Ethics panel seeks reports from Maine Leads
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Sun Journal: The Maine ethics commission ruled Thursday that the group Maine Leads is required to file campaign finance reports going back to late 2007 because of fundraising and spending efforts related to a referendum question on the November ballot. Maine Leads successfully worked to put the citizen initiative that would cut the municipal excise tax on the fall ballot, but lawyer Dan Billings argued that wasn't the group's "major purpose," the burden necessary to qualify it as a political action committee.
The original complaint filed against the group by former Democratic lawmaker Deborah Hutton was that the group should be registered as a PAC and file periodic financial reports with the state. But members of the Maine Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices agreed with Billings and voted against requiring Maine Leads to register as a PAC. "Invariably, organizations will take more significant roles in various different issues, but that's not going to convert them into that PAC," Commissioner Walter McKee said.
Commission Chairman Michael Friedman said someone might look at the spending by Maine Leads in 2007 and 2008 and conclude it was acting as a PAC. "But I don't think you can actually determine that an organization is a PAC until you have somewhat of a history," he said. Instead of ruling it a PAC, the panel voted 4-1 in favor of requiring the group to file reports as a ballot question committee.
According to Maine law, anyone who receives contributions or spends more than $5,000 to initiate, promote, defeat or influence a ballot question is considered a ballot question committee and must file reports with the state.
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