2023 Maine Revised Statutes › TITLE 21-A: ELECTIONS › Chapter 9: CONDUCT OF ELECTIONS › Subchapter 1: PREELECTION PROCEDURE › Article 1: SECRETARY OF STATE'S RESPONSIBILITIES › 21-A §605-A. Instructions

§605-A. Instructions
1.  For election officials.
The Secretary of State shall provide the clerk, registrar and election officials of each municipality with printed instructions and information to assist them in performing the requirements of this Title.
[PL 2011, c. 342, §15 (NEW).]
2.  For voters.
The Secretary of State shall prepare instructional materials and posters and provide them to each municipality to assist voters in registering to vote and in voting.
A. The voting instruction poster must include information on how to mark the ballot, including how to mark a write-in vote; how to replace the ballot if the voter makes a mistake; and how to receive assistance in marking the ballot. It may include other voting information. The Secretary of State may design separate instruction posters to instruct the voters on how to mark a ballot for elections to be determined by ranked‑choice voting and those to be determined by plurality.   [PL 2019, c. 320, §4 (AMD).]
B. The voting rights poster or notice must contain information advising prospective registrants and voters of their voting rights.   [PL 2011, c. 342, §15 (NEW).]
C. The election penalty poster or notice must contain information regarding penalties for voting law violations.   [PL 2011, c. 342, §15 (NEW).]
D. The Treasurer's Statement must be prepared according to Title 5, section 152 to accompany ballots containing any statewide bond issues. The Secretary of State shall supply written instructions to each municipality, which may be provided to an absentee voter to indicate where the voter may view the Treasurer's Statement on the Secretary of State's publicly accessible website.   [PL 2011, c. 534, §13 (AMD).]
E. For each referendum ballot, a citizen's guide to the referendum election must be prepared and include the full text of each measure; the Attorney General's explanatory statement prepared under Title 1, section 353; the Treasurer's Statement prepared under Title 5, section 152; the Office of Fiscal and Program Review's estimate of the fiscal impact prepared under Title 1, section 353; and any public comment submitted pursuant to Title 1, section 354. The Secretary of State must post a citizen's guide to the referendum election on the Secretary of State's publicly accessible website and provide a printed copy to each municipality and to each public library in the State.   [PL 2011, c. 342, §15 (NEW).]
Each municipality must post the voter instructional materials as described in section 651.
[PL 2019, c. 320, §4 (AMD).]
3.  For absentee voters.
The Secretary of State shall prepare instructions for absentee voter applicants describing the reasons that a voter may request an absentee ballot after the deadline set forth in section 753‑B, subsection 2, paragraph D and provide these instructions to each municipality. Each municipality shall include these instructions on a sign posted at the municipal office and on any website, social media page or other media that the municipality uses to communicate election information.
[PL 2021, c. 246, §3 (NEW).]
SECTION HISTORY
PL 2011, c. 342, §15 (NEW). PL 2011, c. 534, §13 (AMD). PL 2019, c. 320, §4 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 246, §3 (AMD).