An Act To Improve Maine's Election Laws
Maine Legislature, Session 130, LD 1575
Committee: Veterans and Legal Affairs
Sponsors: McCREIGHT, HICKMAN, CAIAZZO, PIERCE, RIELLY, ROBERTS, SUPICA, WHITE, WOOD, DAUGHTRY
Amends: 21-A MRSA §112-A, 21-A MRSA §622-A, 21-A MRSA §627, 21-A MRSA §753-B, 21-A MRSA §754-A, 21-A MRSA §756, 21-A MRSA §759, 21-A MRSA §760-A

Legislative Document
No. 1575
H.P. 1172
House of Representatives, April 27, 2021
An Act To Improve Maine's Election Laws
Received by the Clerk of the House on April 23, 2021.  Referred to the Committee on 
Veterans and Legal Affairs pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed pursuant to Joint 
Rule 401.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative McCREIGHT of Harpswell.
Cosponsored by Senator HICKMAN of Kennebec and
Representatives: CAIAZZO of Scarborough, PIERCE of Falmouth, RIELLY of Westbrook, 
ROBERTS of South Berwick, SUPICA of Bangor, WHITE of Waterville, WOOD of Portland, 
Senator: DAUGHTRY of Cumberland.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  21-A MRSA §112-A, sub-§3, as enacted by PL 2009, c. 253, §11, is 
amended to read:
3.  Other official documents.  An official document, including, but not limited to, a 
document confirming eligibility determinations for public benefits, a utility bill, a bank 
statement, a government check, a paycheck, a student identification document with a 
photograph that is issued by a state-approved public or private school located in this State 
or that is issued by a duly authorized institution of higher learning that operates in this State 
or other government document that shows the name and address of the voter; or
Sec. 2.  21-A MRSA §622-A, as enacted by PL 1997, c. 436, §85, is amended to 
read:
§622-A.  Notice of election
The notice of election must contain the following items: a heading that states "Notice 
of Election" in bold type, the day, date and title of the election, the voting district 
designation, if any, the name and location of the voting place, the location of any ballot 
drop boxes, the opening and closing times of the polls and a list of the offices and 
referendum questions for that election.  The clerk may add times for in-person absentee 
voting and processing absentee ballots pursuant to section 759, subsection 7.
Sec. 3.  21-A MRSA §627, sub-§4, as amended by PL 2007, c. 455, §24, is further 
amended to read:
4.  Minimum size of polling place; complaint to Secretary of State.  Municipalities 
must provide a polling place large enough to allow public observation.  The space must 
allow for at least one worker from each political party and one nonpartisan observer to 
remain outside the guardrail enclosure as a pollwatcher. If the municipality uses an 
incoming voting list for a polling place that is divided into separate segments by voting 
district or by the alphabetic listing of voters' names, then the municipality must allow at 
least one worker from each political party and one nonpartisan observer to remain outside 
the guardrail enclosure as a pollwatcher at each separate segment of the voting list.  Each 
polling place must allow reasonable access to members of the media.  Additional party 
workers and others nonpartisan observers are allowed if there is sufficient space at the 
polling place.  If the space at the polling place is so limited that the presence of the 
additional party workers and others nonpartisan observers would interfere with the election 
process, the warden shall prohibit their presence.  If the chair of any party's state committee 
or a representative of any organization that conducts nonpartisan election observation 
submits a written complaint to the Secretary of State at least 60 days before an election 
within 14 days of publication of the location of the polling place, the Secretary of State 
shall authorize an inspection of the polling place considered to be too small to allow party 
workers and nonpartisan observer access.  If the Secretary of State finds a polling place to 
be too small to allow party workers and nonpartisan observer access, the Secretary of State 
shall instruct the municipal officers to change the location of the polling place to one of a 
suitable size.  The municipal officers shall advertise the change of the polling place at least 
times in the daily or weekly newspaper, or both, that covers the area.
Sec. 4.  21-A MRSA §753-B, sub-§2, ¶D, as amended by PL 2011, c. 534, §18, is 
further amended to read:
D.  To any voter, immediate family member or 3rd person whose request was received 
in the municipal office after the 3rd on or after the final business day before election 
day, unless the voter signs an application, designed by the Secretary of State, stating 
one of the following reasons for requesting an absentee ballot after the deadline:
(1)  Unexpected absence from the municipality during the entire time the polls are 
open on election day;
(2)  Physical disability;
(3)  Inability to travel to the polls if the voter is a resident of a coastal island ward 
or precinct; or
(4)  An incapacity or illness that has resulted in the voter's being unable to leave 
home or a treatment facility.
The Secretary of State shall develop uniform language for a municipality to display 
describing the reasons a voter may request an absentee ballot after the deadline set forth 
in this paragraph.  A municipality shall use the uniform language on any signs at the 
municipal office and on any website, social media page or other media that the 
municipality uses to communicate election information.
Sec. 5.  21-A MRSA §753-B, sub-§8, as amended by PL 2011, c. 399, §24, is 
further amended to read:
8.  Absentee voting in presence of clerk.  A person who wishes to vote by absentee 
ballot may, without completing an application, vote by absentee ballot in the presence of 
the clerk, except as provided in subsection 2.  For a municipality with more than 500 
registered voters, the clerk's office must be open for this purpose for no fewer than 4 hours 
on the Friday prior to the day of the election.  The method of voting is otherwise as 
prescribed in this article.  After the person has voted, the clerk shall sign the affidavit on 
the return envelope as a witness, indicate on the envelope that the voter voted in the 
presence of a clerk and ensure that the affidavit on the return envelope is properly 
completed by the voter.  For the 45 days preceding an election, during the hours when the 
clerk's office is open and may be conducting absentee voting, the display or distribution of 
any advertising material intended to influence a voter's decision regarding a candidate or 
question on the ballot for that election is prohibited within the clerk's office and on public 
property within 250 feet of the entrance to the building in which the clerk's office is located.
This subsection does not apply to the display or distribution of any campaign advertising 
material on private property that is within 250 feet of the entrance to the building in which 
the clerk's office is located.  For purposes of this section, "private property" includes 
privately owned property subject to a public right-of-way that is an easement right-of-way.
This subsection does not apply to campaign advertising material on automobiles traveling 
to and from the municipal office or parked on municipal property while the occupants are 
visiting the municipal office to conduct municipal business.  It does not prohibit a person 
who is at the municipal office for the purpose of conducting municipal business or for 
absentee voting from wearing a campaign button when the longest dimension of the button 
does not exceed 3 inches.
Sec. 6.  21-A MRSA §754-A, sub-§1, ¶D, as amended by PL 2019, c. 371, §36, is 
further amended to read:
D.  The voter or an immediate family member of the voter shall return the sealed 
envelope containing the voted ballot to the clerk of the municipality where the voter 
resides by mail, by personal delivery or by depositing it into a secured drop box 
accessible by only the municipal clerk.  The voter shall send a completed voter 
registration or absentee ballot application, if necessary, in a separate envelope.  The 
Secretary of State shall adopt rules regarding the design and use of secured drop boxes, 
including access to and security of secured drop boxes, and the chain of custody for 
ballots placed in secured drop boxes.  The rules must allow a municipality to have 
multiple secured drop boxes.
Sec. 7.  21-A MRSA §756, sub-§2, as amended by PL 2009, c. 538, §9, is further 
amended to read:
2.  Clerk to examine signatures and affidavit.  The clerk shall compare the signature 
of the voter on the application, where required, with that on the corresponding return 
envelope.  The clerk shall examine the affidavit on the return envelope.  If the signatures 
appear to have been made by the same person and if the affidavit is properly completed, 
the clerk shall write "OK" and the clerk's initials on the return envelope.  Otherwise, the 
clerk shall note any discrepancy on the return envelope.  If there is a signature discrepancy 
or missing signature, the clerk shall immediately notify the voter and provide an 
opportunity for the voter to cure the ballot under procedures directed by the Secretary of 
State. The Secretary of State shall adopt rules for ballot curing procedures.
A.  If the signatures do not appear to have been made by the same person, but this 
discrepancy is apparently the result of the voter's having properly obtained assistance 
under either section 753‑A, subsection 5, or section 754‑A, subsection 3, or both, then 
the clerk shall note the discrepancy on the return envelope, but shall also write "OK" 
and the clerk's initials on the return envelope.
Sec. 8.  21-A MRSA §759, sub-§7, as amended by PL 1997, c. 436, §113, is further 
amended to read:
7.  Processing before close of polls.  A If the municipal clerk does not intend to process 
absentee ballots prior to election day pursuant to section 760-B, a notice signed by the 
municipal clerk must be posted at least 7 days before election day in the same manner as 
posting the notice of election, under section 621‑A, stating each specific time that the clerk 
intends to begin processing absentee ballots on election day.  The warden shall follow the 
procedures required by subsections 1 to 6 5 to process absentee ballots before the close of 
the polls.  The clerk shall notify the chairs of each political party of the municipality, in 
writing, that this procedure is to occur.  This notice must be considered sufficient as long 
as it is mailed to the last address of each municipal chair that is known to the clerk.
Sec. 9.  21-A MRSA §760-A, first ¶, as enacted by PL 1995, c. 459, §82, is 
amended to read:
The clerk shall use the following procedure when processing the absentee ballots at a 
central location on election day.
SUMMARY
This bill makes the following changes to the election laws.
1.  It adds to the list of forms of documentation that may be submitted by an applicant 
who is registering to vote a student photo identification that is issued by a state-approved 
public or private school located in this State or that is issued by a duly authorized institution 
of higher learning that operates in this State.
2.  It requires ballot drop box locations to be included in the election notice and 
specifies that municipalities may include their in-person absentee voting hours in the 
notice.
3.  It establishes the rights of nonpartisan observers to observe the election process in 
polling places.  It establishes that space must be provided for a nonpartisan observer as is 
required for party observers.  It changes the deadline for submitting a written complaint 
about insufficient space in a polling place from 60 days prior to the election to within 14 
days of the publication date of polling locations.
4.  It changes the closed period when no-excuse absentee voting is no longer permitted 
from after the 3rd business day before the election to on or after the last business day before 
the election.
5.  It directs the Secretary of State to develop uniform language for municipalities to 
use to inform voters of the reasons for which they may request and receive an absentee 
ballot after the period for no-excuse absentee voting has ended.  It requires municipalities 
to post this information wherever they post election information for voters.
6.  It requires that municipalities with over 500 registered voters offer at least 4 hours 
of in-person absentee voting on the Friday prior to election day. 
7.  It directs the Secretary of State to adopt rules regarding the design and use of secured 
drop boxes, including access to and security of drop boxes, and on the chain of custody for 
ballots placed in drop boxes.  The rules must allow for the use of multiple drop boxes in a 
municipality.
8.  It provides that, as part of the procedure of processing an absentee ballot, a 
municipal clerk must notify a voter if the voter's ballot is missing a signature or the 
signatures do not match and must provide the voter an opportunity to correct the ballot.  
The Secretary of State is required to adopt rules regarding this process.
9.  It clarifies the laws governing the processing of absentee ballots on election day.