No on One

I will let Philip Schooner of Biddeford make the case.

New Marketing Law Won’t Be Enforced

A new Maine law restricting marketing to minors is so problematic that Attorney General Janet Mills will not enforce the measure, her office said Friday.

“The Attorney General’s position is that she’s not enforcing the law,” Maine Deputy Attorney General Paul Stern said Friday.

Stern added that the authorities take the position that the measure could violate teens’ free speech rights — an argument raised last week by groups who mounted a court challenge to the statute. “We share some of the plaintiffs’ concerns about the law,” Stern said.

via MediaPost.

Maine Passes Gay Marriage Law

Maine’s governor will sign the gay marriage bill that has passed the house and senate. Maine will be the 5th state to make gay marriage legal.

Update: 12:35 p.m.

Gov. John Baldacci says he will sign the gay marriage bill into law, making

Maine the fifth state to legalize same-sex marriage.

via Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram.

Gay Marriage Bill To Be Introduced

In what will certainly be controversial, supporters of same-sex marriage are hoping to make it legal in Maine.

Gay marriage supporters announced today they are moving forward with legislation that will permit same-sex couples to wed in Maine.

The bill, to be sponsored by Sen. Dennis Damon, D-Trenton, would end the prohibition on qualified gay and lesbian couples from marrying in Maine, according to a statement from the Maine Freedom to Marry Coalition.

The bill codifies civil marriage in Maine law as the legally recognized union of two people. The bill affirms that religious institutions continue to have control over their own religious doctrine and teachings regarding who may marry within each faith.

Finally, the bill recognizes the validity of marriages validly licensed and certified in other states.

The coalition includes EqualityMaine, Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, the Maine Civil Liberties Union, and the Maine Women’s Lobby.

Opponents, including the Catholic Diocese of Portland and the Maine Family Policy Council, said they will fight the bill as it goes through the legislative process.