How the Maine Legislature Can Help Working Families in 2023

As this year draws to a close, we are celebrating the progress we made in 2022. The Maine Jobs and Recovery Plan expanded workforce training programs in industries hit hardest by the pandemic, helped small business owners cover health insurance premiums for their employees, and invested in strengthening our vital forestry sector. The Maine Legislature passed laws that will create more affordable housing, simplify enrollment in affordable healthcare plans, and protect our elections from partisan interference. Over 850,000 Mainers received $850 checked from the state government to offset inflation, and thousands of low and moderate-income families benefited when the Earned Income Tax Credit nearly doubled. And thousands of small businesses across the state saw one-time utility assistance credits to address rising energy costs.

But our work is far from over. Mainers for Working Families will be working to ensure the Maine Legislature delivers results on these critical measures next year:

• Heating assistance: The skyrocketing cost of heating fuel this year matched with fewer available state resources for heating assistance is leaving many Mainers without the resources to stay warm this winter. It is imperative that the Maine Legislature do whatever it takes to guarantee every Maine has affordable fuel, whether it be oil, kerosene, propane, electric, or wood.
  

• Comprehensive Paid Family and Medical Leave: The Legislature’s commission tasked with developing a statewide Paid Family and Medical Leave program is expected to present its findings and propose legislation early next year. But for the program to be truly effective, we must ensure that it is comprehensive and accessible, crafted with every Mainer in mind. This means twelve weeks of paid leave to care for a sick loved one, welcome a child, or recover from illness or injury. For more on our design goals for a PFML program, check out these recommendations from the Maine Family Leave Coalition.
  

• Permanent absentee voting: Despite the many benefits of absentee voting and its widespread usage across the state, Maine does not have a permanent absentee voter list. Establishing such a list would make voting easier and more accessible for thousands of Mainers and increase voter participation. It would also significantly reduce the cost of staffing and equipping traditional polling places, bringing financial savings to our municipalities and reducing the administrative burden on our election officials.
  

• Child care subsidies: Governor Mills announced last month that the administration will invest $5.5 million in funds from the American Rescue Plan Act to support Maine child care, providing one-time $10,000 stipends to child care centers licensed between October 2020 and September 2023. This is in addition to $74 million in COVID-19 Child Care Stabilization Grants from the Department of Health and Human Services granted between October 2021 and October 2022, which helped child care centers pay their staff and cover COVID-related expenses. These investments are critical and must continue to provide working families with access to affordable child care. We are pushing our leaders in Augusta to continue this level of funding beyond what has been allocated for COVID relief.
  

• Free community college: This year, Governor Mills included two years of free community college in the state budget for high school graduates between 2020 and 2023. The goal of this initiative was to address workforce shortages, particularly in high-demand industries, and the state’s community college system saw an 11 percent increase in applications over the summer. But this option shouldn’t be limited to students from four particular graduating classes. Every Mainer should have the opportunity to pursue a higher education, regardless of financial status. We’re urging Governor Mills and the Maine Legislature to make two years of tuition-free community college a permanent part of the state’s budget.
  

We are looking to our leaders in Augusta to do what is right for Maine’s working families in the year ahead. That means strengthening support to basic rights like health and education and ensuring that Mainers have the programs we need to move ourselves and our state forward.

Maine Voters Would Benefit From Permanent Absentee Voting.

As we’ve pointed out in the past, absentee voting remains one of many ways Maine voters can make their voices heard at the ballot. The recent November 8th midterm elections saw more than 250,000 Mainers utilize this voting method.

So what is absentee voting and why would Mainers benefit from a permanent option?

What Is Absentee Voting?

Absentee voting allows all eligible voters to vote outside a polling place once they request a ballot, which is delivered to them via postal mail. This option is available to uniformed service voters and overseas voters as well. You can request a ballot on the Bureau of Corporations, Elections & Commissions website.

What Are The Benefits of Absentee Voting?

Absentee voting has proven to be a simple and convenient option for many voters. For instance, since Maine has no-excuse absentee voting, the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic created an increase in absentee ballot requests. During the 2020 election, 532,272 absentee ballots were issued compared to only 196,710 absentee ballots two years prior.

Today, absentee voting remains a safe and convenient option for individuals who may be immunocompromised or prefer to vote outside of a polling place for other reasons. That includes voters with disabilities, who can always request an accessible absentee ballot that can be delivered electronically.

The Future Of Absentee Voting In Maine

Despite the many benefits of absentee voting, Maine does not have a permanent list. Making absentee voting permanent would significantly reduce the cost of staffing and equipping traditional polling places. This would bring financial savings to our municipalities and reduce the administrative burden on our election officials. Not to mention the benefit of making voting easier, while increasing voter participation across the state.

Arizona, Maryland, Montana, New Jersey, Virginia and the District of Columbia all send absentee ballots automatically for each election, and it’s high time Maine joined those states. Mainers For Working Families believes our democracy is better off when it is made accessible to everyday Americans. That’s why we support future efforts to secure a permanent absentee voting option in Maine.

Big Money Reigns in Maine Politics

We just watched the most expensive gubernatorial race in Maine history - a whopping $23 million was spent by outside groups in the contest between Governor Janet Mills and Paul LePage. This shatters the record $18 million set in 2018. Meanwhile, the State Senate race in Aroostook County surpassed $1 million in spending, more than twice what was spent on any other state legislative race this year. Over 93 percent of this spending came from outside groups.

This is part of a growing trend of big money being spent by outside groups to sway elections in Maine. Last year, groups on both sides of the Question 1 debate spent nearly $100 million to decide the future of the CMP corridor, the most expensive referendum campaign in state history. More than half of that money came from CMP and its partners, including parent company Iberdrola in Spain and Hydro-Quebec in Canada. In 2020, the Senate race between Sarah Gideon and Susan Collins saw over $200 million in spending.

The rapid increase in campaign spending is hardly a Maine-specific problem. Since the Supreme Court’s 2010 decision in Citizens United v. FEC opened the door to unlimited campaign spending, corporations and outside groups have increased their election spending by 900 percent with little to no accountability.

This trend is not merely an increasingly irritating barrage of political advertising and campaign emails. It’s a clear sign that wealthy donors and special interests are drowning out the voices of everyday Mainers. The only way we can hope to restore a democracy that works for us is to get big money out of politics.

Maine legislators and citizens alike are taking steps to address the problem of outside spending in state elections. This year, the group Protect Maine Elections gathered over 80,000 signatures from voters to put a question on next year’s ballot to ban spending on referendum campaigns by corporations with partial foreign ownership, including Versant. Maine is also one of 19 states that publicly supports a constitutional amendment that would overturn Citizens United. The proposed referendum on spending by multinational corporations reaffirms this support.

Sign if you agree: Maine must put a stop to the flood of big money in politics.