An Act To Amend the Laws Governing Reapportionment To Conform to the Constitution of Maine
Maine Legislature, Session 126, LD 0574
Committee: Veterans and Legal Affairs
Sponsors: LUCHINI, TUTTLE
Amends: 21-A MRSA §1206, 30-A MRSA §65

Legislative Document 
No. 574 
H.P. 393 
House of Representatives, February 19, 2013 
An Act To Amend the Laws Governing Reapportionment To 
Conform to the Constitution of Maine 
Reference to the Committee on Veterans and Legal Affairs suggested and ordered printed. 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative LUCHINI of Ellsworth. 
Cosponsored by Senator TUTTLE of York. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  21-A MRSA §1206, sub-§§1 and 2, as enacted by PL 1993, c. 628, §2, 
are amended to read: 
1.  Procedure.  In 1993 2021 and every 10 years thereafter, when the Secretary of 
State has received notification of the number of congressional seats to which the State is 
entitled and the Federal Decennial Census population count is final, the Legislative 
Apportionment Commission, established every 10 years pursuant to the Constitution of 
Maine, Article IV, Part Third, Section 1-A, shall review the existing congressional 
districts.  If the districts do not conform to Supreme Judicial Court guidelines, the 
commission shall reapportion the State into congressional districts. 
In making such a reapportionment, the commission shall ensure that each congressional 
district is formed of compact and contiguous territory and crosses political subdivisions 
the least number of times necessary to establish districts as equally populated as possible.  
The commission shall submit its plan to the Clerk of the House of Representatives no 
later than 120 calendar days after the convening of the Legislature June 1st of the year in 
which apportionment is required.  The Legislature shall enact the submitted plan of the 
commission or a plan of its own in regular or special session by a vote of 2/3 of the 
members of each house within 30 calendar days after the plan is submitted to the Clerk of 
the House of Representatives by June 11th of the year in which apportionment is 
required.  This action is subject to the Governor's approval, as provided in the 
Constitution of Maine, Article IV, Part Third, Section 2. 
2.  Court apportionment.  If the Legislature fails to make an apportionment within 
calendar days of the convening of the session by June 11th of the year in which 
apportionment is required, the Supreme Judicial Court shall make the apportionment 
within 60 days following the period in which the Legislature is required to act but fails to 
do so.  In making the apportionment, the Supreme Judicial Court shall take into 
consideration plans and briefs filed by the public with the court during the first 30 days of 
the period in which the court is required to apportion. 
Sec. 2.  30-A MRSA §65, sub-§1, as enacted by PL 1987, c. 737, Pt. A, §2 and Pt. 
C, §106 and amended by PL 1989, c. 6; c. 9, §2; and c. 104, Pt. C, §§8 and 10, is further 
amended to read: 
1.  Redistricting, generally.  In 1983 2021 and every 10 years thereafter, the 
apportionment commission established under the Constitution of Maine, Article IV, Part 
Third, Section 1-A, shall review the existing county commissioner districts and, as 
necessary, reapportion those districts in each county to establish as nearly as practicable 
equally populated districts.  The Speaker of the House is responsible for calling the 
commission together to review the county commissioner districts.  No action may be 
taken by the commission without a quorum of 7. 
A.  The apportionment commission shall divide the number of commissioners in each 
county into the number of inhabitants of the county, excluding foreigners not 
naturalized, according to the latest Federal Decennial Census or a state census 
previously ordered by the Legislature to coincide with the Federal Decennial Census, 
to determine a mean population figure for each county commissioner district.  Each 
county commissioner district must be formed of contiguous and compact territory and 
must cross political subdivision lines the least number of times necessary to establish 
as nearly as practicable equally populated districts.  Whenever the population of a 
municipality entitles it to more than one district, all whole districts must be drawn 
within the municipal boundaries.  Any population remainder within the municipality 
must be included in a district drawn to cross the municipal boundary, provided that as 
long as the population remainder within the municipality is contiguous to another 
municipality or municipalities included in the district.  Any county which that already 
meets the standards and guidelines for equally populated districts, as established by 
this section, the Constitution of Maine and the Constitution of the United States, need 
not be reapportioned. 
B.  Interested parties from each county may submit redistricting plans for the 
commission to consider.  Those plans must be submitted to the commission no later 
than 30 calendar days after the commission is called together by the Speaker of the 
House under this subsection.  The commission may hold public hearings on plans 
affecting each county. 
C.  The commission shall submit its plan to the Clerk of the House no later than 120 
calendar days after the commission is called together by the Speaker of the House 
under this subsection June 1st of the year in which reapportionment is required.  The 
Clerk of the House shall submit to the Legislature, no later than January 15, 1984 
2022, and every 10th year thereafter, one legislative document to reapportion the 
county commissioner districts based on the plan submitted by the apportionment 
commission.  The Legislature must enact the submitted plan or a plan of its own in 
regular or special session by a vote of 2/3 of the members of each House within 30 
calendar days after the plan is submitted to it by the Clerk of the House.  This action 
is subject to the Governor's approval, as provided in the Constitution of Maine, 
Article IV, Part Third, Section 2. 
SUMMARY 
This bill conforms the statutory provisions of Maine law regarding reapportionment 
of congressional districts and county commissioner districts to reflect the 
reapportionment procedures specified in the Constitution of Maine.