An Act Regarding Contributing to Candidates and Political Action Committees
Maine Legislature, Session 130, LD 1782
Committee: Veterans and Legal Affairs
Sponsors: LUCHINI
Amends: 21-A MRSA §1015, 21-A MRSA §1056-C, 21-A MRSA §1056-D

Legislative Document
No. 1782
S.P. 619
In Senate, December 9, 2021
An Act Regarding Contributing to Candidates and Political Action 
Committees
Approved for introduction by a majority of the Legislative Council pursuant to Joint Rule 
203.
Received by the Secretary of the Senate on December 7, 2021.  Referred to the Committee 
on Veterans and Legal Affairs pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed.
DAREK M. GRANT
Secretary of the Senate
Presented by Senator LUCHINI of Hancock.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  21-A MRSA §1015, sub-§2, as repealed and replaced by PL 2021, c. 274, 
§5 and affected by §13, is amended to read:
2.  Contributions by party committees, ballot question committees and political 
action committees.  Except as provided in paragraph A, a ballot question committee, a 
party committee under section 1013-A, subsection 3, a political action committee and any 
other committee may not make contributions to a candidate.
A.  A party committee under section 1013-A, subsection 3, a ballot question committee, 
a leadership political action committee, a separate segregated fund committee, a caucus 
political action committee and any other political action committee may make 
contributions to a candidate in support of the candidacy of one person aggregating no 
more than the amount that an individual may contribute to that candidate under 
subsection 1, except that the committee may not make any monetary contributions to a 
candidate using funds that derive, in whole or in part, from a business entity.  Nothing 
in this paragraph prohibits a separate segregated fund committee that receives 
nonmonetary contributions from a business entity under section 1056-D, subsection 2, 
paragraph A from making monetary contributions to a candidate within the limits 
described in this paragraph.
Sec. 2.  21-A MRSA §1056-C, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 2021, c. 274, §11 and 
affected by §13, is amended to read:
2.  Contributions by party committees, ballot question committees and political 
action committees.  Except as provided in paragraph A, a party committee under section 
1013-A, subsection 3, a ballot question committee, a political action committee and any 
other committee may not make contributions to a leadership political action committee.
A.  A party committee under section 1013-A, subsection 3, a ballot question committee, 
a leadership political action committee, a separate segregated fund committee, a caucus 
political action committee and any other political action committee may make 
contributions to a leadership political action committee aggregating no more in a 
calendar year than the amount that the committee may contribute to a legislative 
candidate in any election under section 1015, subsection 2, paragraph A, except that 
the committee may not make any monetary contributions to a leadership political action 
committee using funds that derive, in whole or in part, from a business entity.  Nothing 
in this paragraph prohibits a separate segregated fund committee that receives 
nonmonetary contributions from a business entity under section 1056-D, subsection 2, 
paragraph A from making monetary contributions to a candidate within the limits 
described in this paragraph.
Sec. 3.  21-A MRSA §1056-D, sub-§1, as enacted by PL 2021, c. 274, §12 and 
affected by §13, is amended to read:
1.  Contributions by individuals.  An individual may not make contributions to a 
separate segregated fund committee aggregating more than $5,000 in a calendar year.  
Beginning December 1, 2023, contribution limits under this subsection are adjusted every 
years based on the Consumer Price Index as reported by the United States Department of 
Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics and rounded to the nearest amount divisible by $25.  The 
commission shall post the current contribution limit and the amount of the next adjustment 
and the date that it will become effective on its publicly accessible website and include this 
information with any publication to be used as a guide for candidates.
Sec. 4.  21-A MRSA §1056-D, sub-§2, ¶A, as enacted by PL 2021, c. 274, §12 
and affected by §13, is amended to read:
A.  The corporation, membership organization, cooperative or labor or other 
organization that established the separate segregated fund committee, referred to in this 
paragraph as "the parent entity," may contribute the paid staff time of its employees 
and independent contractors to establish the committee and to provide fundraising and 
administrative services directly to the committee.  The parent entity may also provide 
the separate segregated fund committee with the use of offices, telephones, computers 
and similar equipment when that use does not result in additional cost to the parent 
entity.
Sec. 5.  Effective date. This Act takes effect January 1, 2023.
SUMMARY
This bill makes the following changes to campaign finance law effective January 1, 
2023.
1.  It clarifies that a ballot question committee may make contributions to a candidate 
up to the applicable limit as long as the funds for the contributions are not derived from a 
business entity.
2.  It clarifies that a ballot question committee may make contributions to a leadership 
political action committee that do not aggregate more than the limit applicable for 
legislative candidates as long as the funds for the contributions are not derived from a 
business entity.
3.  It provides for the biennial adjustment of the limit on the amount an individual may 
contribute to a separate segregated fund committee.  The biennial adjustment is based on 
the Consumer Price Index.
4.  It allows a corporation, membership organization, cooperative or labor or other 
organization to contribute the paid staff time of its employees and independent contractors 
to a separate segregated fund committee it has established.