An Act To Revise the Municipal Consolidation Referendum Process
Maine Legislature, Session 128, LD 1840
Committee Amendment CA_A_S418 (Senate)
Amends: 30-A MRSA §2152, 30-A MRSA §2155

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "(\ " to S.P. 692, L.D. 1840, Bill, "An Act To 
Revise the Municipal Consolidation Referendum Process" 
Amend the bill by inserting after the enacting clause and before section 1 the 
following: 
'Sec. 1. 30-A MRSA §2152, 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: 
B. Be signed by a number of voters of the municipality equal to at least 10% of the 
voters of that municipality total number of votes cast in that municipality in the last 
gubernatorial election, except that only 1,000 signatures are necessary in 
municipalities of 10,000 or more yoterst~ 
(1) In municipalities with 10,000 or more votes cast in the last gubernatorial 
election, 1,000 signatures are required unless the municipal charter requires an 
amount greater than 1,000; and 
(2) When a petition is subject to section 2155;' 
Amend the bill in section 1 in subsection 1-A in the 5th line (page 1, line 7 in L.D.) 
by inserting after the following: "election" the following: 'that is held at least 90 days 
after the petition is filed' 
7 
Amend the bill in section 1 in subsection 1-A in the last line (page l, line 11 in L.D.) 
by inserting after the following: "petition)?" the following: 'The consolidation agreement 
is not final unless approved by the voters of each municipality.' 
Amend the bill in section 2 in subsection 2 in the 3rd line (page 1, line 17 in L.D.) by 
inserting after the following: "municipality" the following: 'or if a majority of municipal 
officers vote to hold elections for a joint charter commission under section 2155' 
Amend the bill by striking out all of section 3 and inserting the following: 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT" A" to S.P. 692, L.D. 1840 
1Sec. 3. 30-A MRSA §2155, 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: 
§2155. Limitation 
If the voters of a municipality reject a consolidation agreement, that municipality may 
not be a party to any consolidation agreement for J §. years after the date of the rejection, 
except when a number of voters equal to at least 3 0% of the qualified voters have 
requested an agreement by signing total number of votes cast in that municipality in the 
last gubernatorial election file a petition under section 2152, subsection 1 or when a 
majority of the municipal officers in each municipality proposed for consolidation in the 
rejected consolidation agreement vote to hold municipal elections to elect members of a 
joint charter commission in accordance with section 2152, subsection 2 to draft a 
consolidation agreement.' 
Amend the bill by relettering or renumbering any nonconsecutive Part letter or 
section number to read consecutively. 
SU1\11\1ARY 
This amendment adds language to the bill to change the calculation of the number of 
signatures required for a petition for municipal consolidation to be based on the number 
of votes cast at the last gubernatorial election, rather than the number of voters in the 
municipality. It also adds language to allow a municipal charter to override the limit of 
1,000 signatures that is set for certain municipalities. It also provides a cross-reference to 
the exception to the required number of signatures that applies in the period after a 
consolidation agreement is rejected by the voters. 
The amendment specifies that the referendum on the formation of a joint charter 
commission must be at least 90 days after the petition is filed to allow for election 
preparation and deadlines. It also adds language to the referendum question to inform the 
voters that the consolidation agreement prepared by the commission would not be final 
unless approved by the voters. 
The amendment adds language in the section regarding conditions for holding 
elections for a joint charter commission to cross-reference the vote by municipal officers 
to hold such elections. 
The amendment sets the waiting period after a rejected consolidation agreement to 6 
years, rather than 10 years as provided in the bill. It clarifies that the number of signatures 
required for a petition to obtain an exception to the waiting period is 30% of votes cast in 
the last gubernatorial election, rather than 30% of voters. It also clarifies the exception to 
the waiting period permitted by a vote of municipal officers, as provided in the bill, to 
specify that the vote is to hold elections of members to a joint charter commission. 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT