Opinion ID: 1897396
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: COMMERCIAL SPEECH v. CORE SPEECH

Text: [¶ 9] Commercial speech is expression related solely to the economic interests of the speaker and its audience, Central Hudson Gas & Elec., 447 U.S. at 561, 100 S.Ct. 2343, speech that relates to a particular product or service, see Friedman v. Rogers, 440 U.S. 1, 10, 99 S.Ct. 887, 59 L.Ed.2d 100 (1979), or speech that propose[s] a commercial transaction, Board of Trustees of State Univ. v. Fox, 492 U.S. 469, 473-74, 109 S.Ct. 3028, 106 L.Ed.2d 388 (1989) (quoting Virginia State Bd. of Pharmacy v. Virginia Citizens Consumer Council, Inc., 425 U.S. 748, 762, 96 S.Ct. 1817, 48 L.Ed.2d 346 (1976)). On the other hand, core speech, enjoying the fullest constitutional protection, involves discussions of candidates, structures and forms of government, the manner in which government is operated or should be operated, and all such matters relating to political processes[,] Mills v. Alabama, 384 U.S. 214, 218-19, 86 S.Ct. 1434, 16 L.Ed.2d 484 (1966), speech directed at educating the public, see Thornhill v. Alabama, 310 U.S. 88, 95, 102, 60 S.Ct. 736, 84 L.Ed. 1093 (1940), or more generally, speech addressing matters of public concern, id. at 101-02, 60 S.Ct. 736. [¶ 10] Speech will not be characterized as commercial speech solely because the speaker is a corporation. See First Nat'l Bank v. Bellotti, 435 U.S. 765, 777, 784, 98 S.Ct. 1407, 55 L.Ed.2d 707 (1978). The First Amendment protects equally the free speech rights of corporate persons and natural persons. [5] See id. The identity of the source does not determine the level of protection the First Amendment affords the speech. See id. Furthermore, speech does not automatically lose any constitutional protection solely because it involves a commercial subject. See Virginia State Bd. of Pharmacy, 425 U.S. at 761, 96 S.Ct. 1817. Commercial speech must be distinguished from core speech based on its content. See id. Speech involving purely factual material of public interest is fully protected by the First Amendment, even if the subject of the speech is a commercial matter. See id. at 761-62, 96 S.Ct. 1817. [¶ 11] Because the Commission Rule at issue is directed at utility-sponsored educational activities, which by definition are designed to educate consumers about retail access in a deregulated system, see Commission Rule § 2(D), noncommercial core speech is what is being regulated. The statute forbids T & D facilities from promoting an affiliated competitive provider in any manner. See 35 M.R.S.A. § 3205(3)(J). To be in compliance with the law, a T & D facility will merely educate the public about the deregulated system and their future right to purchase electricity generation services from competitive providers, and will not disseminate educational materials directly implicating the facility's economic interests or proposing a commercial transaction to the consumers who receive the materials. Education about deregulation is a matter of state public concern. That the subject matter of the educational materials is commercial does not reduce its constitutional protection. See Virginia State Bd. of Pharmacy, 425 U.S. at 761, 96 S.Ct. 1817. The Commission Rule essentially prohibits educational materials from containing commercial speech. [6]