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Amend the resolution by striking out the title and substituting the following:
‘RESOLUTION, Proposing an Amendment to the Constitution of Maine To Preserve Hunting and Fishing’
Amend the resolution by striking out all of that part designated "Constitution, Article IX, §26" (page 1, lines 4 to 14 in L.D.) and inserting the following:
 
Constitution, Art. IV, Pt. Third, §18, sub-§1, as amended by CR 2005, c. 2, is further amended to read:
. 1. Petition procedure. The electors may propose to the Legislature for its consideration any bill, resolve or resolution, including bills to amend or repeal emergency legislation but not an amendment of the State Constitution and not an amendment to the laws of the State governing hunting and fishing that would limit hunting or fishing, by written petition addressed to the Legislature or to either branch thereof and filed in the office of the Secretary of State by the hour of 5:00 p.m., on or before the 50th day after the date of convening of the Legislature in first regular session or on or before the 25th day after the date of convening of the Legislature in second regular session, except that the written petition may not be filed in the office of the Secretary of State later than 18 months after the date the petition form was furnished or approved by the Secretary of State. If the applicable deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the period runs until the hour of 5:00 p.m., of the next day which is not a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday.
 
Constitution, Art. IX, §26 is enacted to read:
Section 26.  Preservation of hunting and fishing heritage.  Hunting and fishing and the taking of wildlife are a valued part of our heritage that must be forever preserved and regulated for the public good.’
Amend the resolution by striking out all of the question (page 1, lines 22 to 27 in L.D.) and inserting the following:
‘
 
"Do you favor amending the Constitution of Maine to provide that laws limiting hunting or fishing may not be proposed through a citizen initiative and that hunting and fishing and the taking of wildlife are a valued part of our heritage that must be forever preserved and regulated for the public good?"
 
’
 
SUMMARY
This amendment, which is the majority report of the Joint Standing Committee on Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, strikes the constitutional amendment language in the bill and replaces it with constitutional language to forever preserve hunting and fishing and the taking of wildlife subject to regulation for the public good. The amendment also excludes from laws that may be proposed in a citizen initiative laws governing hunting and fishing that would limit hunting or fishing. Additionally, the amendment changes the ballot question to reflect this new language.
FISCAL NOTE REQUIRED
(See attached)