Code of Maine Rules
29 - DEPARTMENT OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE
250 - BUREAU OF MOTOR VEHICLES
Bureau of Corporations, Elections and Commissions
Chapter 520 - RULES REGARDING PUBLICATION OF PUBLIC COMMENTS ON STATEWIDE REFERENDA
Section 250-520-1 - Requirements for Public Comment Submission

Universal Citation: 29 ME Code Rules ยง 250-520-1

Current through 2024-38, September 18, 2024

1. Any individual, corporation, political action committee or other organization may file public comments in support of or in opposition to a ballot measure for publication in the Citizen's Guide to the Referendum Election ("Citizen's Guide"). Ballot measure public comments must be accompanied by a completed application on a form designed by the Secretary of State. The application must contain, but is not limited to the following information:

A. Date of the election that the ballot measure will be voted on;

B. Ballot order assigned to the measure;

C. Position taken - e.g. public comments in support or public comments in opposition;

D. Name of the person submitting public comments;

E. Name of the organization the person represents (if applicable);

F. Contact information for the person submitting the public comments; and

G. Original signature of the person submitting the comments:
i For public comments filed and paid for by an individual, only the signature of the individual is required.

ii For public comments sponsored by an organization or corporation, the application must be signed by an executive officer and must include the officer's title and the name of the organization or corporation.

iii For public comments sponsored by a political action committee, the application must be signed by the committee's chairperson or treasurer, and must be identified by committee name.

2. All applications must be accompanied by a cashier's check or money order in the amount of $500.

3. Any individual, corporation, political action committee or other organization may file only one (1) public comment per ballot measure.

4. Public comments must be filed with the Secretary of State no later than 5 p.m. on the 70th day prior to the date of the election at which the ballot measure is being voted on.

5. Public comments must be submitted electronically (MS Word or compatible format) on a floppy disk or CD along with a paper copy.

6. Public comments for publication will be limited in number to three (3) public comments in support and three (3) public comments in opposition to each ballot measure. The determination of which public comments will be published in the Citizen's Guide will be based upon the date (and time, if applicable) that the public comments were filed in the Secretary of State's office. If public comments beyond the allowable number are received at the same time, a random drawing will be held to determine which public comments will be published. The document filing date shall be the date the document is received by the Secretary of State in proper filing order with the appropriate filing fee.

7. All submissions should be designed for printing on 8 1/2 by 11 inch pages, portrait orientation.

8. Only "Public Comments in Support" and "Public Comments in Opposition" will be accepted. Public comments that are "Neither For Nor Against" will not be accepted for publication.

9. All submitted public comments must be written in plain English with plain text. No graphics or pictures will be accepted for publication.

10. Public comments are limited to 300 words or less. Public comments longer than 300 words will not be accepted for publication.

11. The public comments must be submitted exactly as the filer wants the public comments to appear in the Citizen's Guide. Public comments will be published in the Citizen's Guide verbatim; no grammatical, spelling or textual changes will be made to the public comments, except as corrected under Section 3 of these Rules.

12. The Secretary of State shall reject any public comments submitted which:

A. Contain any obscene, profane or defamatory language;

B. Incite or advocate hatred, abuse or violence toward any person or group; or

C. Contain any language which may not legally be circulated through the mails.

13. Nothing in this chapter shall exempt the author of any public comments from any civil or criminal action because of any defamatory statements offered for printing or contained in the Citizen's Guide.

Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Maine may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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