1. United States
2. Maine
3. Letter

Support Legislation to Limit Corporate Political Spending Through State Charter Authority I am writing to ask you to support legislation that would define and limit the powers granted to corporations under state charter law, specifically to exclude the power to spend money to influence elections or ballot measures. Hawaii became the first state to enact such a law when Governor Josh Green signed SB 2471 on May 14, 2026. That law clarifies that corporations are “artificial persons” created by state law and granted powers by it — and that those powers do not include spending money to influence elections or ballot initiatives. Similar legislation has been introduced in more than a dozen states, and model legislation is available. Corporations exist only by virtue of powers granted by state charter, states retain authority to define the scope of those powers. This approach does not directly regulate political speech; it defines what powers the state confers when it grants a corporation legal existence.  I recognize that there is some constitutional push-back on this approach; however, corporations invoke constitutional personhood when it benefits them (speech, property, contract rights) but disclaim it when it would burden them (personal liability). Courts have simply never resolved that tension into a unified theory. They’ve addressed each right and each protection case by case, and the results are logically inconsistent.  The supporters of corporations = people should not be allowed to cherry-pick what aspects of personhood they like:  a corporation is either equal to a person, or it is not.  That issue needs to be addressed head-on in any legislation introduced. I ask that you introduce or support legislation in our state following the model used by Hawaii and other states—including addressing the prior failure to address a unified theory of corporate personhood.