Sec. 28. 21-A MRSA §1125, sub-§1, as enacted by IB 1995, c. 1, §17, is amended to read:

1. Declaration of intent. A participating candidate must file a declaration of intent to seek certification as a Maine Clean Election Act candidate and to comply with the requirements of this chapter. The declaration of intent must be filed with the commission prior to or during the qualifying period, except as provided in subsection 11, according to forms and procedures developed by the commission. A participating candidate must submit a declaration of intent prior to within 5 business days of collecting qualifying contributions under this chapter, or the qualifying contributions collected before the declaration of intent has been filed will not be counted toward the eligibility requirement in subsection 3.

Sec. 29. 21-A MRSA §1125, sub-§5, as amended by PL 2003, c. 270, §§1 and 2, is further amended to read:

5. Certification of Maine Clean Election Act candidates. Upon receipt of a final submittal of qualifying contributions by a participating candidate, the commission shall determine whether or not the candidate has:

A. Signed and filed a declaration of intent to participate in this Act;

B. Submitted the appropriate number of valid qualifying contributions;

C. Qualified as a candidate by petition or other means;

D. Not accepted contributions, except for seed money contributions, and otherwise complied with seed money restrictions;

D-1. Not run for the same office as a nonparticipating candidate in a primary election in the same election year; and

E. Otherwise met the requirements for participation in this Act.