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LD265 • 2025

An Act to Prohibit the Maine National Guard from Combat Deployment Absent an Act of the United States Congress

An Act to Prohibit the Maine National Guard from Combat Deployment Absent an Act of the United States Congress

Active

The official status still shows this bill as active or still awaiting another formal step.

Sponsor
Representative Benjamin Hymes
Last action
2025-04-29
Official status
Reports Read On motion by Senator HICKMAN of Kennebec the Majority Ought Not to Pass Report ACCEPTED . PREVAILED Roll Call Ordered Roll Call Number 128 Yeas 33 - Nays 0 - Excused 2 - Absent 0 Placed in Legislative Files (DEAD)
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

An Act to Prohibit the Maine National Guard from Combat Deployment Absent an Act of the United States Congress

An Act to Prohibit the Maine National Guard from Combat Deployment Absent an Act of the United States Congress Sponsor: Representative Benjamin Hymes Reference committee: Veterans and Legal Affairs Latest committee action: Reported Out; ONTP/OTP-AM

What This Bill Does

  • An Act to Prohibit the Maine National Guard from Combat Deployment Absent an Act of the United States Congress Sponsor: Representative Benjamin Hymes Reference committee: Veterans and Legal Affairs Latest committee action: Reported Out; ONTP/OTP-AM

Limits and Unknowns

  • This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

Filed

Plain English: Page 1 - 132LR0522(02) COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 1 L.D.

  • Page 1 - 132LR0522(02) COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 1 L.D.
  • 265 2 Date: (Filing No.
  • H- ) 3VETERANS AND LEGAL AFFAIRS 4 Reproduced and distributed under the direction of the Clerk of the House.
  • 5STATE OF MAINE 6HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 7132ND LEGISLATURE 8FIRST SPECIAL SESSION 9 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT “ ” to H.P.

Bill History

  1. 2025-04-29 Senate

    Reports Read On motion by Senator HICKMAN of Kennebec the Majority Ought Not to Pass Report ACCEPTED . PREVAILED Roll Call Ordered Roll Call Number 128 Yeas 33 - Nays 0 - Excused 2 - Absent 0 Placed in Legislative Files (DEAD)

  2. 2025-04-24 House

    Reports READ . On motion of Representative SUPICA of Bangor, the Majority Ought Not to Pass Report was ACCEPTED . ROLL CALL NO. 99 (Yeas 109 - Nays 33 - Absent 8 - Excused 0 - Restricted - 1) Sent for concurrence. ORDERED SENT FORTHWITH.

  3. 2025-04-23 Committee

    Reported Out; ONTP/OTP-AM

  4. 2025-04-02 Committee

    Work Session Held

  5. 2025-04-02 Committee

    Voted; Divided Report

  6. 2025-02-26 Committee

    Work Session Held; TABLED

  7. 2025-01-23 Committee

    Referred to Committee on Veterans and Legal Affairs.

Official Summary Text

An Act to Prohibit the Maine National Guard from Combat Deployment Absent an Act of the United States Congress
Sponsor:
Representative Benjamin Hymes
Reference committee:
Veterans and Legal Affairs
Latest committee action:
Reported Out; ONTP/OTP-AM

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
Printed on recycled paper
CORRECTED COPY
January 24, 2025
(Please Destroy any copy of
L.D. 265 that does not have
the notation "Corrected Copy")
132nd MAINE LEGISLATURE
FIRST REGULAR SESSION-2025
Legislative Document No. 265
H.P. 168 House of Representatives, January 28, 2025
An Act to Prohibit the Maine National Guard from Combat
Deployment Absent an Act of the United States Congress
Received by the Clerk of the House on January 23, 2025. Referred to the Committee on
Veterans and Legal Affairs pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed pursuant to Joint
Rule 401.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative HYMES of Waldo.
Cosponsored by Senator HAGGAN of Penobscot and
Representatives: BOYER of Poland, FREDERICKS of Sanford, LIBBY of Auburn,
PLUECKER of Warren, QUINT of Hodgdon, SMITH of Palermo, WARREN of Scarborough.

Page 1 - 132LR0522(01)
1Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
2Sec. 1. 37-B MRSA §191 is enacted to read:
3§191. Deployment to active duty combat
41. Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the
5 following terms have the following meanings.
6 A. "Active duty combat" means performing the following services in the active United
7 States Armed Forces:
8 (1) Participation in armed combat in a foreign nation;
9 (2) Performance of a hazardous service relating to an armed conflict in a
10 jurisdiction outside of the United States or the territories of the United States; or
11 (3) Performance of a duty through an instrumentality of war.
12 B. "Official declaration of war" means a declaration of war made by the United States
13 Congress pursuant to the United States Constitution, Article I, Section 8, Clause 11.
142. Release into active duty combat. The military forces or a member of the military
15 forces may not be released from the State into active duty combat unless the United States
16 Congress has passed an official declaration of war or has taken an official action for an
17 enumerated purpose under the United States Constitution, Article I, Section 8, Clause 15.
183. Governor actions. The Governor shall take all actions necessary to comply with
19 subsection 2 and may deploy the military forces for a civil mission within the United States
20 and the territories of the United States pursuant to section 103. This section does not
21 prohibit the Governor from deploying the military forces under 32 United States Code.
22SUMMARY
23 This bill prohibits the release of state military forces into active duty combat in a
24 foreign nation absent an official declaration of war or official action for an enumerated
25 constitutional purpose passed by the United States Congress and allows the Governor to
26 deploy the state military forces for civil missions within the United States or the territories
27 of the United States.
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