Group hoping to 'veto' Maine budget intends to collect signatures at polling places Tuesday

Yahoo

4 hours ago

Jun. 9—Activists hoping to overturn the state's $11.3 billion continuing services budget are expected to gather signatures at polling stations around the state Tuesday as they rapidly approach their deadline to qualify for the November ballot.
Democrats, including Gov. Janet Mills, have urged people not to sign the petition, saying that simply getting enough signatures could force the government to shut down this summer even if voters ultimately reject the proposal this fall.
A group of legislative Republicans, led by Rep. Gary Drinkwater, R-Milford, filed paperwork for a people's veto initiative to overturn the partial budget shortly after it was passed in a mostly party-line vote in March. They have until 5 p.m. on June 18 to submit at least 67,682 signatures to qualify for the ballot.
The budget passed in March contains enough funding to sustain existing services into the new fiscal year that begins July 1, while the Legislature continues to debate a second budget bill with additional spending and taxing proposals.
It wasn't clear how many signatures the budget opponents have gathered so far. But Rep. Shelley Rudnicki, R-Fairfield, said in a brief interview at the State House last week that signature gathers are planning to be at polling places Tuesday, when voters head to the polls to cast ballots on school budgets, local ballot questions and municipal and school office holders.
Rudnicki said she didn't have an update on the number of signatures collected so far or on the group's chances of gathering enough to qualify for the ballot. Neither Rudnicki nor Drinkwater responded to follow-up requests for interviews last week.
Mills and others are warning that the signatures alone could force a government shutdown this summer. That's because submitting the required number of signatures would halt the implementation of the budget until it's decided by voters.
Mills in April urged people not to sign the petitions, citing the "devastating" effects of a prolonged government shutdown.
"It would risk closure of Maine schools, hospitals, nursing homes, public colleges and universities, municipal offices, and bring road construction projects to a halt," Mills said. "I urge Maine people to not sign the petition for this initiative, and avoid the serious consequences it would cause."
Republicans have downplayed that concern, however. They argue that Democrats could avoid a shutdown by resuming negotiations and passing a new bipartisan budget that addresses issues raised by Republicans, including welfare reform and Medicaid costs.
The push for a referendum came after efforts to reach a bipartisan compromise on a supplemental budget fell apart and Democrats moved to pass a baseline two-year budget without any Republican support.
The language of the ballot question, should it qualify, would ask: "Do you want to stop most state government operations and programs, including new and ongoing state funding for cities, towns, and schools, by rejecting the state's two-year budget?"
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