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NOM loses in 1st Circuit appeal over Maine campaign disclosures

January 31, 2012

Anti–gay-marriage group loses Maine list appeal

PORTLAND, Maine—An appeals court on Tuesday upheld the state’s campaign disclosure law that requires a national anti-gay-marriage group to release its donor list, but the group plans to take the fight to shield the list to the U.S. Supreme Court.  Read article

Here’s the opinion.

7 Comments Leave a Comment

  • 1. Marta  |  January 31, 2012 at 9:59 pm

    Whaaa……the part at the end that says:

    "If the petitions are certified by election officials, as expected, then the gay-marriage proposal would go to the Legislature for an up or down vote.

    If the Legislature approves the proposal and Republican Gov. Paul LePage signs it, then gay marriage will be legalized. If the Legislature doesn't approve it or the governor doesn't sign a bill, as expected, then the question goes to voters and would be placed on the November ballot."

    I had no idea that this could be made into law WITHOUT going to a popular vote.

  • 2. Leo  |  February 1, 2012 at 6:33 am

    I don't know for sure, but suspect that if the Legislature approves the proposal, it becomes like any other law that the Legislature enacts: it doesn't require referendum, but opponents of the law can collect signatures to place it on the ballot.

  • 3. sfbob  |  February 1, 2012 at 8:48 am

    Poor NOM. Either they are gluttons for punishment, or they have really bad lawyers. I don't think they've won a single case of this sort in any jurisdiction. It's evident that they have more money than they know what to do with since they keep going back to be kicked again and again.

  • 4. Leo  |  February 1, 2012 at 9:16 am

    Or, they never expected to win, only to create years of delay.

  • 5. Stefan  |  February 1, 2012 at 10:58 am

    But how could that be since the signature gathering was already done, just in reverse.

  • 6. Leo  |  February 1, 2012 at 11:13 am

    Why not? There are no "negative" signatures. The signature gathering that was done was to show that many people support the law, and that's what you need to force a referendum if the legislature doesn't want to act. The other would be to show that many people oppose the law, which is what you need to force a referendum on a law that the legislature has passed. The two aren't mutually exclusive: there are many people who support the law and also many people who oppose the law. It's only in the referendum itself that you find out which there's more of (that bothered to vote).

    Again, I don't know if this is exactly how it works, but this is what I think makes the most sense.

  • 7. Bob  |  February 1, 2012 at 11:54 am

    Well there is that too. They know they're going to lose so they're intent on muddying the process and drawing it out for as long as they can…as though that were a winning strategy. This particular case has absolutely no downside for us; even though Maine's current governor is a homophobic blowhard, the state is put in the position of defending its own law here so none of our money needs to be expended. Meanwhile whatever money is being spent to pursue this losing case, it isn't being spent obstructing our rights elsewhere. Thank you, NOM!

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