FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2019
Contact: Kristen Schulze Muszynski
o: 207-626-8404/ c: 207-441-7638

Secretary Dunlap receives petitions for people’s veto of immunization law

AUGUSTA – Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap has received petitions for the people’s veto of LD 798, as of today’s 5 p.m. deadline. Fourteen people’s veto efforts were in circulation as of the Maine Legislature’s adjournment on June 20. Of those, this is the only one that has submitted signed petitions:

• LD 798 (Chaptered Law 154): An Act to Protect Maine Children and Students from Preventable Diseases By Repealing Certain Exemptions from the Laws Governing Immunization Requirements

The law that is the subject of this people’s veto effort is now stayed from taking effect. The Secretary of State’s Office has 30 days to certify the petitions and determine if the threshold of registered voters’ signatures has been met. Proponents must submit at least 63,067 valid signatures of registered Maine voters. The LD 798 petitioners report a total of 93,531 signatures.

If this people’s veto effort is certified to have the required number of valid signatures, the people’s veto question will go before voters at the Tuesday, March 3, 2020 presidential preference primary election, which is the next statewide election. The ballot question is worded thusly:

“Do you want to reject the new law that removes religious and philosophical exemptions to requiring immunization against certain communicable diseases for students to attend schools and colleges and for employees of nursery schools and health care facilities?”

If the people’s veto effort is determined to be invalid, then the law in question will take effect the day following that determination.
Visit the People’s Veto page of the Maine Department of the Secretary of State website for more information.