AUGUSTA – As a Monday deadline for filing citizen initiative petitions passed, few campaigns showed interest in putting their proposals before Maine voters next November.

Advocacy groups had until 5 p.m. to turn in the number of voter signatures needed to force a referendum unless the Legislature enacts the bill in question.

Property tax-cut advocates beat the deadline by months.

In October 2001, advocates of a plan to limit property taxes to 1 percent of assessed value, plus every taxpayer’s share of their own town’s debt, submitted their petitions.

State election officials are in the process of reviewing the petitions to make sure that a minimum of 42,101 certified voters’ signatures have been turned in.

If that minimum is met, the proposal will go to the Legislature, which must pass it as proposed or send it to the voters this November. Lawmakers also can place a competing question on the ballot.

Advocates for most of the other initiative campaigns registered with the Secretary of State’s Office said Monday they had no intention of meeting the deadline but would keep their campaigns alive for possible referendum tries as early as next year.

Backers of a proposal to ban use of public funds and void state and local laws that provide insurance and other benefits to unmarried couples said they did not plan to turn in petitions by Monday’s deadline.

The Christian Civic League of Maine has been soliciting signatures to move its proposal forward, but it was unclear how many have been collected.

The league’s board has taken no formal position on whether to continue its campaign, “but based on conversations with individual board members, we will continue,” said the group’s executive director, Michael Heath.

Robert Tardy, leader of a proposal to allow video lottery machines at commercial horse racing tracks, said his campaign is also on hold for this election cycle but will remain in business for a possible referendum in the future.

Maine voters in November 2000 rejected a proposal to allow video gambling at horse-racing tracks if 40 percent of the profits are used for property tax relief. As written, the proposal applied only to the Scarborough Downs racetrack in southern Maine.

Also sidelined from a 2002 ballot contest will be a proposal to repeal remaining sales taxes on foods in Maine.

As of 2001, a “snack tax” that had applied to a wide variety of packaged and nonstaple food products – including pretzels, bagels, doughnuts, potato sticks, cakes and pies – was repealed.

But critics, including a number of legislators, said the law still allowed sales taxes on items like candy bars, chewing gum, breath mints and soft drinks.

Rep. John Michael, an independent from Auburn, is heading a campaign to get rid of taxes he said remain on restaurant meals, candy, prepared foods, bottled water and vitamin supplements.

Under Michael’s proposal, the tax would be repealed on “anything that goes into your mouth, except for liquor and cigarettes.” The campaign will be kept intact.

Cannabis activist Donald Christen of Madison let Monday’s deadline pass without submitting petitions for either of the initiatives he is supporting.

The first seeks to expand the current medical marijuana law to increase the number of plants a person may possess. It also would allow patients to self-prescribe and set up marijuana outlet stores throughout the state.

The second would allow hemp to be grown for use in agriculture and industry and to make hemp products. A message left with Christen was not immediately returned Monday.