Printed on recycled paper 132nd MAINE LEGISLATURE FIRST REGULAR SESSION-2025 Legislative Document No. 10S.P. 23 In Senate, January 8, 2025 An Act to Add Political Affiliation as a Protected Class to the Maine Human Rights Act Reference to the Committee on Judiciary suggested and ordered printed. DAREK M. GRANT Secretary of the Senate Presented by Senator LIBBY of Cumberland. Page 1 - 132LR0320(01) 1 2 as amended by PL 2021, c. 366, §1, is further amended to 3 read: 4 5 To protect the public health, safety and welfare, it is declared to be the policy of this 6 State to keep continually in review all practices infringing on the basic human right to a 7 life with dignity, and the causes of these practices, so that corrective measures may, where 8 possible, be promptly recommended and implemented, and to prevent discrimination in 9 employment, housing, education, extension of credit or access to public accommodations 10 on account of an individual's actual or perceived race, color, sex, sexual orientation or 11 gender identity, physical or mental disability, religion, political affiliation, ancestry or 12 national origin and in employment, extension of credit and access to public 13 accommodations on the basis of age; and in employment and housing on the basis of 14 familial status; and in employment because of the previous assertion of a claim or right 15 against a prior employer under former Title 39 or Title 39‑A and because of protected 16 activity under Title 26, chapter 7, subchapter 5‑B; and to prevent discrimination or 17 retaliation on the basis of an assertion of rights under this Act or interference with an 18 individual's right to be free from discrimination prohibited under this Act. 19 is enacted to read: 20 "Party" has the same meaning as in Title 21-A, section 1, subsection 28. 21 is enacted to read: 22 23 party or a particular political philosophy, creed or ideal. 24 as amended by PL 2021, c. 366, §4, is further amended to 25 read: 26 27 The opportunity for an individual to secure employment without discrimination 28 because of race, color, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical or mental 29 disability, religion, political affiliation, age, ancestry, national origin or familial status is 30 recognized as and declared to be a civil right. The provisions of this subchapter regarding 31 political affiliation do not apply to an employer that is a party or is affiliated with, is an 32 agent of or that performs services on behalf of a party. 33 as amended by PL 2021, c. 293, Pt. B, §2; c. 366, 34 §5 and c. 476, §1, is further amended to read: 35 36 in violation of this Act, except when based on a bona fide occupational qualification: 37 A. For any employer to fail or refuse to hire or otherwise discriminate against any 38 applicant for employment because of race or color, sex, sexual orientation or gender 39 identity, physical or mental disability, religion, political affiliation, age, ancestry, 40 national origin or familial status, because of the applicant's previous assertion of a 41 claim or right under former Title 39 or Title 39‑A, because of previous actions taken 42 by the applicant that are protected under Title 26, chapter 7, subchapter 5‑B or because Page 2 - 132LR0320(01) 43 the applicant sought and received an order of protection under Title 19‑A, former 44 section 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110; or, because of those reasons, to discharge an 45 employee or discriminate with respect to hire, tenure, promotion, transfer, 46 compensation, terms, conditions or privileges of employment or any other matter 47 directly or indirectly related to employment; or, in recruiting of individuals for 48 employment or in hiring them, to utilize any employment agency that the employer 49 knows or has reasonable cause to know discriminates against individuals because of 50 their race or color, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical or mental 51 disability, religion, political affiliation, age, ancestry, national origin or familial status, 52 because of their previous assertion of a claim or right under former Title 39 or Title 53 39‑A, because of previous actions that are protected under Title 26, chapter 7, 54 subchapter 5‑B or because the applicant sought and received an order of protection 55 under Title 19‑A, former section 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110. 14 (1) This paragraph does not apply to discrimination governed by Title 39‑A, 15 section 353; 16 B. For any employment agency to fail or refuse to classify properly, refer for 17 employment or otherwise discriminate against any individual because of race or color, 18 sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical or mental disability, religion, 19 political affiliation, age, ancestry, national origin or familial status, because of the 20 individual's previous assertion of a claim or right under former Title 39 or Title 39‑A, 21 because of previous actions taken by the individual that are protected under Title 26, 22 chapter 7, subchapter 5‑B or because the individual sought and received an order of 23 protection under Title 19‑A, former section 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110; or to 24 comply with an employer's request for the referral of job applicants if a request 25 indicates either directly or indirectly that the employer will not afford full and equal 26 employment opportunities to individuals regardless of their race or color, sex, sexual 27 orientation or gender identity, physical or mental disability, religion, political 28 affiliation, age, ancestry, national origin or familial status, because of previous 29 assertion of a claim or right under former Title 39 or Title 39‑A, because of previous 30 actions that are protected under Title 26, chapter 7, subchapter 5‑B or because the 31 individual sought and received an order of protection under Title 19‑A, former section 32 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110; 33 C. For any labor organization to exclude from apprenticeship or membership or to 34 deny full and equal membership rights to any applicant for membership because of race 35 or color, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical or mental disability, 36 religion, political affiliation, age, ancestry, national origin or familial status, because 37 of the applicant's previous assertion of a claim or right under former Title 39 or Title 38 39‑A, because of previous actions taken by the applicant that are protected under Title 39 26, chapter 7, subchapter 5‑B or because the applicant sought and received an order of 40 protection under Title 19‑A, former section 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110; or, 41 because of those reasons, to deny a member full and equal membership rights, expel 42 from membership, penalize or otherwise discriminate with respect to hire, tenure, 43 promotion, transfer, compensation, terms, conditions or privileges of employment, 44 representation, grievances or any other matter directly or indirectly related to 45 membership or employment, whether or not authorized or required by the constitution 46 or bylaws of that labor organization or by a collective labor agreement or other 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Page 3 - 132LR0320(01) 47 contract; to fail or refuse to classify properly or refer for employment or otherwise 48 discriminate against any member because of race or color, sex, sexual orientation or 49 gender identity, physical or mental disability, religion, political affiliation, age, 50 ancestry, national origin or familial status, because of the member's previous assertion 51 of a claim or right under former Title 39 or Title 39‑A, because of previous actions 52 taken by the member that are protected under Title 26, chapter 7, subchapter 5‑B or 53 because the applicant sought and received an order of protection under Title 19‑A, 54 former section 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110; or to cause or attempt to cause an 55 employer to discriminate against an individual in violation of this section, except that 56 it is lawful for labor organizations and employers to adopt a maximum age limitation 57 in apprenticeship programs, if the employer or labor organization obtains prior 58 approval from the Maine Human Rights Commission of any maximum age limitation 59 employed in an apprenticeship program. The commission shall approve the age 60 limitation if a reasonable relationship exists between the maximum age limitation 61 employed and a legitimate expectation of the employer in receiving a reasonable return 62 upon the employer's investment in an apprenticeship program. The employer or labor 63 organization bears the burden of demonstrating that such a relationship exists; 18 D. For any employer, employment agency or labor organization, prior to employment 19 or admission to membership of any individual, to: 20 (1) Elicit or attempt to elicit information directly or indirectly pertaining to race 21 or color, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical or mental disability, 22 religion, political affiliation, age, ancestry, national origin or familial status, any 23 previous assertion of a claim or right under former Title 39 or Title 39‑A, any 24 previous actions that are protected under Title 26, chapter 7, subchapter 5‑B or any 25 previous actions seeking and receiving an order of protection under Title 19‑A, 26 former section 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110; 27 (2) Make or keep a record of race or color, sex, sexual orientation or gender 28 identity, physical or mental disability, religion, political affiliation, age, ancestry, 29 national origin or familial status, any previous assertion of a claim or right under 30 former Title 39 or Title 39‑A, any previous actions that are protected under Title 31 26, chapter 7, subchapter 5‑B or any previous actions seeking and receiving an 32 order of protection under Title 19‑A, former section 4007 or Title 19-A, section 33 4110, except that, in relation to physical or mental disability, when an employer 34 requires a physical or mental examination prior to employment, a privileged record 35 of that examination is permissible if made and kept in compliance with this Act; 36 (3) Use any form of application for employment, or personnel or membership 37 blank containing questions or entries directly or indirectly pertaining to race or 38 color, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical or mental disability, 39 religion, political affiliation, age, ancestry, national origin or familial status, any 40 previous assertion of a claim or right under former Title 39 or Title 39‑A, any 41 previous actions that are protected under Title 26, chapter 7, subchapter 5‑B or any 42 previous actions seeking and receiving an order of protection under Title 19‑A, 43 former section 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110. This section does not prohibit 44 any officially recognized government agency from keeping records permitted to be 45 kept under this Act in order to provide free services to individuals requesting 46 rehabilitation or employment assistance; 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Page 4 - 132LR0320(01) 1 (4) Print, publish or cause to be printed or published any notice or advertisement 2 relating to employment or membership indicating any preference, limitation, 3 specification or discrimination based upon race or color, sex, sexual orientation or 4 gender identity, physical or mental disability, religion, political affiliation, age, 5 ancestry, national origin or familial status, any previous assertion of a claim or 6 right under former Title 39 or Title 39‑A, any previous actions that are protected 7 under Title 26, chapter 7, subchapter 5‑B or any previous actions seeking and 8 receiving an order of protection under Title 19‑A, former section 4007 or Title 9 19-A, section 4110; or 10 (5) Establish, announce or follow a policy of denying or limiting, through a quota 11 system or otherwise, employment or membership opportunities of any group 12 because of the race or color, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical or 13 mental disability, religion, political affiliation, age, ancestry, national origin or 14 familial status, because of the previous assertion of a claim or right under former 15 Title 39 or Title 39‑A, because of previous actions that are protected under Title 16 26, chapter 7, subchapter 5‑B or because of any previous actions seeking and 17 receiving an order of protection under Title 19‑A, former section 4007 or Title 18 19-A, section 4110, of that group; or 19 E. For an employer, employment agency or labor organization to discriminate in any 20 manner against individuals because they have opposed a practice that would be a 21 violation of this Act or because they have made a charge, testified or assisted in any 22 investigation, proceeding or hearing under this Act. This paragraph does not limit the 23 liability of persons pursuant to section 4633. 24 as amended by PL 2021, c. 366, §7 and c. 476, §2, 25 is further amended to read: 26 The opportunity for an individual to secure housing in accordance with the individual's 27 ability to pay, and without discrimination because of race, color, sex, sexual orientation or 28 gender identity, physical or mental disability, religion, political affiliation, ancestry, 29 national origin or familial status or because the individual has sought and received an order 30 of protection under Title 19‑A, former section 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110, is hereby 31 recognized as and declared to be a civil right. 32 as amended by PL 2021, c. 366, §§8 to 10 and c. 476, 33 §3, is further amended to read: 34 35 It is unlawful housing discrimination, in violation of this Act: 36 37 sublessee, managing agent or other person having the right to sell or rent or manage a 38 housing accommodation, or any agent of these, to: 39 A. Make or cause to be made any written or oral inquiry concerning the race or color, 40 sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical or mental disability, religion, 41 political affiliation, ancestry, national origin, familial status or any previous actions 42 seeking and receiving an order of protection under Title 19‑A, former section 4007 or 43 Title 19-A, section 4110 of any prospective purchaser, occupant or tenant of the 44 housing accommodation; Page 5 - 132LR0320(01) 1 B. Refuse to show or refuse to sell, rent, lease, let or otherwise deny to or withhold 2 from any person the housing accommodation because of race or color, sex, sexual 3 orientation or gender identity, physical or mental disability, religion, political 4 affiliation, ancestry, national origin or familial status or because the person sought and 5 received an order of protection under Title 19‑A, former section 4007 or Title 19-A, 6 section 4110; 7 C. Make, print or publish or cause to be made, printed or published any notice, 8 statement or advertisement relating to the sale, rental or lease of the housing 9 accommodation that indicates any preference, limitation or discrimination based upon 10 race or color, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical or mental disability, 11 religion, political affiliation, ancestry, national origin, familial status or any previous 12 actions seeking and receiving an order of protection under Title 19‑A, former section 13 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110 or an intention to make any such preference, limitation 14 or discrimination; 15 D. Discriminate against any person because of race or color, sex, sexual orientation or 16 gender identity, physical or mental disability, religion, political affiliation, ancestry, 17 national origin or familial status or because the person sought and received an order of 18 protection under Title 19‑A, former section 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110 in the 19 price, terms, conditions or privileges of the sale, rental or lease of any housing 20 accommodations or in the furnishing of facilities or services in connection with any 21 housing accommodations; or 22 E. Evict or attempt to evict any tenant of any housing accommodation because of the 23 race or color, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical or mental disability, 24 religion, political affiliation, ancestry, national origin or familial status of the tenant or 25 because the tenant sought and received an order of protection under Title 19‑A, former 26 section 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110; 27 28 estate salesperson, or any agent of these, to: 29 A. Fail or refuse to show any person a housing accommodation listed for sale, lease or 30 rent because of race or color, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical or 31 mental disability, religion, political affiliation, ancestry, national origin or familial 32 status or because the person sought and received an order of protection under Title 33 19‑A, former section 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110; 34 B. Misrepresent, for the purpose of discriminating because of race or color, sex, sexual 35 orientation or gender identity, physical or mental disability, religion, political 36 affiliation, ancestry, national origin, familial status or any previous actions seeking and 37 receiving an order of protection under Title 19‑A, former section 4007 or Title 19-A, 38 section 4110, the availability or asking price of a housing accommodation listed for 39 sale, lease or rent or for such reason to fail to communicate to the person having the 40 right to sell, rent or lease the housing accommodation any offer for the same made by 41 any applicant; 42 C. In any other manner to discriminate against any applicant for a housing 43 accommodation because of race or color, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, 44 physical or mental disability, religion, political affiliation, ancestry, national origin or Page 6 - 132LR0320(01) 45 familial status or because the applicant sought and received an order of protection under 46 Title 19‑A, former section 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110; 3 D. Make or cause to be made any written or oral inquiry or record concerning the race 4 or color, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical or mental disability, 5 religion, political affiliation, ancestry, national origin, familial status or any previous 6 actions seeking and receiving an order of protection under Title 19‑A, former section 7 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110 of any applicant for or intended occupant of a housing 8 accommodation; or 9 E. Accept for listing any housing accommodation when the person having the right to 10 sell, rent or lease the housing accommodation has directly or indirectly indicated an 11 intention of discriminating among prospective tenants or purchasers on the ground of 12 race or color, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical or mental disability, 13 religion, political affiliation, ancestry, national origin, familial status or any previous 14 actions seeking and receiving an order of protection under Title 19‑A, former section 15 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110, or when the broker or salesperson knows or has 16 reason to know that the person having the right to sell, rent or lease the housing 17 accommodation has made a practice of discrimination since July 1, 1972; 18 19 is made for a loan or other form of financial assistance for the acquisition, construction, 20 rehabilitation, repair or maintenance of any housing accommodation, whether secured or 21 unsecured, or agent of the person, to: 22 A. Make or cause to be made any oral or written inquiry concerning the race or color, 23 sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical or mental disability, religion, 24 political affiliation, ancestry, national origin, familial status or any previous actions 25 seeking and receiving an order of protection under Title 19‑A, former section 4007 or 26 Title 19-A, section 4110 of any applicant for financial assistance or of existing or 27 prospective occupants or tenants of housing accommodations; or 28 B. Discriminate in the granting of financial assistance, or in the terms, conditions or 29 privileges relating to obtaining or the use of any financial assistance, against any 30 applicant because of race or color, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical 31 or mental disability, religion, political affiliation, ancestry, national origin, familial 32 status or any previous actions seeking and receiving an order of protection under Title 33 19‑A, former section 4007 or Title 19-A, section 4110; or 34 35 accommodations to refuse to rent or impose different terms of tenancy to any individual 36 who is a recipient of federal, state or local public assistance, including medical assistance 37 and housing subsidies, primarily because of the individual's status as recipient. 38 as amended by PL 2021, c. 366, §11, is further amended to 39 read: 40 41 Nothing in this Act may be construed to prohibit or limit the exercise of the privilege 42 of every person and the agent of any person having the right to sell, rent, lease or manage 43 a housing accommodation to set up and enforce specifications in the selling, renting, 44 leasing or letting or in the furnishings of facilities or services in connection with the 1 2 Page 7 - 132LR0320(01) 45 facilities that are consistent with business necessity and are not based on the race, color, 46 sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical or mental disability, religion, country of 47 ancestral political affiliation, ancestry, national origin or familial status of or the receipt of 48 public assistance payments by any prospective or actual purchaser, lessee, tenant or 49 occupant. Nothing in this Act may be construed to prohibit or limit the exercise of the 50 privilege of every person and the agent of any person making loans for or offering financial 51 assistance in the acquisition, construction, rehabilitation, repair or maintenance of housing 52 accommodations to set standards and preferences, terms, conditions, limitations or 53 specifications for the granting of loans or financial assistance that are consistent with 54 business necessity and are not based on the race, color, sex, sexual orientation or gender 55 identity, physical or mental disability, religion, country of ancestral political affiliation, 56 ancestry, national origin or familial status of or the receipt of public assistance payments 57 by the applicant for a loan or financial assistance or of any existing or prospective owner, 58 lessee, tenant or occupant of a housing accommodation. 15 as amended by PL 2021, c. 366, §12, is further amended to 16 read: 17 18 The opportunity for every individual to have equal access to places of public 19 accommodation without discrimination because of race, color, sex, sexual orientation or 20 gender identity, age, physical or mental disability, religion, political affiliation, ancestry or 21 national origin is recognized as and declared to be a civil right. 22 as amended by PL 2023, c. 489, §§7 to 9, is 23 further amended to read: 24 25 who is the owner, lessor, lessee, proprietor, operator, manager, superintendent, agent or 26 employee of any place of public accommodation to directly or indirectly refuse, 27 discriminate against or in any manner withhold from or deny the full and equal enjoyment 28 to any person, on account of race or color, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, age, 29 physical or mental disability, religion, political affiliation, ancestry or national origin, any 30 of the accommodations, advantages, facilities, goods, services or privileges of public 31 accommodation, or in any manner discriminate against any person in the price, terms or 32 conditions upon which access to accommodations, advantages, facilities, goods, services 33 and privileges may depend. 34 For purposes of this subsection, unlawful discrimination also includes, but is not limited 35 to: 36 A. The imposition or application of eligibility criteria that screen out or tend to screen 37 out an individual with a disability or any class of individuals with disabilities from fully 38 and equally enjoying any goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages or 39 accommodations, unless the criteria can be shown to be necessary for the provision of 40 the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages or accommodations being offered; 41 B. A failure to make reasonable modifications in policies, practices or procedures, 42 when modifications are necessary to afford the goods, services, facilities, privileges, 43 advantages or accommodations to individuals with disabilities, unless, in the case of a 44 private entity, the private entity can demonstrate that making the modifications would 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Page 8 - 132LR0320(01) 45 fundamentally alter the nature of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages 46 or accommodations; 3 C. A failure to take steps that may be necessary to ensure that no individual with a 4 disability is excluded, denied services, segregated or otherwise treated differently than 5 other individuals because of the absence of auxiliary aids and services, unless, in the 6 case of a private entity, the private entity can demonstrate that taking those steps would 7 fundamentally alter the nature of the good, service, facility, privilege, advantage or 8 accommodation being offered or would result in an undue burden; and 9 D. A private entity's failure to remove architectural barriers and communication 10 barriers that are structural in nature in existing facilities and transportation barriers in 11 existing vehicles and rail passenger cars used by an establishment for transporting 12 individuals, not including barriers that can be removed only through the retrofitting of 13 vehicles or rail passenger cars by the installation of a hydraulic or other lift, where the 14 removal is readily achievable. 15 When the entity can demonstrate that the removal of a barrier under this paragraph is 16 not readily achievable, a failure to make the goods, services, facilities, privileges, 17 advantages or accommodations available through alternative methods if alternative 18 methods are readily achievable; 19 as amended by PL 2021, c. 366, §14, is further 20 amended to read: 21 22 publish, display or communicate any notice or advertisement to the effect that any of the 23 accommodations, advantages, facilities and privileges of any place of public 24 accommodation are refused, withheld from or denied to any person on account of race or 25 color, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, age, physical or mental disability, religion, 26 political affiliation, ancestry or national origin, or that the patronage or custom of any 27 person belonging to or purporting to be of any particular race or color, sex, sexual 28 orientation or gender identity, age, physical or mental disability, religion, political 29 affiliation, ancestry or national origin is unwelcome, objectionable or not acceptable, 30 desired or solicited, or that the clientele is restricted to any particular race or color, sex, 31 sexual orientation or gender identity, age, physical or mental disability, religion, political 32 affiliation, ancestry or national origin. The production of any communication, notice or 33 advertisement purporting to relate to any place of accommodation is presumptive evidence 34 in any action that the action was authorized by its owner, manager or proprietor; 35 as amended by PL 2021, c. 366, §16, is further amended 36 to read: 37 38 39 40 The opportunity for every individual to be extended credit without discrimination 41 solely because of any one or more of the following factors: age; race; color; sex; sexual 42 orientation or gender identity; marital status; ancestry; religion; political affiliation; or 43 national origin is recognized as and declared to be a civil right. 1 2 Page 9 - 132LR0320(01) 1 as corrected by RR 2023, c. 2, Pt. B, §65, is amended to 2 read: 3 4 It is unlawful credit discrimination for any creditor to refuse the extension of credit to 5 any person solely on the basis of any one or more of the following factors: age, race, color, 6 sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, marital status, ancestry, religion, political 7 affiliation or national origin in any credit transaction. It is not unlawful credit 8 discrimination to comply with the terms and conditions of any bona fide group credit life, 9 accident and health insurance plan, for a financial institution extending credit to a married 10 person to require both spouses to sign a note and a mortgage and to deny credit to persons 11 under 18 years of age or to consider a person's age in determining the terms upon which 12 credit will be extended. 13 as amended by PL 2021, c. 366, §18, is further amended 14 to read: 15 16 The opportunity for an individual at an educational institution to participate in all 17 educational, counseling and vocational guidance programs, all apprenticeship and on-the- 18 job training programs and all extracurricular activities without discrimination because of 19 sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, a physical or mental disability, ancestry, national 20 origin, race, color or, religion or political affiliation is recognized and declared to be a civil 21 right. 22 as amended by PL 2021, c. 366, §19, is further 23 amended to read: 24 25 in violation of this Act, on the basis of sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, physical 26 or mental disability, ancestry, national origin, race, color or, religion or political affiliation, 27 to: 28 A. Exclude a person from participation in, deny a person the benefits of, or subject a 29 person to, discrimination in any academic, extracurricular, research, occupational 30 training or other program or activity; 31 B. Deny a person equal opportunity in athletic programs; 32 C. Apply any rule concerning the actual or potential familial status or marital status of 33 a person or to exclude any person from any program or activity because of pregnancy 34 or related conditions or because of sex or sexual orientation or gender identity; 35 D. Deny a person admission to the institution or program or to fail to provide equal 36 access to and information about an institution or program through recruitment; or 37 E. Deny a person financial assistance availability and opportunity. 38 as enacted by PL 2023, c. 489, §10, is amended 39 to read: 40 41 individual, exclude an individual from participation in a service, program or activity of that 42 public entity or otherwise deny to an individual the benefits of a service, program or activity Page 10 - 132LR0320(01) 43 of that public entity by reason of the individual's race or color, sex, sexual orientation or 44 gender identity, age, physical or mental disability, religion, political affiliation, ancestry or 45 national origin. 4 5 This bill adds political affiliation as a protected class under the Maine Human Rights 6 Act. It also corrects a repealed cross-reference with respect to protection orders. 1 2 3 5 6