An Act to Increase Transparency in State Government by Amending Laws Regarding Persons Attempting to Influence the Competitive Bidding Process and Lobbyist Reporting During Rule-making Processes

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132nd MAINE LEGISLATURE
FIRST SPECIAL SESSION-2025
Legislative Document No. 1814
S.P. 708 In Senate, April 29, 2025
An Act to Increase Transparency in State Government by
Amending Laws Regarding Persons Attempting to Influence the
Competitive Bidding Process and Lobbyist Reporting During Rule-
making Processes
Received by the Secretary of the Senate on April 25, 2025. Referred to the Committee on
Veterans and Legal Affairs pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed.
DAREK M. GRANT
Secretary of the Senate
Presented by Senator HICKMAN of Kennebec.
Cosponsored by Representative LEE of Auburn and
Senators: BENNETT of Oxford, DUSON of Cumberland, FARRIN of Somerset, GROHOSKI
of Hancock, TIMBERLAKE of Androscoggin, Representative: EDER of Waterboro.

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1Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
2Sec. 1. 1 MRSA c. 25, sub-c. 4 is enacted to read:
3SUBCHAPTER 4
4INFLUENCE ON COMPETITIVE BIDDING PROCESS
5§1061. Definitions
6 As used in this subchapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms
7 have the following meanings.
81. Attempting to influence competitive bidding process. "Attempting to influence
9 the competitive bidding process" means to communicate directly with any official or
10 employee within the Bureau of General Services or in any department or agency of the
11 State for the purpose of influencing the award of any orders, grants or contracts by the
12 Director of the Bureau of General Services when reimbursement for expenditures or
13 compensation is made for those activities.
142. Communicate. "Communicate" has the same meaning as in Title 3, section 312-A,
15 subsection 3.
163. Compensation. "Compensation" has the same meaning as in Title 3, section 312-A,
17 subsection 4.
184. Employer. "Employer" has the same meaning as in Title 3, section 312-A,
19 subsection 5.
205. Reimbursement. "Reimbursement" has the same meaning as in Title 3, section
21 312-A, subsection 14.
22§1062. Registration required
23 Any person who is specifically employed by another person for the purpose of
24 attempting to influence the competitive bidding process is required to register with the
25 commission as provided by this section.
261. Registration. When a person engages in attempting to influence the competitive
27 bidding process on behalf of an employer, the person is required to register with the
28 commission within 10 calendar days in the manner prescribed in subsection 2.
292. Registration forms. The commission shall prepare and make available registration
30 forms for the registration of persons under this section. A person shall complete a
31 registration form for each employer on whose behalf that person has engaged in attempting
32 to influence the competitive bidding process. These forms must include the following
33 information:
34 A. The name of the person employed by another person for the purpose of attempting
35 to influence the competitive bidding process and the name of the employer;
36 B. The business address and other contact information for the person attempting to
37 influence the competitive bidding process and the business address and other contact
38 information for the employer;
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1 C. The date upon which attempting to influence the competitive bidding process on
2 behalf of the employer commenced;
3 D. A description of the employer's business activity or mission or a description of the
4 industry, trade or profession that the employer represents;
5 E. A list of any bids submitted by the employer to the State in the previous 12 months,
6 which must specify whether any of those bids resulted in awarded orders, grants or
7 contracts;
8 F. The address of the employer's publicly accessible website; and
9 G. The amount of compensation the person attempting to influence the competitive
10 bidding process will receive for that person's services or, if an exact amount is
11 unascertainable, the basis upon which the person will charge for those services.
123. Registration fee. The fee for a registration pursuant to subsection 2 may not exceed
13 $250 annually per employer.
14§1063. Reports to commission; publicly accessible lists
151. Reports to commission. A person registered under this subchapter is required to
16 submit reports to the commission by 11:59 p.m. on the 15th day of the calendar month
17 concerning the person's attempting to influence the competitive bidding process for the
18 previous month for each registration. If the person did not engage in attempting to influence
19 the competitive bidding process, the person must file a report stating that the person did
20 not engage in attempting to influence the competitive bidding process for that employer in
21 the reporting period. The report must contain the following information:
22 A. The dates to which the report pertains;
23 B. The name and address of the person attempting to influence the competitive bidding
24 process and the employer;
25 C. The total amount of compensation the person attempting to influence the
26 competitive bidding process received or expects to receive for those activities during
27 the time period represented in the report. Compensation must be reported separately
28 for any order, grant or contract the person attempted to influence;
29 D. The total amount of expenditures made or incurred by the person during the time
30 period represented in the report for the purpose of attempting to influence the
31 competitive bidding process for which the person has been or expects to be reimbursed.
32 Expenditures must be reported separately for any order, grant or contract the person
33 attempted to influence;
34 E. For each expenditure of $25 or more reported under paragraph D, the person making
35 the expenditure and the date, amount and purpose of the expenditure and the name of
36 the person on whose behalf the expenditure was made; and
37 F. A list of any order, grant or contract for which the person engaged in attempting to
38 influence the competitive bidding process.
392. Publicly accessible lists. The commission shall develop and maintain a publicly
40 accessible website that displays:
41 A. A list of all persons who have current registrations under this section with the
42 commission;
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1 B. A list of all orders, grants or contracts that a person has engaged in attempting to
2 influence as reported under subsection 1;
3 C. A list of all employers that have employed a person to engage in attempting to
4 influence the competitive bidding process; and
5 D. The monthly reports filed under subsection 1.
6§1064. Violations
7 A person who fails to register under section 1062, who fails to file a report within 30
8 days of the deadline for filing under section 1063, subsection 1 or who fails to disclose
9 information required under this subchapter is prohibited from attempting to influence the
10 competitive bidding process for a period not to exceed one year. An employee of the Bureau
11 of General Services or any department or agency of the State or any member of the public
12 may file a complaint with the commission alleging a violation of this subchapter. The
13 commission shall notify any interested parties and shall investigate any apparent violations
14 of this subchapter.
15§1065. Disposition of fees
16 Fees collected pursuant to this subchapter must be deposited into a special revenue
17 account of the commission to be used for the purposes of administering and enforcing the
18 provisions of this subchapter, including the costs of obtaining, maintaining, modifying or
19 upgrading technology to facilitate disclosure of information to the public as required under
20 this subchapter.
21§1066. Rules
22 The commission shall adopt rules regarding the registration of and the reporting
23 requirement for a person attempting to influence the competitive bidding process, including
24 establishing fees and reporting deadlines as outlined in this subchapter. Rules adopted
25 pursuant to this section are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375,
26 subchapter 2-A.
27Sec. 2. 3 MRSA §312-A, sub-§7-B, as amended by PL 2019, c. 599, §1 and
28 affected by §5, is further amended to read:
297-B. Grassroots lobbying. "Grassroots lobbying" means to communicate with
30 members of the general public to solicit them to communicate directly with any covered
31 official for the purpose of influencing legislative action, other than legislation that is before
32 the Legislature as a result of a direct initiative in accordance with the Constitution of Maine,
33 Article IV, Part Third, Section 18, or proposed agency rule when that solicitation is made
34 by:
35 A. A broadcast, cable or satellite transmission;
36 B. A communication delivered by print media;
37 C. A letter or other written communication delivered by mail or by comparable
38 delivery service;
39 D. A communication delivered by e-mail, a website or any other digital format;
40 E. Telephone; or
41 F. A method of communication similar to those listed in paragraphs A to E.
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1 "Grassroots lobbying" does not include a person communicating with the person's
2 stockholders, employees, board members, officers or dues-paying members.
3Sec. 3. 3 MRSA §312-A, sub-§9, as amended by PL 2007, c. 630, §6, is further
4 amended to read:
59. Lobbying. "Lobbying" means to communicate directly with any official in the
6 legislative branch or any official in the executive branch or with a constitutional officer for
7 the purpose of influencing any legislative action or ; with the Governor or the Governor's
8 cabinet and staff for the purpose of influencing the approval or veto of a legislative action;
9 or with any official in the executive branch for the purpose of influencing any rulemaking
10 authorized pursuant to Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A when reimbursement for
11 expenditures or compensation is made for those activities. "Lobbying" includes the time
12 spent to prepare and submit to the Governor, an official in the legislative branch, an official
13 in the executive branch, a constitutional officer or a legislative committee oral and written
14 proposals for, or testimony or analyses concerning, a legislative action or proposed agency
15 rule. "Lobbying" does not include time spent by any person providing information to or
16 participating in a subcommittee, stakeholder group, task force or other work group
17 regarding a legislative action or proposed agency rule by the appointment or at the request
18 of the Governor, a Legislator or legislative committee, a constitutional officer, a state
19 agency commissioner or the chair of a state board or commission.
20Sec. 4. 3 MRSA §312-A, sub-§13-A is enacted to read:
2113-A. Proposed agency rule. "Proposed agency rule" has the same meaning as in
22 Title 5, section 8002, subsection 8-A.
23Sec. 5. 3 MRSA §315-A, sub-§2, ¶E, as amended by PL 2011, c. 179, §2, is further
24 amended to read:
25 E. For each employer, a list of all legislative actions or proposed agency rules that
26 have been the subject of lobbying for the year, including hyperlinks to the summary
27 page of the Legislature's publicly accessible website for each legislative document
28 listed or to the agency's publicly accessible website for rule-making activity;
29Sec. 6. 3 MRSA §316, sub-§4-A, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 630, §12, is amended
30 to read:
314-A. Legislative and agency interests. The general areas of legislation or rulemaking
32 that the employer is attempting to influence;
33Sec. 7. 3 MRSA §316, sub-§4-B, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 630, §12, is amended
34 to read:
354-B. Legislative committees and agencies. The joint standing committees of the
36 Legislature or the agencies that the lobbyist expects to lobby during the year;
37Sec. 8. 3 MRSA §317, sub-§1, ¶D, as amended by PL 2019, c. 587, §13 and
38 affected by §18, is further amended by amending the first blocked paragraph to read:
39 In the case of a lobbyist or lobbyist associate who is a regular employee of the
40 employer, the amount of compensation must be computed by multiplying the number
41 of hours devoted to the preparation of documents and research for the primary purpose
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42 of influencing legislative action or proposed agency rule and to lobbying by the
43 employee's regular rate of pay based on a 40-hour week;
3Sec. 9. 3 MRSA §317, sub-§1, ¶E-1, as amended by PL 2019, c. 599, §3 and
4 affected by §5, is further amended to read:
5 E-1. When expenditures made or incurred for the purposes of grassroots lobbying
6 exceed $2,000 during the month that is the subject of the report, the specific dollar
7 amount of expenditures for grassroots lobbying made or incurred during the month by
8 a lobbyist, lobbyist associate or employer, with separate totals for expenditure
9 categories as determined by the commission, and the legislative actions or proposed
10 agency rules that are the subject of the grassroots lobbying. Salaries paid to the
11 employer's regular employees are not expenditures for the purposes of this paragraph
12 and are exempt from disclosure under this paragraph;
13Sec. 10. 3 MRSA §317, sub-§1, ¶H, as amended by PL 2007, c. 630, §14, is further
14 amended to read:
15 H. A list of each legislative action by Legislative Document legislative document
16 number, specific issue, nomination, proposed agency rule or other matter in connection
17 with which the lobbyist is engaged in lobbying;
18Sec. 11. 3 MRSA §317, sub-§1, ¶I, as amended by PL 2019, c. 587, §13 and
19 affected by §18, is further amended to read:
20 I. A list specifically identifying each legislative action or proposed agency rule for
21 which the lobbyist and lobbyist associates were compensated or expect to be
22 compensated, or expended in excess of $1,000 for lobbying related to those actions or
23 proposed agency rules and a statement of the amounts compensated or expended for
24 each; and
25Sec. 12. 3 MRSA §317-A, sub-§1, ¶F, as enacted by PL 2019, c. 599, §4 and
26 affected by §5, is amended to read:
27 F. The legislative actions or proposed agency rules that are the subject of the grassroots
28 lobbying; and
29Sec. 13. 3 MRSA §319-B is enacted to read:
30§319-B. Public comment before agency; lobbyist
311. Disclosure of compensation. A lobbyist or lobbyist associate who provides public
32 comment on a proposed agency rule shall disclose to the agency as a part of the public
33 comment the name of the person or organization that the lobbyist or lobbyist associate is
34 representing. A lobbyist or lobbyist associate shall disclose to the agency proposing the
35 rule orally or in written form the name of any person who is being compensated by the
36 lobbyist or lobbyist associate or by the person or organization that the lobbyist or lobbyist
37 associate is representing to provide public comment before that agency.
382. Report of violation. An official in the executive branch or a member of the public
39 may file a complaint with the commission alleging a violation of this section. The
40 commission shall notify all interested parties and shall investigate any apparent violations
41 of this section.
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13. Suspension; fine. If a lobbyist or lobbyist associate fails to disclose information
2 required in subsection 1, the commission may:
3 A. Suspend the lobbyist or lobbyist associate from further lobbying by written notice
4 of the commission; and
5 B. Assess a fine of up to $5,000 against the lobbyist or lobbyist associate.
6SUMMARY
7 This bill requires any person who is specifically employed by another person for the
8 purpose of attempting to influence the competitive bidding process to register with the
9 Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices for each employer and to
10 submit monthly reports regarding activity, expenditures and compensation associated with
11 attempting to influence any order, grant or contract on behalf of that employer. The bill
12 requires the commission to create and maintain a publicly accessible website that displays
13 this information to the public.
14 It also expands the definition of "lobbying" and "grassroots lobbying" to include
15 communicating directly with any official in the executive branch for the purpose of
16 influencing any rulemaking.
17 It requires a lobbyist or lobbyist associate who provides public comment on a proposed
18 agency rule to disclose to the agency the name of the person or organization that lobbyist
19 or lobbyist associate is representing in the same manner as when testifying before a joint
20 select or joint standing committee of the Legislature.
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