Sec. 1. 21-A MRSA §1125, sub-§9-A is enacted to read:

9-A.__Matching funds not triggered.__When any campaign, finance or election report shows that a certified candidate has received a contribution or expenditure that constitutes an independent expenditure under section 1019, that candidate's opponent, whether or not a certified candidate, may raise and expend an equivalent amount without triggering matching funds under this section.

SUMMARY

This bill provides that if a candidate certified under the Maine Clean Election Act receives that which would constitute an independent expenditure under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 21-A, section 1019, that candidate's opponent may raise and spend an equivalent amount without triggering matching funds.