§ 1011 Statement of purpose
§ 1012 Definitions
§ 1013 Authority; procedures
§ 1014 Violations of legislative ethics
§ 1015-A Campaign contributions and solicitations prohibited
§ 1016-C Reports by legislative candidates
§ 1016-D Disclosure of bids on government contracts
§ 1016-G Disclosure of specific sources of income, interests and reportable liabilities
§ 1020 Penalty for false accusations
§ 1021 Membership on boards, authorities or commissions
§ 1022 Disciplinary guidelines
§ 1023 Code of ethics
§ 1024 Waiting period before engaging in lobbying activities

Terms Used In Maine Revised Statutes > Title 1 > Chapter 25 > Subchapter 2 - Legislative Ethics

  • accumulated contributions: includes as much of the employer's contribution in the Retirement Allowance Fund as is needed to reach 7. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Actuarial equivalent: means an amount of equal value when computed at the discount rate contained in actuarial assumptions adopted by the board. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Actuary: means the individual or the organization designated by the board to be the technical advisor to the board under section 17107. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Adult: means a person who has attained the age of 18 years. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72
  • Adult education: means education programs primarily operated for individuals beyond the compulsory school ages and administered by school administrative units. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 20-A Sec. 1
  • Advertisement: means all representations, other than those on the label, disseminated in any manner or by any means, relating to seed within the meaning of this subchapter. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 7 Sec. 1042
  • Agricultural seeds: shall include the seeds of grass, forage, cereal and fiber crops and any other kinds of seeds commonly recognized within this State as agricultural or field seeds, and mixtures of such seeds, except seeds of cereals grown in Maine and sold directly from grower to grower and not labeled as seed. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 7 Sec. 1042
  • Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
  • Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
  • Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
  • Associated organization: means any organization in which a Legislator or a member of the Legislator's immediate family is a managerial employee, director, officer or trustee or owns or controls, directly or indirectly, and severally or in the aggregate, at least 10% of the outstanding equity. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 1012
  • Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
  • Beneficiary: means a person or persons designated by a member to receive a benefit under this Part or a person otherwise entitled to receive a benefit under this Part. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. Source: OCC
  • Benefit: means any payment made, or required to be made, to a beneficiary under chapter 423, subchapter V or chapter 425, subchapter V. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Bequest: Property gifted by will.
  • Board: means the board of trustees, established under section 12004?F, subsection 9, to administer the Maine Public Employees Retirement System. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Budget failure: means the failure of a region, by August 1st of any fiscal year, to approve a budget for the region that is at least equal to the sum of the total allocations for career and technical education of the member school administrative units in the region. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 20-A Sec. 8301-A
  • Career and technical education: means a course or program of education designed to create or improve job-related skills that is part of a secondary school or middle school level curriculum and approved by the commissioner according to this chapter. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 20-A Sec. 8301-A
  • Close economic association: means the employers, employees, partners or clients of the Legislator or a member of the Legislator's immediate family; corporations in which the Legislator or a member of the Legislator's immediate family is an officer, director or agent or owns 10% or more of the outstanding capital stock; a business which is a significant unsecured creditor of the Legislator or a member of the Legislator's immediate family; or a business of which the Legislator or a member of the Legislator's immediate family is a significant unsecured creditor. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 1012
  • Code: means the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Commission: means the Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 1012
  • Commissioner: means the Commissioner of Education or the commissioner's designee. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 20-A Sec. 1
  • Community school district: means a state-approved unit of school administration composed of more than one municipality or school administrative district which may provide public education for any combination of kindergarten through grade 12. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 20-A Sec. 1
  • Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
  • Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
  • Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
  • Cooperative board: means the governing body with statutory powers and duties for a career and technical education region. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 20-A Sec. 1
  • Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
  • Counterclaim: A claim that a defendant makes against a plaintiff.
  • Creditable service: means a person's membership service, the person's prior service and service for which credit is allowable under sections 17755 and 17756; section 17760, subsection 3; section 18258; sections 18355 and 18356; and section 18360, subsection 2. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
  • Department: means any department, commission, institution or agency of State Government including the Maine Community College System. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
  • Domestic partner: means one of 2 unmarried adults who are domiciled together under long-term arrangements that evidence a commitment to remain responsible indefinitely for each other's welfare. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72
  • Donor: The person who makes a gift.
  • Earnable compensation: includes :
    (1) Workers' compensation benefits;
    (2) Maintenance, if any;
    (3) Any money paid by an employer to a 3rd party under a tax sheltered annuity contract or a deferred compensation plan for the future benefit of an employee provided that the money is not derived from amounts excluded from earnable compensation by paragraph B; and
    (4) Pick-up contributions. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Employee: means a person in any employment position, including public or private employment, employment with a nonprofit, religious, charitable or educational organization, or any other compensated service under an expressed, implied, oral or written contract for hire, but does not include a self-employed person. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 1012
  • Employee: means :
A. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. Source: U.S. Courts
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Ex officio: Literally, by virtue of one's office.
  • Executive session: A portion of the Senate's daily session in which it considers executive business.
  • Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
  • Gift: means anything of value, including forgiveness of an obligation or debt, given to a person without that person providing equal or greater consideration to the giver. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 1012
  • Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
  • Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
  • Honorarium: means a payment of money or anything with a monetary resale value to a Legislator for an appearance or a speech by the Legislator. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 1012
  • Immediate family: means a Legislator's spouse, domestic partner or dependent children. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 1012
  • in writing: include printing and other modes of making legible words. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72
  • Income: means economic gain to a person from any source, including, but not limited to, compensation for services, including fees, commissions and payments in kind; gross income derived from business; gross income derived from dealings in property, rents and royalties; gross income from investments including interest, capital gains and dividends; annuities; income from life insurance and endowment contracts; pensions; income from discharge of indebtedness; distributions from a partnership or limited liability company; gross income from an interest in an estate or trust; prizes; and grants, but does not include gifts or honoraria. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 1012
  • Indictment: The formal charge issued by a grand jury stating that there is enough evidence that the defendant committed the crime to justify having a trial; it is used primarily for felonies.
  • Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Labeling: includes all labels and other written, printed or graphic representations, in any form whatsoever, accompanying and pertaining to any seed whether in bulk or in containers, and includes invoices. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 7 Sec. 1042
  • lands: includes lands and all tenements and hereditaments connected therewith, and all rights thereto and interests therein. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72
  • Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). Source: OCC
  • Legislative session: That part of a chamber's daily session in which it considers legislative business (bills, resolutions, and actions related thereto).
  • Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
  • Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
  • Life estate: A property interest limited in duration to the life of the individual holding the interest (life tenant).
  • Local district: means :
  • A. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Majority: when used in reference to age shall mean the age of 18 and over. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72
  • Managerial employee: means an employee of an organization whose position requires substantial control over the organization's decision making, business operations, financial management or contracting and procurement activities. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 1012
  • Member: means any person included in the membership of a retirement program of the retirement system, as provided in chapter 423, subchapter 2, or chapter 425, subchapter 2. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Month: means a calendar month. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72
  • Municipal officers: means the mayor and municipal officers or councilors of a city, the members of the select board or councilors of a town and the assessors of a plantation. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72
  • Municipality: includes cities, towns and plantations, except that "municipality" does not include plantations in Title 10, chapter 110, subchapter IV; or Title 30?A, Part 2. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72
  • National Bank: A bank that is subject to the supervision of the Comptroller of the Currency. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is a bureau of the U.S. Treasury Department. A national bank can be recognized because it must have "national" or "national association" in its name. Source: OCC
  • Normal retirement age: means the specified age, the years of service requirement or any combination of age and years of service requirements at which a member becomes eligible for retirement benefits and at which those benefits may not be reduced under section 17852, subsection 3 or 3?A; section 17852, subsection 10, paragraph C; and section 18452, subsection 3. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Oath: includes an affirmation, when affirmation is allowed. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72
  • Oath: A promise to tell the truth.
  • Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
  • Off-system railroad: includes any railroad not connected to the national rail system and not regulated by the Federal Railroad Administration or its successors. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 23 Sec. 5001
  • Participating local district: means a local district that has approved the participation of its employees in the Participating Local District Retirement Program of the retirement system under section 18201. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
  • Person: shall include any individual, partnership, corporation, company, society or association. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 7 Sec. 1042
  • Personal property: All property that is not real property.
  • Pick-up contributions: means member contributions to the retirement system which are assumed and paid by the employer through a reduction of members' salaries for services rendered, in accordance with the United States Internal Revenue Code, Section 414(h), in lieu of employee contributions. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
  • Presiding officer: A majority-party Senator who presides over the Senate and is charged with maintaining order and decorum, recognizing Members to speak, and interpreting the Senate's rules, practices and precedents.
  • Principal: means the person who supervises the operation and management of a school and school property as determined necessary by the superintendent under policies established by the school board. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 20-A Sec. 1
  • Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
  • Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
  • Public law: A public bill or joint resolution that has passed both chambers and been enacted into law. Public laws have general applicability nationwide.
  • Qualified person: means a person who:
  • A. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 23 Sec. 6072
  • Railroad: includes every commercial, interurban and other railway and each and every branch and extension thereof by whatsoever power operated, together with all tracks, bridges, trestles, rights-of-way, subways, tunnels, stations, depots, union depots, ferries, yards, grounds, terminals, terminal facilities, structures and equipment and all other real estate, fixtures and personal property of every kind used in connection therewith, owned, controlled, operated or managed for public use in the transportation of persons or property. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 23 Sec. 5001
  • Railroad company: includes every corporation or person, their lessees, trustees, receivers or trustees appointed by any court owning, controlling, operating or managing any railroad for compensation within this State. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 23 Sec. 5001
  • Real estate: includes lands and all tenements and hereditaments connected therewith, and all rights thereto and interests therein. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72
  • Region: means a quasi-municipal corporation established by the Legislature to provide career and technical education to secondary students and middle school level students that is comprised of all the school administrative units within the geographical boundaries set forth for each career and technical education region in section 8451. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 20-A Sec. 8301-A
  • Regular interest: means interest at the rate set from time to time by the board in accordance with section 17156. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Relative: means an individual who is related to the Legislator or the Legislator's spouse or the Legislator's domestic partner as a parent; child; sibling; sibling of a parent; sibling of a parent once removed; first cousin; child of a sibling or of a spouse's or domestic partner's sibling; spouse; domestic partner; grandparent; grandchild; parent-in-law; spouse or domestic partner of a child; sibling of a spouse or domestic partner; stepparent; stepchild; stepsibling; and half-sibling and includes the betrothed of the Legislator. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 1012
  • Reportable liability: means any unsecured loan of $3,000 or more received from a person who is not a relative. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 1012
  • Retirement: means termination of membership with a retirement allowance granted under this chapter. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Retirement benefit: means the same as retirement allowance. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Retirement system: means the Maine Public Employees Retirement System. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • School administrative district: means a state-approved unit of school administration, composed of one or more municipalities which must provide public education to all public school students in the district. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 20-A Sec. 1
  • School administrative unit: means the state-approved unit of school administration and includes a municipal school unit, school administrative district, community school district, regional school unit or any other municipal or quasi-municipal corporation responsible for operating or constructing public schools, except that it does not include a career and technical education region. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 20-A Sec. 1
  • School board: means the governing body with statutory powers and duties for a school administrative unit. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 20-A Sec. 1
  • Secondary school: means that portion of a school that provides instruction in any combination of grades 9 through 12. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 20-A Sec. 1
  • Self-employed: means that the person qualifies as an independent contractor under Title 39?A, section 102, subsection 13?A. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 1012
  • Service: means service as an employee for which compensation was paid. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • Service credit: means credit received for creditable service as defined under subsection 10. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 5 Sec. 17001
  • State board: means the State Board of Education. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 20-A Sec. 1
  • State paper: means the newspaper designated by the Legislature, in which advertisements and notices are required to be published. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72
  • State valuation: means the value certified to the Secretary of State as provided in Title 36, section 305, subsection 1. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 20-A Sec. 1
  • Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
  • steam railroad company: means any railroad or terminal company, however chartered, using steam as its motive power or using Diesel engines; and the term "electric railroad" or "electric railroad company" means any railroad or terminal company using electricity as its motive power. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 23 Sec. 5001
  • Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
  • Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
  • Superintendent: means the person in a school administrative unit or school union appointed and having the authority and responsibility under this Title and other applicable statutes. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 20-A Sec. 1
  • Town: includes cities and plantations, unless otherwise expressed or implied. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72
  • Transportation of persons: includes every service in connection with or incidental to the safety, comfort and convenience of the person transported and the receipt, carriage and delivery for that person and his baggage. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 23 Sec. 5001
  • Transportation of property: includes every service in connection with or incidental to the transportation of property, including in particular its receipt, delivery, elevation, transfer, switching, carriage, ventilation, refrigeration, icing, dunnage, storage and handling, and the transmission of credit by express or telegraph companies. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 23 Sec. 5001
  • Tree and shrub seeds: shall include the seeds of woody plants commonly known and sold as tree and shrub seeds in this State. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 7 Sec. 1042
  • Trust account: A general term that covers all types of accounts in a trust department, such as estates, guardianships, and agencies. Source: OCC
  • Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
  • Unit: means a school administrative unit. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 20-A Sec. 8301-A
  • United States: includes territories and the District of Columbia. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72
  • Vegetable seeds: shall include the seeds of those crops which are grown in gardens or on truck farms and are generally known and sold under the name of vegetable seeds in this State. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 7 Sec. 1042
  • Verdict: The decision of a petit jury or a judge.
  • Violation of legislative ethics: means a violation of the prohibitions in section 1014 or 1015?A. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 1012
  • Weed seeds: shall include the seeds of all plants other than other crop seed and pure seed and shall include noxious-weed seeds. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 7 Sec. 1042
  • Year: means a calendar year, unless otherwise expressed. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 1 Sec. 72