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Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Maine Republicans say Democrats broke law by denying hearing on 'red flag' gun initiative
Jun. 2—AUGUSTA — Republicans are accusing Democrats of breaking state law by refusing to hold a public hearing on a citizen initiative that would make it easier for police to confiscate firearms from people who are in crisis. Gun safety groups have collected signatures for a fall referendum on a so-called red flag law, which would allow family members to directly petition a court to temporarily confiscate firearms from someone who is a danger to themselves or others. But that proposal has drawn opposition, not only from Republicans and gun rights groups, but from Gov. Janet Mills, who worked with sportsmen to craft the state's current yellow-flag law. The existing law can only be initiated by police and requires a mental health evaluation before a court petition may be filed. Republicans oppose the red flag initiative and say state law and past precedent require lawmakers to hold a public hearing at the State House, which would give proponents and opponents a chance to make their case ahead of the November referendum. But Democrats argued that the Maine Constitution does not require a hearing and supersedes state law — a reading Republicans challenged at a press conference Monday. Sen. Anne Carney, D-Cape Elizabeth, said Friday that lawmakers didn't need to hold a public hearing, because sending it to the voters is "the appropriate path forward." She said the state constitution, which doesn't directly address the need for a hearing, supersedes a state law that says that every initiative "must be afforded a public hearing" unless waived by a vote of two-thirds of the Legislature. "The constitution is different than the statute, and I think the constitution actually takes precedence over the statute," said Carney, who added that the committee had discussed this course of action two weeks ago and Republicans did not object at the time. Rep. Rachel Henderson, R-Rumford, and a member of the Judiciary Committee, said Monday that failing to hold a hearing was "shameless display of abuse of power" and "a complete breach of the law." Senate Minority Leader Trey Stewart, R-Presque Isle, said Monday that he flagged his concerns about the committee chairs not planning to hold a hearing with Senate President Mattie Daughtry, D-Brunswick, and urged her to follow state law and his reading of the constitution, which he said requires a public hearing if the initiative is presented while lawmakers are in session. "We're calling on them again to do the same thing, to do the right thing, to do the legal thing and schedule a hearing," Stewart said. "It's not that complicated. It's not that controversial. The pushback is coming from rogue committee members. The presiding officers need to get a handle on this." Laura Whitcomb, president of the Gun Owners of Maine, said her group was "exploring other legal avenues to assure the people of Maine get the public hearing they deserve." The Maine Gun Safety Coalition said Monday there is broad support for the red flag initiative and they welcome the debate. "Gun lobby -backed politicians in Augusta are clearly just trying to use this life-saving policy as a means to score political points, but regardless we welcome a public debate any time, anywhere, and would remind them that a majority of Mainers support this common-sense tool that empowers family members to get help when a loved one is in danger and may pose a threat to themselves or others," Executive Director Nacole Palmer said in a written statement. Carney and Rep. Amy Kuhn, D-Falmouth, defended their decision in a joint written statement, saying members of the public will be able to weigh in when they vote. They said the constitution requires the question to go to voters, unless lawmakers enacted it without any changes, which is unlikely. "Given this constitutional process, we do not believe it is necessary or timely to hold a public hearing or further work on LD 1378 during this legislative session, while we still have hundreds of bills left for the full Legislature to vote on over the next few weeks," they said. "We believe the best and most direct way to hear from the public on this issue is through the referendum process, where every Maine voter will have a say." Assistant Senate Minority Leader Matt Harrington, R-Sanford, speculated the Democrats want to avoid a hearing on the red flag proposal. "One would argue that Sen. Carney doesn't want to hold a hearing on this because she knows that there are going to be a lot of voices out there that are opposed to the legislation — many from her own side of the aisle," Harrington said. "Maine people deserve to have their input on this." Citizens initiatives that have qualified for the ballot first go to the Legislature. Lawmakers can adopt the proposal outright, send it to the voters in a referendum or send it to voters along with a competing measure. A different committee held a public hearing earlier this session on a different citizens initiative that would require residents to show a photo ID when casting a ballot and add restrictions to absentee voting. Attorney General Aaron Frey, a Democrat, would not comment on questions about the dispute sent through a spokesperson. Copy the Story Link
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Lawmakers hear late session effort to tackle ‘twin challenge' of high costs, harmful emissions
A coal-fired power plant belches emissions. (Michigan Advance) A Maine lawmaker introduced a late-session, bipartisan bill that she hopes will address what she called the 'twin challenges' of high energy costs and harmful fossil fuel emissions. Sen. Anne Carney (D-Cumberland) outlined the several ways LD 1949 will address those problems during a public hearing Thursday before the Legislature's Energy, Utilities and Technology Committee. It includes protections for vulnerable populations against power disconnection, enhanced utility accountability and environmental justice requirements. 'Taken on the whole, the intent is really to make sure that we are having and working toward a system that works as well for customers as it does for energy executives,' said Lucy Hochschartner, climate and clean energy director for Maine Conservation Voters, who spoke in support of the bill. Though the Office of Public Advocate, the Governor's Energy Office and the Public Utilities Commission said the intent of the legislation is commendable, they all testified neither for nor against the bill and raised concerns about unintended consequences of the sweeping proposal. The commission and the Office of Public Advocate recommended carrying the bill over to the next session to allow for more time to refine the details. The public hearing comes just one day before the deadline for committees to submit their carry-over requests to the presiding officers. However, that deadline is somewhat of a moving target and the presiding officers have final say over what can be pushed to the second regular session, which begins January 2026. Carney described her bill to the committee as 'a meaningful step toward making sure our energy systems work for everyone, not just those who can afford to keep up.' To take that step, the legislation has four parts, with the first seeking to bolster overcharge and disconnection protections for ratepayers. Lawmaker argues it's a 'moral imperative' to address high energy costs alongside climate change The legislation would prohibit utilities from disconnecting services for customers who haven't paid, if the customer is 65 years or older, experiencing financial hardship, has certain medical conditions, attempted to access an assistance program or has a child under the age of 1 living there. Versant Power, one of Maine's two largest private utility companies, opposed the bill, citing multiple concerns, including that the disconnection provisions could increase costs for other ratepayers and could violate customer privacy, given the health and age details those new provisions could hinge on. Carney's legislation also hopes to address an issue raised in a recent annual report from the Maine Office of the Public Advocate. Per that report, between 2016 and 2023, competitive providers charged households $135 million more than what would have been charged by the standard offer for electricity supply. To prevent that and ensure that assistance program dollars aren't being overspent, Carney said the bill would prohibit competitive electricity providers from entering into a contract with a household that has received low-income assistance unless the Public Utilities Commission finds that the customer would in fact receive a lower rate. The second portion of LD 1949 seeks to strengthen utility accountability by limiting what expenses can be passed onto ratepayers. These include costs related to travel, lodging and food for utility company officers, among other expenditures related to investor relations and rate case proceedings. Though aimed at energy utilities, the Maine Water Utilities Association said it would also be swept up into the requirements outlined in the proposal. Water utilities in Maine are typically small and only receive revenue through rates, so David Parent, superintendent of the Sanford Water District, said the limitations on what costs can be passed onto ratepayers would pose challenges for them. He also said most water utilities likely won't have the software needed to track the demographics to consider in disconnections. Unless the bill is amended to carve out water utilities, Parent asked the committee not to move forward with the legislation. Because accurate data is key to ensuring utility laws benefit Maine people, Carney said her proposal also includes improved reporting metrics. Under her bill, utilities with over 50,000 customers would be required to file quarterly reports with the Public Utilities Commission with information on overdue accounts, disconnections, reconnections and payment plans. The commission would also be required to conduct proceedings at least once every five years to review the administrative charges collected by the utility companies. The final piece of LD 1949 targets the other side of the dual challenge Carney outlined by requiring the Public Utilities Commission to incorporate environmental justice principles into its work. There is a lengthy definition for 'environmental justice' included in the bill to mean fair treatment of all people with respect to the implementation and enforcement of environmental laws. The legislation also includes a labor component by requiring that a certain percentage of labor hours for construction and repair projects for energy generation facilities are performed by qualified apprentices. Reed & Reed, a construction company that has built numerous wind energy projects in the state, opposed the bill largely because of the last section. Since the company has struggled to retain a workforce in some of the most rural parts of the state, they argued the apprenticeship requirements seem unsustainable. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
State commission, lawmakers declare ‘all hands on deck' effort to address indigent defense crisis
(Photo by) Maine lawmakers and the state's public defense commission are racing to confront a growing constitutional crisis as almost 90 indigent defendants remain jailed without legal representation. With a court-ordered deadline looming, officials are backing a multi-pronged plan to recruit more attorneys and reduce the backlog of unrepresented clients. After years of Maine failing to provide timely counsel to defendants who can't afford an attorney, the Kennebec County Superior Court ruled last month that the state must create a plan by April 3 to end what it described as a constitutional crisis. It also agreed to a request from the American Civil Liberties Union of Maine to start releasing defendants who have been waiting for counsel from incarceration if the state fails to provide representation. The ACLU of Maine has argued since 2022 that the state is in violation of the Sixth Amendment, which declares the right to a speedy and public trial and legal counsel, among other provisions. With that deadline looming, the Maine Commission on Public Defense Services released its proposal Thursday, which includes immediate remedies such as better coordination with courts to keep an updated list of all defendants in need of an attorney, increased incentives for private and public attorneys to take on cases, and an appeal to district attorneys and the Maine Attorney General's office to reconsider pursuing lower-level offenses, such as charges for drug possession or violating conditions of release (which make up the vast majority of charges). As part of its long-term solutions, the commission also referenced a bill (LD 1101) passed by the Maine Legislature's Judiciary Committee this week that would add five new positions within the public defenders offices.. Zach Heiden from the ACLU said at the public hearing on the bill that while it was critical in bolstering the state's public defenders offices, it was not enough. On Monday, the Kennebec County Superior Court will start setting dates to determine if people should be released, and what the conditions of release should be (for example, an ankle monitor, limits to travel, drug testing, etc.) Individuals who have been incarcerated for more than 14 days without counsel are eligible and if the judge decides a person should be released, the state will get another seven days to find an attorney before that actually happens, so a person could technically be incarcerated for a minimum of 21 days before release, according to the ACLU. During the March 19 public hearing, Judiciary Committee co-chair Sen. Anne Carney (D-Cumberland), who introduced the emergency legislation, described the need to urgently address the indigent defense crisis in Maine as an 'all hands on deck situation.' 'I think there are two really big things at stake. One is the Sixth Amendment rights of these people who have been incarcerated, some of them for a very long time, without representation' she said. 'And the other thing at stake is really the rights of Mainers to live in a safe community. And in some instances, there are people who could be released from incarceration who would present a public safety threat.' As an emergency measure, the bill will need the support of two-thirds of the Legislature to pass and immediately take effect. In the amended version that the committee unanimously supported, it would cost the state $3,341,394 over three years — $254,860 in FY2024-25, $1,533,828 in FY2025-26 and $1,552,706 in FY2026-27. 'We have an actual crisis on our hands. And this is a very important piece of legislation that plugs a lot of those holes, maybe not perfectly …but we'll address a very important situation,' said Rep. Rachel Henderson (R- Rumford). 'This is not something that's possible without true bipartisan efforts and support.' The number of adult criminal defendants waiting for state-appointed counsel exceeded 1,000 last December. According to the public defense commission, it fell 487 as of April 2 due to a combination of public defender offices and private attorneys taking cases off the list. In response to the court's requirements, the commission is proposing a strategy to reduce the number of unrepresented defendants and improve access to indigent legal services statewide. Some short-term solutions the state proposed includes direct outreach to recruit more qualified private attorneys, expanding law student internships and externships within public defenders' offices, and developing a real-time shared system with court clerks to streamline and coordinate case assignments. To encourage attorneys to return to court rosters, the commission is proposing a five-case daily cap 'since many attorneys state as a reason for not going on rosters for the fear that they will be assigned 20, 30 or more cases in a few days,' according to the document. The commission is also proposing reinstating geographic limits to prevent attorneys from taking on cases in multiple counties and having to travel. On March 25, Jim Billings, executive director of the commission, sent a letter to all district attorneys' offices as well as the Maine Attorney General, urging them to reexamine charging decisions for lower-level offenses — such as drug possession, driving offenses, and violations of conditions of release. The letter asked prosecutors to evaluate each of their cases to ensure they can be proven beyond a reasonable doubt, and in cases where there are challenges with proof, missing witnesses, or other issues, to consider dismissing those. The letter noted that nearly 90 defendants remain jailed without legal representation. 'I do not make the suggestions in this letter lightly. No one wants us to be in this situation,' Billings wrote. 'This is a constitutional crisis, but if we work together where possible to prioritize resources and make tough decisions, we can improve the way the criminal justice system is currently functioning in Maine.' Another proposal being considered by the Legislature this session, LD 179, would help address the issue by removing from the bail code a charge if someone violates their condition of release. Maine is one of only six states that charges people with a separate crime for violating their conditions of release. In 2024 alone, there were over 5,400 such charges filed in Maine courts, according to Frayla Tarpinian, a former prosecutor who oversees Maine's first brick-and-mortar public defender office. To compare, the second most common type of charge was 662 cases of drug possession, she said. Maine's current law is an example of excessive punishment, according to Abbe Smith, a Georgetown University law professor and director of the Criminal Defense and Prisoner Advocacy Clinic. The ACLU did not comment on the commission's plan, but will respond during a Monday hearing. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
