Action 201: MAINE legislation 1/26-1/30
I usually try to list hearings for the upcoming week on Sunday, but yesterday we were driving back from New Brunswick, Canada (Brrrr!), so this week’s edition is late. Also, note only HEARINGS are listed. There are follow-up work sessions that you can often tune in to, and you can always contact your legislator about any bill any time, even after they have voted and you want to praise or condemn their vote. Check complete bill listing here: https://legislature.maine.gov/Calendar/#PHWS.
Find the text of any bill here: https://legislature.maine.gov Form your own opinions!
Instructions for testifying are here: https://www.mainelegislature.org/testimony/
LD 2150 is a bill introduced by Sen. Grohoski. It has quite a few cosponsors, mostly Democrats plus one Independent and one Republican. Its purpose is to deal with protests/protestors, protecting individual rights while addressing safety concerns. The bill requires “state entities” to state reasons why a “person” is denied access to state property or services. One of the “whereas” clauses is telling: “Whereas, the number of protests held on state properties and the need for services provided by state agencies are anticipated to increase in 2026 and coming years”... (you betcha!) The public hearing testimony might tell us more about the problems the legislation seeks to address.
LD 2106 is an important bill that would prohibit a specific group of entities (public schools, state postsecondary educational institutions, health care facilities, child care facilities, family child care providers and public libraries) from giving voluntary consent to ICE enforcers to enter nonpublic areas of their facilities unless there is a valid judicial warrant (just like the Fourth Amendment intended). And they are allowed to challenge the validity of the supposed warrant. (1) Plus, the Attorney General is charged with developing, by January 1 2027, guidance for these entities so that they “remain safe and accessible to all state residents regardless of immigration status.”
There are three bills to address the needs of teen agers: LD 2008, another Grohoski bill, supports tuition, room and board for kids attending the Maine School of Science and Math; LD 2065 provides funds for constructing a psychiatric facility for at-risk youth; and LD 2109 essentially says that kids attending a private school can have tuition reimbursed only if that school is located in Maine.
(1) Learn how to tell the difference between a judicial warrant and an administrative warrant. See for example https://x.com/NILC/status/1149755946081538049
