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In the last legislative session, state lawmakers approved measures that made it 30 percent harder for candidates for governor to qualify for public financing. They also required all gubernatorial candidates to be audited by the Ethics Commission.

Lawmakers also asked Jonathan Wayne, executive director of the commission, to study further improvements to public financing in gubernatorial elections.

At a public hearing Friday morning, a handful of proponents – mostly the usual suspects – said that the most recent round of changes should play out in 2010 before any more are made.

“Maine people want a strong public financing system and that system must be available to qualified candidates who seek Maine’s most important office,” said Senate President Beth Edmonds in a statement to the committee. “I urge you to allow the changes the Legislature has already made to take affect and reject any attempt to weaken or eliminate this important program.”

Legislators are concerned about the cost of the program, given the current state of the economy and the state’s budget, and also about the possibility of “fringe” candidates qualifying for public financing. They have asked Wayne to also consider doing away with the system for gubernatorial candidates altogether.

Dan Billings served as counsel for Republican Chandler Woodcock, who ran for governor in 2006. He said the guidelines then were very difficult for candidates to meet, and the new requirements will ensure that candidates are viable.

Billings also said the commission should be looking at cutting the costs of the legislative system. The Legislature has focused on the gubernatorial system because it doesn’t affect them, he said.

“Lots of money goes to legislative candidates who have no chance of winning and who didn’t run active campaigns,” Billings said.

Allison Smith of Maine Citizens for Clean Elections and Ann Luther of the League of Women Voters both said they would not recommend further changes.

Luther urged the commission not to do away with the public financing process for gubernatorial candidates.

“We believe that failure to retain the public financing system for Maine’s gubernatorial candidates would be a breach of public trust and an enormous loss to the public good,” she said during the hearing.

Smith said she supports increased seed money requirements and continued efforts to make sure only viable candidates get MCEA funding.

However, viable shouldn’t be confused with belonging to one of the major parties.

Proposals that seek to fund fewer candidates often make it harder for the third party candidates, Smith said, often imposing additional requirements for them.

Billings also addressed this. He is a Republican, and said he believes in the two-party system. However, most Mainers don’t, he said – as evident by the fact that two of the last five governors were independents.

Jon Bartholomew of Common Cause also issued a statement to the commission on the issue. Common Cause helped initiate the Clean Elections program. The governor is the most likely office to draw influence from special interests, he said, “Therefore it is imperative that the system that has so effectively taken the influence of big money out of the Legislature also be an option to remove big money from the race for governor.”

EARLIER on PolitickerME.com:

• Ethics Commission to examine Gubernatorial MCEA requirements