amended by PL 2011, c. 342, §3, is further amended to 
read: 
§152.  Ratification of bond issue; signed statement 
In accordance with the Constitution of Maine, Article IX, section 14, the Treasurer of 
State shall prepare a signed statement, called the Treasurer's Statement, to accompany any 
question submitted to the electors for ratification of a bond issue setting forth the total 
amount of bonds of the State outstanding and unpaid, the total amount of bonds of the 
State authorized and unissued and the total amount of bonds of the State contemplated to 
be issued if the enactment submitted to the electors should be ratified. The Treasurer of 
State shall also set forth in that statement an estimate of costs involved, including 
explanation of, based on such factors as interest rates that may vary, the interest cost 
contemplated to be paid on the amount to be issued, the total cost of principal and interest 
that will be paid at maturity and any other substantive explanatory information relating to 
the debt of the State as the Treasurer of State considers appropriate.  To meet the 
requirement that the signed statement of the Treasurer of State accompany any ballot 
question for ratification of a bond issue, the statement may be printed on the ballot or it 
may be printed as a separate document that is made available to voters as provided in 
Title 21-A, sections 605 605-A and 651. 
Sec. 2.  21-A MRSA §23, sub-§3, as enacted by PL 1985, c. 161, §6, is amended 
to read: 
3.  Primary and nomination petitions.  The Secretary of State shall keep primary 
petitions, nomination petitions and consents in his office for 2 years the office of the 
Secretary of State through the end of the calendar year in which the petition was filed. 
Sec. 3.  21-A MRSA §23, sub-§3-B is enacted to read: 
3-B.  Party formation documents.  The Secretary of State shall keep party 
formation declarations of intent and certification forms filed pursuant to section 303 in 
the office of the Secretary of State for 6 months after any appeal period has passed. 
Sec. 4.  21-A MRSA §23, sub-§4, as enacted by PL 1985, c. 161, §6, is amended 
to read: 
4.  Receipts for ballots.  The Secretary of State and each clerk shall keep a record of 
receipts for ballots issued and received under sections 606 and 651 in his office the office 
of the Secretary of State for one year 6 months. 
Sec. 5.  21-A MRSA §23, sub-§12-A is enacted to read: 
12-A.  Informational filings.  The Secretary of State shall keep a copy of the 
election-specific informational filings and reports received from the municipal clerks and 
registrars in the office of the Secretary of State for 6 months after the election to which 
they pertain, except that the return of votes cast report must be kept for 2 years. 
Sec. 6.  21-A MRSA §122, first ¶, as amended by PL 2011, c. 534, §6, is further 
amended to read: 
A person may register to vote in person by appearing before the registrar by the 
registration deadline in section 121-A, proving that the person meets the qualifications of 
section 111, subsections 1 to 3, and completing 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. 
Sec. 7.  21-A MRSA §122, sub-§5, as amended by PL 2007, c. 515, §3, 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 
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 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 1-A to place the person's name on the incoming 
voting list and challenge the absentee ballot.  An application by telephone under section 
753-A, subsection 4 or an application by e-mail electronic means under section 753-A, 
subsection 6 does not establish a presumption of qualification under this section and the 
requestor must submit a properly completed voter registration application before the clerk 
may issue an absentee ballot. 
Sec. 8.  21-A MRSA §144, sub-§3, as amended by PL 1995, c. 459, §16, is 
further amended to read: 
3.  Restrictions during change of enrollment.  Except as provided in subsection 4, a 
voter may not vote at a caucus, convention or primary election for 15 days after filing an 
application to change enrollment.  A voter may sign a primary nomination petition during 
the 15-day period after filing an application to change enrollment and the voter’s 
signature must be counted as valid, as long as the 15-day period has elapsed by the time 
the petition is certified pursuant to section 335, subsection 7 and the voter otherwise is 
qualified to sign a petition for that office.  A voter must file an application to change 
enrollment prior to January 1st to be eligible to file a petition as a candidate in that 
election year. 
Sec. 9.  21-A MRSA §161, sub-§2-A, as amended by PL 2009, c. 370, §1, is 
further amended to read: 
2-A.  Maintenance of voter registration information.  The registrar in each 
municipality shall keep the central voter registration system current at all times for the 
voters in the registrar's municipality.  The Secretary of State is authorized to conduct 
maintenance of the central voter registration system. The Secretary of State shall by rule 
determine the program adopt rules for conducting voter list maintenance required by the 
National Voter Registration Act of 1993.  Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection are 
routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A.  A registrar may 
not cancel a voter's registration in the central voter registration system solely because the 
registered voter did not vote in previous elections. A voter’s registration record in the 
central voter registration system must be cancelled by either the registrar for the voter’s 
municipality or by the Secretary of State as follows: 
A.  When it is determined that a voter has registered to vote in another jurisdiction in 
the State, the voter registration record from the former jurisdiction must be cancelled; 
and 
B.  When it is determined that the voter has registered to vote in another jurisdiction 
outside of the State, the voter registration record in the State must be cancelled. 
Sec. 10.  21-A MRSA §196-A, sub-§1, ¶I is enacted to read: 
I.  The Secretary of State shall make available free of charge to the federal or state 
court system the voter registration information for voters, other than participants in 
the Address Confidentiality Program established in Title 5, section 90-B, statewide or 
by district as requested for the purpose of jury selection or other bona fide court 
purposes. 
Sec. 11.  21-A MRSA §303, as amended by PL 2001, c. 310, §16, is further 
amended to read: 
§303.  Formation of new party; organization by party enrollment 
In addition to the procedure under section 302, a party whose designation was not 
listed on the general election ballot in the last preceding general election qualifies to 
participate in a primary election, if it meets the requirements of subsections 1, and 2 and 
3. 
1.  Declaration of intent.  Ten or more voters who are not enrolled in a party 
qualified under section 301 must file a declaration of intent to form a party with the 
Secretary of State between December 1st and December 30th of an even-numbered year. 
The declaration of intent must be on a form designed by the Secretary of State and must 
include: 
A.    The designation of the proposed party; and 
B.    The names, addresses, telephone numbers, if published, and signatures of the 
voters who file the declaration of intent. 
2.  Enrollment of voters.  After filing Within 5 business days after the declaration of 
intent required in subsection 1 is filed, the voter or voters proposing to form the party 
may then the Secretary of State shall certify whether the application meets the 
requirements of subsection 1 and notify the applicants that they may enroll voters in the 
proposed party under sections 141 to 145.  On or before December 1st of the odd-
numbered year following the filing of the application under subsection 1, the applicants 
must file a certification with the Secretary of State, on a form designed by the Secretary 
of State, that they have at least 5,000 voters enrolled in the proposed party. The Secretary 
of State shall verify the proposed party’s enrollment figures within 5 business days of 
receiving the proposed party’s certification and notify the applicants whether the 
proposed party has met the requirements to participate in a primary election in the 
subsequent even-numbered year. 
3.  Petition.  After the filing of the declaration described in subsection 1, the 
Secretary of State or the Secretary of State's designee shall review the declaration and 
determine the form of the petitions to be submitted to the voters.  The voter or voters 
proposing to form the party shall print the petitions in the form approved by the Secretary 
of State and may then circulate the petitions.  These petitions must be signed, verified and 
certified in the same manner as primary petitions under section 335, subsections 3, 4 and 
7, except that voters not enrolled in any party may also sign the petitions.  Each page of 
the petition must have a caption, in conspicuous type, that contains the designation of the 
proposed party followed by the words "Petition to participate in the primary election."  
The petitions must be filed in the office of the Secretary of State before 5 p.m. on the 
180th day preceding a primary election and must contain the signatures and legal 
addresses of voters equal in number to at least 5% of the total vote cast in the State for 
Governor at the last preceding gubernatorial election.  Petitions must be submitted to the 
appropriate municipal registrar for certification by 5 p.m. on the 10th day before the 
petition must be filed in the office of the Secretary of State or, if the 10th day is a 
Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, by 5 p.m. on the next day that is not a Saturday, 
Sunday or a legal holiday.  The registrar must complete the certification of the petitions 
and must return them to the circulators or their agents within 5 days of the date on which 
the petitions were submitted, Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays excepted. 
4.  Municipal caucuses.  A party that has qualified under subsections 1, and 2 and 3 
to participate in a primary election must conduct municipal caucuses in at least one 
municipality in each of the 16 counties during that election year as prescribed in Article II 
2.  The chair of the municipal committee or a resident voter in the municipality must file 
a copy of the notice required by section 311, subsection 3 with the Secretary of State 
before 5 p.m. on March 20th. 
5.  Convention.  A party that has qualified under subsections 1, and 2 and 3 to 
participate in a primary election must in that same year conduct the municipal caucuses 
under subsection 4 and hold a state convention as prescribed by Article III 3, in order to 
have the party designation of its candidates printed on the ballot in the general election of 
that year.  The voter or group of voters who files file the declaration of intent may 
perform the duties of the state committee under section 321, subsection 1 for the party's 
initial convention. 
Sec. 12.  21-A MRSA §354, sub-§7, ¶B, as amended by PL 1999, c. 264, §1, is 
further amended to read: 
B.    Petitions must be delivered to the registrar, or clerk at the request or upon the 
absence of the registrar, for certification by 5 p.m. on May 25th in the election year in 
which the petitions are to be used, except that petitions for a slate of candidates for 
the office of presidential elector must be delivered for certification by 5 p.m. on 
August 8th July 25th in the election year in which the petitions are to be used. 
Sec. 13.  21-A MRSA §354, sub-§8-A, as amended by PL 1999, c. 264, §2, is 
further amended to read: 
8-A.  Filed with the Secretary of State. A nomination petition must be filed in the 
office of the Secretary of State by 5 p.m. on June 1st in the election year in which it is to 
be used, except that petitions for a slate of candidates for the office of presidential elector 
must be filed in the office of the Secretary of State by 5 p.m. on August 15th 1st in the 
election year in which the petitions are to be used. 
Sec. 14.  21-A MRSA §503, sub-§2, as amended by PL 2007, c. 422, §2, is 
further amended to read: 
2.  Representation of parties.  The municipal officers shall consider the following 
for appointment as election clerks. 
A.  The municipal officers shall consider persons nominated by the municipal, county 
or state committees of the major parties to serve as election clerks.  The municipal 
officers shall appoint at least one election clerk from each of the major parties to 
serve at each voting place during the time the polls are open.  The municipal officers 
shall also appoint a sufficient number of election clerks to serve as counters after the 
polls close.  The election clerks must be selected so that the number of election clerks 
from one major party does not exceed the number of election clerks from another 
major party by more than one. 
B.  The municipal officers shall appoint at least one election clerk nominated by the 
municipal committee of a qualified minor party represented on the last general 
election ballot for each voting place at the committee's request. 
C.  Notwithstanding subsection 1, the municipal officers may also consider persons 
who are 17 years of age to serve as student election clerks for a specific election.   A 
student election clerk may perform all the functions of an election clerk as prescribed 
by this Title. 
All nominations for election clerks must be submitted to the municipal officers no later 
than April 1st of each general election year.  If a municipal committee of a major party 
fails to submit a list of nominees to serve as election clerks, the municipal officers may 
appoint registered voters enrolled in that party to serve as election clerks. 
If the municipal officers are unable to appoint a sufficient number of election clerks as set 
forth in paragraphs A, B and C, they may appoint any other registered voter, as long as 
the balance between major political parties is maintained.  The municipal clerk shall 
complete a form provided by the Secretary of State when a registered voter changes party 
enrollment status in order to be available to serve as an election clerk and to maintain a 
balance between the major political parties and that election clerk participates in the 
counting of ballots.  The form must be included with all ballots separated into lots in 
accordance with section 695, subsection 2 when an election clerk who has changed party 
enrollment status as described in this subsection made the count for that lot of ballots and 
with tabulation results submitted to the Secretary of State.  By January 15th after a 
general election, the Secretary of State shall report to the joint standing committee of the 
Legislature having jurisdiction over legal affairs the number of forms required by this 
subsection that were submitted with tabulation results and whether any election that 
resulted in a recount included ballots that were counted by an election clerk who changed 
party enrollment status as described in this subsection. 
Sec. 15.  21-A MRSA §601, sub-§2, ¶A, as amended by PL 1993, c. 473, §12 
and affected by §46, is further amended to read: 
A.    Instructions must be printed in bold type at the top of on the ballot informing the 
voter how to designate the voter's choice on the ballot. 
Sec. 16.  21-A MRSA §601, sub-§2, ¶B, as amended by PL 2009, c. 253, §23, is 
further amended to read: 
B.  The ballot must contain the legal name of each candidate, without any title, and 
place municipality or township of residence of each candidate, arranged 
alphabetically with the last name first, under the proper office designation.  
Municipality of residence is not required to be printed for candidates for President 
and Vice President of the United States.  The initial letters of the last names of the 
candidates must be printed directly beneath each other in a vertical line.  The names 
of candidates for any one office may not be split into more than one column 
regardless of number.  The name of each candidate may be printed on the ballot in 
only one space.  For the general election ballot, the party or political designation of 
each candidate must be printed with each candidate's name.  The party or political 
designation may be abbreviated. 
Sec. 17.  21-A MRSA §606, first ¶, as repealed and replaced by PL 2011, c. 342, 
§16, is amended to read: 
Within a reasonable time before any election, the The Secretary of State shall furnish 
each municipality with official ballots to be used for absentee voting and for voting on 
election day. 
Sec. 18.  21-A MRSA §663 is enacted to read: 
§663.  Authority of Secretary of State during emergencies 
The Secretary of State may act administratively to facilitate voting by civilian 
registered voters of this State who live in an area within the United States that is affected 
by a natural disaster or other occurrence for which the governor of that state has declared 
a state of emergency covering that area, or for registered voters of this State who are 
emergency workers, utility workers or others responding to and offering assistance to the 
area in which a state of emergency has been declared.  These administrative actions may 
include, but are not limited to, central issuance and receipt of absentee ballots for federal 
and state elections using the systems and procedures developed for uniformed service 
voters and overseas voters. 
Sec. 19.  21-A MRSA §695, sub-§6, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 455, §37, is 
repealed. 
Sec. 20.  21-A MRSA §698, sub-§1, as amended by PL 2001, c. 310, §44, is 
further amended to read: 
1.  Paper ballots wrapped.  The election clerks shall wrap the tabulation of the count 
for each lot of ballots around that lot and secure it.  Referendum ballots must be wrapped 
separately with their own tabulations unless the referendum ballot is combined with the 
candidate ballot.  The tabulations must be signed by the warden and the 2 election clerks 
who counted that ballot lot. 
Sec. 21.  21-A MRSA §698, sub-§2-A, as repealed and replaced by PL 2011, c. 
342, §26, is amended to read: 
2-A.  Used ballots secured.  The election officials shall use the tamper-proof ballot 
security containers described in section 609 to seal the used state ballots, wrapped with 
their tabulations if hand counted or loose if machine tabulated; spoiled ballots; defective 
ballots; void ballots; unopened envelopes containing rejected absentee ballots; envelopes 
containing challenge certificates; and the official tally tape from the electronic tabulating 
system.  The containers must be further secured as follows. 
A.  Each tamper-proof ballot security container must be locked with a state-supplied 
lock and sealed with a uniquely numbered seal before leaving the voting place. The 
lock and seal numbers must correlate with a certificate identifying the person sealing 
the container and the time of the sealing. 
B.  Ballots and election materials for municipal elections conducted at the same time 
as a state election must be sealed separately from state ballots and other state election 
materials and may not be sealed in the state-supplied tamper-proof ballot security 
containers.  If municipalities wish to use tamper-proof ballot security containers to 
seal municipal election materials, they must obtain the containers and locks at their 
own expense. 
The sealed tamper-proof ballot security containers of used ballots must remain sealed for 
at least 2 months after the election, unless the Secretary of State authorizes the clerk to 
open the containers prior to that date.  After 2 months, the clerk shall open the containers 
in the presence of one or more witnesses and transfer the ballots to other containers for 
the remainder of the retention period described in section 23. The new containers must be 
securely sealed. 
Sec. 22.  21-A MRSA §698, sub-§3-A, as enacted by PL 2011, c. 342, §27, is 
amended to read: 
3-A.  Absentee envelopes sealed in separate containers.  The election officials 
shall seal the used absentee envelopes, from which the voted ballots have been removed 
and counted, with the applicable applications attached, and shall also seal the unopened 
envelopes containing rejected absentee ballots in one or more tamper-proof ballot 
security containers or other containers separate from the containers with the used or 
unused ballots.  The municipal clerk shall keep these containers of used absentee 
envelopes and unopened envelopes sealed for 5 business days after the election or until 
the time for any recount conducted under section 737-A, contested election or appeal has 
passed, whichever is longer.  At the end of the 5th business day after the election, if the 
municipal clerk verifies that a recount has not been requested, the municipal clerk shall 
unseal the containers of used absentee envelopes and unopened envelopes and keep them 
in the clerk's office as a public record for the time required for retention of ballots under 
section 23. 
Sec. 23.  21-A MRSA §760-B, sub-§2, as amended by PL 2009, c. 253, §51, is 
further amended to read: 
2.  Notice of early processing.  The clerk must give notice of the municipality's 
intent to process absentee ballots prior to election day using the notice of election under 
section 621-A, stating the time that the clerk intends to begin processing absentee ballots 
and the inspection period provided in subsection 3.  At least 30 days before election day, 
the clerk shall provide a copy of the notice of election to the Secretary of State and the 
chairs of each political party of the municipality indicating that early processing of 
absentee ballots will occur.  The notice to the political parties must be considered 
sufficient as long as it is mailed to the last address of each municipal chair that is known 
to the clerk.  The notice to the Secretary of State may be delivered by mail or facsimile or 
as a scanned attachment to an e-mail address established by the Secretary of State.  If the 
notice is not received by the Secretary of State by 5:00 p.m. on the 30th day before 
election day, the municipality may not process absentee ballots prior to election day. 
Sec. 24.  21-A MRSA §780, as amended by PL 2009, c. 563, §5, is further 
amended to read: 
§780.  Absentee ballots; application 
A uniformed service voter or an overseas voter may request an absentee ballot as 
provided in section 753-A or by submitting a federal application or form requesting an 
absentee ballot as provided in section 783.  With respect to any election for federal office, 
a clerk or the Secretary of State may not refuse to accept or process any otherwise valid 
voter registration application or absentee ballot application submitted by a uniformed 
service voter or an overseas voter on the grounds that the voter submitted the application 
more than 3 months before the election for which the application will be used.  An 
application or request for an absentee ballot for a uniformed service voter or overseas 
voter that is accepted pursuant to section 753-A or section 783 remains valid for 2 years 
months from the date of receipt of the application and entitles the voter to receive 
absentee ballots for all federal and state elections during that period. 
SUMMARY 
This bill makes the following changes to the election laws and other related laws. 
1.  It decreases the retention period for several types of election documents and 
filings. 
2.  It clarifies that the restrictions during the 15-day period after a change of party 
enrollment do not include the signing of a primary nomination petition, as long as the 
petition is certified after the 15-day period elapses. 
3.  It provides explicit authority for the Secretary of State to adopt routine technical 
rules for conducting voter list maintenance as required by the National Voter Registration 
Act of 1993. 
4.  It specifies that the federal and state court systems are entitled to voter registration 
data from the central voter registration system for the purpose of jury selection or bona 
fide court purposes. 
5.  It replaces the current process for formation of a new party by petition with a 
process of formation by enrolling a certain number of voters in the proposed party. 
6.  It moves the deadlines for submission of nonparty petitions for a slate of 
presidential electors to 2 weeks earlier. 
7. It  removes the requirement that the municipal clerk report to the Secretary of State 
when a registered voter changes party enrollment status in order to serve as an election 
clerk as well as the requirement that the Secretary of State report these changes in party 
enrollment status to the Legislature by January 15th after a general election. 
8.  It provides the Secretary of State the authority to act administratively to facilitate 
voting by Maine registered voters who are civilians living in the United States in an area 
in which the governor of that state has declared a state of emergency due to a natural 
disaster or other occurrence, or for Maine registered voters who are responding to and 
offering assistance to the area in which the state of emergency has been declared.  
9.  It changes the method of sealing the unopened envelopes containing rejected 
absentee ballots so that they are sealed with the used absentee envelopes, rather than with 
the voted ballots. 
10.  It allows the clerk to submit the notice of election, indicating that the 
municipality will process absentee ballots on the day prior to election day, to the 
Secretary of State as a scanned attachment to an e-mail, in addition to other means.  
11.  It decreases the amount of time an absentee ballot application from a uniformed 
service voter or overseas voter remains valid, from 2 years to 18 months. 
12.  It also makes other clarifications and technical corrections to the election laws.