An Act To
Maine Legislature, Session 127, LD 1335
Committee Amendment CA_A_H251 (House)
Amends: 21-A MRSA §331, 21-A MRSA §371, 21-A MRSA §374-A

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to H.P. 907, L.D. 1335, Bill, "An Act To 
Amend the Election Laws" 
Amend the bill by striking out all of section 4 and inserting the following: 
'Sec. 4. 21-A MRSA §331, sub-§l, as enacted by PL 1985, c. 161, §6, is repealed 
and the following enacted in its place: 
1. Nomination by primary election. A party's nomination of a candidate must be 
made by primary election, as provided in this Article. An office for which there is no 
candidate who has gualified by filing a petition and consent under sections 335 and 336 
and no candidate who has qualified as a write-in candidate in accordance with section 
723, subsection 1 is not required to be listed on a primary ballot.' 
Amend the bill by striking out all of section 6 and inserting the following: 
'Sec. 6. 21-A MRSA §371, as amended by PL 2011, c. 342, §11, is further 
amended to read: 
§371. Candidates for nomination; vacancy 
If a candidate for nomination dies, withdraws at least @ 75 days before the primary 
or becomes disqualified after having filed the candidate's primary petition, so that a party 
has fewer candidates than there are offices to be filled, the vacancy may be filled by a 
political committee pursuant to section 363. The Secretary of State shall declare the 
vacancy pursuant to section 362-A. Less than 6Q 75 days before the primary election, a 
candidate may withdraw from the primary by providing a written notice to the Secretary 
of State that the candidate is withdrawing and will not serve if elected. The candidate's 
name will not be removed from the ballot, but upon receipt of the notice of late 
withdrawal, the Secretary of State shall instruct the local election officials in the 
candidate's electoral district to distribute notices with absentee ballots requested after that 
date and to post a notice at each voting place in the district informing voters that the 
candidate has withdrawn and that a vote for that candidate will not be counted. Notice of 
the late withdrawal must also be posted on the Secretary of State's publicly accessible 
website.' 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT ,A "to H.P. 907, L.D. 1335 
Amend the bill in section 7 in paragraph B in the last line (page 3, line 27 in L.D.) by 
striking out the following: "at least 2 licensed physicians" and inserting the following: 'at 
least4 ~ licensed physieians physician' 
Amend the bill by striking out all of section 8 and inserting the following: 
'Sec. 8. 21-A MRSA §374-A, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2011, c. 342, §13, is 
further amended to read: 
3. Deadline for withdrawal. A candidate for an office on the general election ballot 
must withdraw at least 6G 75 days before the general election in order for the candidate's 
name to be removed from the ballot. Less than 6G 75 days before the general election, a 
candidate may withdraw from the election by providing a written notice to the Secretary 
of State that the candidate is withdrawing and will not serve if elected. The candidate's 
name will not be removed from the ballot, but upon receipt of the notice of late 
withdrawal, the Secretary of State shall instruct the local election officials in the 
candidate's electoral district to distribute notices with absentee ballots requested after that 
date and to post a notice at each voting place in the district informing voters that the 
candidate has withdrawn and that a vote for that candidate will not be counted. Notice of 
the late withdrawal must also be posted on the Secretary of State's publicly accessible 
website.' 
Amend the bill by striking out all of section 19. 
Amend the bill in section 20 in §712 in the first paragraph in the 4th line (page 6, line 
in L.D.) by striking out the following: "municipal clerk" and inserting the following: 
'municipality' 
Amend the bill by relettering or renumbering any nonconsecutive Part letter or 
section number to read consecutively. 
SUMMARY 
This amendment strikes the provision in the bill that requires nomination by primary 
election for State Senate, State House of Representatives and county offices only when 
the party nomination is contested. In its place, the amendment provides that, when an 
elected office has no candidate nominated by petition or a declared write-in candidate, the 
office is not required to be printed on the primary ballot. 
The bill requires that 
withdrawal of a candidate for a primary or general election would have to be for good 
cause, defined by the bill, and by a prescribed deadline in order to have the candidate's 
name removed from the ballot and a replacement candidate nominated. The amendment 
removes the good cause provision but maintains the earlier deadline of 75 days before the 
election, which is an increase from the 60-day deadline in current law. The bill provides 
that a municipal clerk may be subject to a civil violation of $50 per day for each day 
beyond the required date that election returns are not submitted to the Secretary of State. 
The amendment applies that civil penalty to the municipality. The amendment retains the 
provision in the bill that clarifies that a candidate may withdraw after the withdrawal 
deadline if the candidate is incapacitated by a catastrophic condition or injury; however, 
the amendment requires a withdrawal request to be accompanied by a certificate signed 
by a licensed physician instead of at least 2 physicians. 
FISCAL NOTE REQYIRED 
(SeiP~$h~R0576(02)-1 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
Net Cost (Savings) 
General Fund 
Revenue 
General Fund 
Fiscal Detail and Notes 
Approved: OS/29115 
*aC!. 
LD 1335 
LR 576(02) 
An Act To Amend the Election Laws 
Fiscal Note for Bill as Amended by Committee Amendment '.it' (f.I-~5 '" 
Committee: Veterans and Legal Affairs 
') 
Fiscal Note Required: Yes 
Fiscal Note 
FY 2015-16 
FY 2016-17 
($7,500) 
($5,000) 
$7,500 
$5,000 
Projections 
FY 2017-18 
($2,500) 
$2,500 
Projections 
FY 2018-19 
($1,000) 
$1,000 
The bill assesses a $50 per day fine on municipalities for each day election results are delivered late. 
LR0576(02) - Fiscal Note - Page 1 of 1