List of amendments to the Maine Constitution

Ballot measures in Maine
Constitutional amendments
Citizen initiatives
Statutes referred by Legislature
Veto referenda
Laws • History

If two-thirds of both houses of the Maine State Legislature vote to do so, a proposed constitutional amendment to the Maine Constitution can be placed on the statewide ballot. If a proposed amendment is approved by a simple majority of those voting in a particular election, it becomes part of the constitution.

Through 2017, the Maine Constitution had been amended 173 times. Records compiled by the Maine State Legislature provide a list of amendments dating back to 1834.^[1] Below, we provide information on approved constitutional amendments through 1910 and on both approved and defeated amendments from 1911 on.

See also: Amending the Maine Constitution

1834-1910[edit]

Information on approved constitutional amendments in Maine from 1834 to 1910 is provided in the following table.

Number	Year	Description	In favor	Opposed	Outcome
1	1834	Voting for representatives	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
2	1837	Bail amendment	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
3	1839	Judicial terms of office	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
4	1841	Meeting of legislature, number of representatives, and terms of office for state offices	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
5	1847	Meeting of the legislature	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
6	1847	Governors, senators, and representatives elected by plurality	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
7	1850	Meeting of the legislature	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
8	1855	Officeholders chosen by the people or by the legislature	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
9	1864	Allow soldiers absent from state to vote for governor, senators, representatives, and county officers	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
10	1864	Allow soldiers absent from state to vote	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
11	1868	Authorize limited reimbursement of municipal war expenditures by loaning credit of the state	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
12	1869	Authorize the legislature to divide towns into voting districts	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
13	1875	Elect senators by plurality vote	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
14	1875	Special legislation and corporations	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
15	1875	Power of governor to pardon	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
16	1875	Appointment of judges of municipal and police courts	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
17	1875	Taxation	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
18	1875	Abolish the Land Agency	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
19	1875	Constitutional conventions	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
20	1875	Bribery at elections	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
21	1875	Codification of the amended constitution	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
22	1877	Electors and municipal indebtedness	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
23	1879	Biennial legislative sessions, state office election timing	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
24	1880	Elect governor by plurality vote	57,015	35,402	a
25	1880	Change terms of office of senators and representatives	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
26	1883	Prohibit manufacture and sale of intoxicating liquors	70,783	23,811	a
27	1887	Six-year term limit for state treasurer	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
28	1891	Governor appoints adjudant general	9,721	9,509	a
29	1891	Provide for educational qualification of voters	25,775	18,061	a
30	1897	Senate vacancies filled by immediate election	Unavailable	Unavailable	a
31	1907	Establish powers of initiative and referendum	53,785	24,543	a
32	1907	Amend Section 2 of Article X of the Maine Constitution	47,981	23,132	a

1911-1919[edit]

Number	Year	Description	In favor	Opposed	Outcome
	1911	Manufacturing and sale of intoxicating liquor	60,095	60,853	d
33	1911	Resolve to Amend the Constitution with Reference to the Seat of Government	59,678	41,294	a
34	1911	Increase municipal debt limit of towns over 40,000 population to 7.5%	39,242	38,712	a
35	1912	State bond issue for building and maintaining highways	80,619	21,454	a
43	1913	Classify property for purposes of taxation	18,060	8,157	a
44	1913	Timing of elections on constitutional amendments	16,746	6,741	a
	1917	Suffrage for women	20,604	38,838	d
45	1917	How to remove sheriffs from office	29,584	25,416	a
	1917	Permission for towns to create local polling places	22,588	24,593	d
	1917	Relating to the military (state militia)	20,585	23,912	d
46	1917	Apportionment of representatives in mergers of towns and cities	22,013	21,719	a
	1919	Relating to the military (state militia)	15,826	11,020	d
47	1919	Permit voter suffrage in town for 3 months after removal	22,024	6,751	a
48	1919	Bonds to build wharves and port facilities	22,637	6,777	a
49	1919	Increase the state debt limit	21,542	7,080	a
50	1919	Increase state bonds for highways and bridges	22,228	5,125	a

1920-1929[edit]

Number	Year	Description	In favor	Opposed	Outcome
51	1920	Division of cities and towns into polling places	76,129	29,333	a
52	1920	Bonus for soldiers and sailors	105,712	32,820	a
	1920	Income tax and tax on intangibles	53,975	64,787	d
53	1921	Absentee voting regulated	14,410	11,670	a
	1921	Bonds for state aid highways	9,924	16,194	d
	1921	Bonus for Spanish war soldiers	11,969	15,316	d
54	1925	Bonds for the Kennebec Bridge	54,107	8,228	a
55	1925	Bonds for highways and bridges	49,821	10,332	a
	1926	Prohibit use of public funds for other than public institutions and public purposes	65,349	94,148	d
56	1929	How to fill council vacancies	62,108	32,622	a
57	1929	Bonds for the Waldo-Hancock Bridge	58,107	43,919	a
	1929	Increase state bonds for highways and bridges	58,666	64,553	d

1930-1939[edit]

Number	Year	Description	In favor	Opposed	Outcome
58	1931	Number of senators apportioned	9,709	8,972	a
	1933	Voting machines	57,230	65,553	d
	1933	Raise state debt limit, exempt state loans for emergency relief from debt limit	47,678	81,023	d
59	1934	Repeal 26th amendment (Prohibition)	161,893	85,363	a
60	1934	Increase state debt limit	117,046	91,515	a
61	1934	Bond issue for the construction and improvement of state buildings	123,843	79,906	a
62	1935	Length of residence to qualify as voter	23,269	5,540	a
63	1935	Increase state bond issue to match federal aid for highways	19,074	9,915	a
64	1935	Voting machines authorized	17,855	10,996	a
65	1935	Bond issue for the Deer Isle-Sedgwick Bridge	21,383	8,375	a
66	1938	Six month residence to qualify as voter	125,996	79,342	a
	1939	To increase state highway bonds	16,500	21,265	d

1940-1949[edit]

Number	Year	Description	In favor	Opposed	Outcome
67	1944	No diversion of highway funds	139,805	33,172	a
	1946	Bond issue and tax measure to pay soldiers bonus	59,725	108,467	d
68	1948	Additional signatures for referendum petitions	68,237	65,698	a
69	1948	Traveling expenses of legislators	77,716	62,236	a

1950-1959[edit]

Number	Year	Description	In favor	Opposed	Outcome
70	1951	Make State Treasurer eligible for a second term	27,073	22,320	a
71	1951	Direct initiative petition to be signed by at least 10 per cent of gubernatorial vote	23,600	21,986	a
	1951	Increase municipal debt limit from 5 to 7.5%	21,478	26,232	d
72	1951	Make legislative measures inoperative unless revenue is provided	24,746	20,900	a
73	1951	Exempt obligations to Maine School Building Authority from municipal debt limit	23,887	20,594	a
74	1951	Absentee voting	39,006	10,187	a
	1951	Bond issue for state office building	16,107	31,639	d
75	1951	Clarify state borrowing power	28,758	17,582	a
76	1954	Increase municipal debt limit from 5 to 7 1/2 per cent	111,726	80,402	a
77	1954	Permit Indians to vote	155,528	41,688	a
78	1955	Extend pardon power of Governor and Council to juvenile delinquency offenses	22,658	7,562	a
79	1955	Change qualifications for citizenship of Governor	15,157	14,452	a
80	1955	Exempt Maine School Building Authority from municipal debt limit	19,378	9,327	a
81	1955	Clarify voting by persons in military service	25,347	4,664	a
82	1957	Bond issue of $20,000,000 for guaranteed loans for industrial purposes	66,427	30,750	a
83	1957	Change date of general election from September to November	63,820	36,202	a
84	1957	Four year term for Governor	60,240	41,392	a

1960-1969[edit]

Number	Year	Description	In favor	Opposed	Outcome
85	1960	Continuity of government in case of enemy attack	343,333	24,829	a
	1961	October vote on 2 amendments declared null and void. See under 1962
86	1962	Maine State Retirement System funds to be maintained in trust and not diverted	187,799	43,286	a
87	1962	Municipal voters to authorize bond issues for building or industrial use	147,477	74,928	a
88	1963	Election, powers and reapportionment of the House of Representatives	44,556	23,035	a
89	1963	Forbid discrimination against any person	49,966	19,294	a
90	1964	Eliminate requirement that Governor communicate pardons to Legislature	149,582	98,581	a
91	1964	Oaths of Senators and Representatives in absence of Governor and Council	179,451	65,193	a
92	1964	Examination of election returns for senators and filling of Senate vacancies	190,949	49,339	a
93	1964	Eliminate certain requirements regarding public money	131,407	102,809	a
94	1964	Revise Article VI relating to judicial power	143,614	79,095	a
95	1964	Authority of Governor as commander in chief	147,984	83,335	a
96	1964	Procedure for determining election of Governor	156,407	74,441	a
97	1964	President of Senate or Speaker of House assuming Office of Governor	171,113	59,170	a
98	1964	Additional $20,000,000 for guaranteed loans for industrial purposes	164,855	69,658	a
99	1964	Clarify procedure relating to election returns	178,614	52,836	a
100	1965	Eliminate voting restrictions on paupers	28,233	18,630	a
101	1965	State's credit for guaranteed loans on personal property for industrial purposes	31,685	14,632	a
102	1966	Apportionment, election and powers of Senate	157,773	91,618	a
103	1967	Time for codifying Constitution	46,649	29,798	a
104	1967	State's credit for bonds not exceeding one million for loans to Maine students in higher education	57,583	24,018	a
105	1967	Mortgage loan insurance for recreational projects increase from 10 to 17 million	40,619	38,454	a
106	1967	Repeal offices of judges and registers of probate as constitutional officers	41,850	34,454	a
107	1967	Temporary loans in anticipation of state tax revenue	45,086	31,930	a
108	1967	Industrial loans to fisheries and agriculture insured	49,886	38,365	a
109	1968	Increase to $80,000,000 the limit of legislature's authority to insure payment of loans	240,983	89,015	a
	1969	State's credit for bonds up to 25 million to private colleges	55,770	79,051	d
110	1969	Odd-numbered Senate, 31-35 members	76,330	57,950	a
111	1969	Municipal home rule	76,405	56,209	a
112	1969	State's credit pledged for loans of Maine School Building Authority	70,639	64,594	a

1970-1979[edit]

Number	Year	Description	In favor	Opposed	Outcome
113	1970	Reduce voting age to 20 years	167,660	117,668	a
114	1970	Valuation of certain lands at current value	168,390	99,316	a
115	1970	Convening of special sessions by the Legislature	157,903	110,047	a
116	1971	Reduce voting age to 18	144,949	99,274	a
117	1971	Governor's term to continue until successor qualified	170,851	67,875	a
118	1971	State's credit for loans to Maine college students	139,984	97,430	a
119	1972	State's credit for loans for housing for Indians	268,969	104,521	a
120	1972	State's credit for loans to resident Maine veterans	292,405	81,629	a
	1972	Reduce age of member of House to 20 years	179,557	194,166	d
121	1973	Regulation of municipal borrowing by Legislature	122,555	100,984	a
122	1973	Status of bills presented to Governor, legislative adjournment	153,639	68,446	a
123	1974	Eliminate 3-mo. residence requirement within state	217,445	110,588	a
124	1974	Appointment of Justices of Peace and Notaries Public	214,353	96,554	a
125	1974	Clarify validity of municipal industrial parks	239,953	71,644	a
126	1975	Establish single-member districts, Apportionment Commission	94,773	45,307	a
127	1975	Clarify initiative and referendum petition procedures	105,073	32,995	a
128	1975	Provide for inability of Governor to discharge powers and duties	112,171	31,647	a
129	1975	Abolish Executive Council	94,702	47,513	a
130	1975	Provide for annual sessions of Legislature	91,582	47,877	a
131	1976	Allow Governor 10 days to act on legislation	332,174	98,043	a
132	1976	Allow judges to hold office up to 6 mos. till successors appointed	331,802	105,278	a
133	1976	Increase bond limit on vet mortgage loans	247,499	170,083	a
134	1976	Bond service revenues	242,299	149,571	a
135	1978	Eliminate Justice of the Peace as a constitutional office	179,146	141,527	a
136	1978	Repeal poll tax & payment in lieu of military duty	185,997	124,650	a
137	1978	Reduce, combine guarantee limits for insurance of enterprises	204,747	95,546	a
138	1978	Require legislature to convene in December after general election	165,262	153,409	a
139	1978	Reimburse municipalities for losses caused by property tax exemptions	213,417	100,488	a
140	1978	Taxes may be assessed in cost-sharing formula	212,063	97,764	a
	1979	Remove the literacy requirement for eligibility to vote	84,971	170,267	d

1980-1989[edit]

#	Year	Description	In favor	Opposed	Outcome
141	1980	Bring into conformance the year in which the House and Senate shall be apportioned	298,113	144,976	a
142	1980	Change the referendum provisions so that the direct initiative and people's veto elections can be held at the same time as a scheduled statewide election	364,629	96,099	a
143	1980	Allow either the constitution or statutes to determine the manner of selection of judges of probate and justices of the peace	288,116	156,880	a
144	1981	Change the initiative provisions to require that all signatures be dated and validity be limited to one year	141,975	77,170	a
145	1981	Candidates for and members of the House of Representatives must reside in the district they represent	193,862	37,257	a
146	1981	Decrease the bonding limit of the Maine School Building Authority from $10,000,000 to $6,000,000	143,962	80,300	a
147	1982	Limit the life of bond authorizations	241,838	152,727	a
148	1982	Authorize the credit of the state to be loaned to secure funds for loans to parents of Maine students attending institutions of higher education	257,040	162,696	a
	1983	Allow state to create a property tax exemption for watercraft without being required to reimburse municipalities for 50% of the property tax revenue loss	133,605	151,499	d
149	1983	Expanding any principal amount of the Mining Excise Tax Trust Fund requires two-thirds vote of the Legislature	179,082	96,370	a
150	1983	Change municipal property tax loss reimbursement provisions and penalty payable upon the change of use of land containing minerals	140,680	125,309	a
151	1984	To limit the life of bonds authorized but not issued	309,717	175,127	a
	1984	Resolution of the Legislature to provide for an equal rights amendment	195,653	333,998	d
152	1984	Allow the Legislature to set the limit for guaranteed business loans to Maine Veterans	296,299	206,760	a
153	1984	No watercraft will be taxed as personal property, provided there is an excise tax on some watercraft collected and used by municipalities	336,848	169,286	a
	1985	Members of Legislature can be appointed to civil office as long as they resign from the Legislature upon confirmation	92,262	92,824	d
154	1985	Extend the tenure for sheriffs from 2 years to 4 years	110,080	80,141	a
155	1986	Improve the efficiency of the apportioning commission and specify how the commission should operate	250,609	130,410	a
156	1987	Clarify the rights of citizens to keep and bear arms	216,013	159,226	a
157	1987	Candidates for state legislature must reside in the district the candidate seeks to represent at the time he is nominated	300,932	73,316	a
158	1988	Remove gender biased language from Maine Constitution	292,335	232,456	a
	1989	Insure the payment of mortgage loans for affordable housing for Maine citizens, not to exceed $25,000,000 in the aggregate	112,090	115,232	d

1990-1999[edit]

#	Year	Description	In favor	Opposed	Outcome
	1990	State government guarantee repayment of housing loans to stimulate housing market	236,348	250,346	d
159	1991	Funds appropriated to the Maine State Retirement System may not be diverted to another purpose	262,113	111,705	a
160	1992	Treasurer of State Amendment	396,409	219,822	a
161	1992	Inland Fisheries Revenue Amendment	467,672	164,759	a
162	1992	Funded Mandates Amendment	327,249	278,518	a
163	1993	State Park Amendment	169,485	63,056	a
164	1995	Retirement System Amendment	274,786	123,208	a
165	1995	Line-Item Veto Amendment	286,929	115,216	a
166	1996	Signature Certification on Initiative Petitions	367,994	187,428	a
	1997	Repeal Mental Illness Provision	141,654	196,662	d
167	1999	Election Timing of People's Veto	285,174	114,640	a
168	1999	Property Taxes on Historically Significant Property	221,997	185,121	a

2000-2009[edit]

#	Year	Description	In favor	Opposed	Outcome
	2000	Commercial Fishing Property Tax Amendment	301,931	305,554	d
	2000	Repeal of Mental Illness Voting Restrictions Amendment	250,729	379,964	d
169	2002	Short-Term Debt for Highway Construction Amendment	262,900	212,940	a
170	2005	Commercial Fishing Amendment	276,116	109,508	a
171	2006	Initiative Petition Deadlines Amendment	270,922	229,749	a
	2009	Time Frame for Certification of Signatures Amendment	260,887	285,385	d

2010-2019[edit]

#	Year	Description	In favor	Opposed	Outcome
172	2011	Redistricting Amendment	197,026	175,112	a
173	2017	Public Pension Unfunded Liabilities Amendment	208,924	122,545	a
174	2019	Allow for Alternative Initiative Signatures for Persons with Disabilities Amendment	141,162	45,799	a
175	2021	Right to Produce, Harvest, and Consume Food Amendment	249,273	160,440	a

2020-2029[edit]

#	Year	Description	In favor	Opposed	Outcome
176	2021	Right to Produce, Harvest, and Consume Food Amendment	249,273	160,440	a
177	2023	Change Time Period of Judicial Review of Initiative Petitions Amendment	227,325	165,969	a
178	2023	Require Indian Treaty Obligations and Other Constitutional Provisions Included in Official Printing Amendment	287,205	106,984	a
	2023	Remove Residency Requirement for Initiative Petition Circulators Amendment	122,804	267,552	d
	2023	Repeal Constitutional Provision Prohibiting Voting for Individuals Under Guardianship Due to Mental Illness Amendment	183,281	210,301	d

See also[edit]

• List of Maine ballot measures
• List of People's Veto ballot measures in Maine

External links[edit]

• Constitution of the State of Maine
• Constitutional amendments from 1834-present.
• Downloadable Constitution (dead link) (PDF)
• Maine Politics and Government: The Constitutional Tradition, page 57.
• Constitute of the State of Maine as of 1902, including information about amendments up to the 30th.

Footnotes[edit]

	v • e Proposed amendments to the Maine Constitution
Laws	Maine Legislature • Maine State Senate • Maine House of Representatives • Maine Constitution • All Maine ballot measures
2000-2009	Commercial Fishing ('00) • Voting Restrictions/Mentally Ill ('00)) • Highway Construction Short-Term Debt ('02) • Commercial Fishing ('05) • Initiative Petition Deadlines ('06)
1990-1999	Housing Guarantees ('90) • Retirement Fund ('91) • Housing Loan Repayment ('91)) • State Treasurer ('92) • Inland Fisheries ('92) • Funded Mandates ('92) • State Parks ('93) • Retirement System ('95) • Line-Item Veto ('95) • Signature Certification ('96) • Mentally Ill Voting Rights ('97) • People's Veto Election Timing ('99) • Historically Significant Properties ('99)
1980-1989	Legislative Re-districting ('80) • Initiative Elections ('80) • Selecting Justices of the Peace ('80) • Petition Signature Deadlines ('81) • Legislature Residency ('81) • School Bonds ('81) • Life Limits/Bonds ('82) • Higher Ed Loans ('82) • Property Taxes on Watercraft ('83) • Excise Tax Trust ('83) • Mineral-Bearing Lands ('83) • Un-Issued Bonds ('84) • Equal Rights Amendment ('84) • Veteran Loans ('84) • Watercraft Excise Tax ('84) • Legislators in Civil Office ('85) • Tenure of Sheriffs ('85) • Re-Districting ('86) • Right to Bear Arms ('87) • Legislature Residency ('87) • Gender-Biased Language('88) • Mortgage Guarantees ('89)