AUGUSTA — Further legislative votes are expected on a bill to strip so-called matching funds out of the Maine public campaign-finance law.
The Senate on Thursday gave initial approval to the bill, which was submitted in response to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling. The justices rejected a provision in Arizona’s law that tied the amount of public funds a candidate receives to how much privately funded rivals spend.
Maine has a similar matching fund provision in its Clean Election Act, putting it on shaky legal ground, so the Senate voted to scuttle it. Further House and Senate votes are expected next week.
Some groups want the Legislature to pass an alternative allowing participating candidates to receive supplemental funding.
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