Action 87 – NO to the “People’s Veto”
Background: This looming catastrophe lies entirely on the doorstep of the Republicans in the state legislature, because of their last-minute lack of cooperation in approving a biennial budget on an emergency basis with a 2/3 vote (see Action #69 available at https://isledems.org/initiatives). Their primary beef seems to have been with the MaineCare budget overrun. Lack of empathy being a feature these days of the Republican brand, they wanted “work requirements” and other provisions making health care less accessible to the poor, as a prerequisite for their approval of the budget. The majority Democrats passed a budget anyway on a non-emergency basis (simple majority vote) assuring funding for FY26 (July1‘25 - June 30’26) for all items, but funding after June 30’26 still needs to be addressed. It’s being worked on, and it’s not an easy job, given the unpredictability of revenues and costs due to the national chaos of Trump tariffs and DOGE.
To voice their pique about “being completely ignored”, six MAGA-adjacent Republicans (1) decided to retaliate by circulating a “People’s Veto” of the state budget that was approved over their objections. (All the ins and outs and twists and turns of the budget deliberations are head-spinning. If you want to dive in, consult the Extra Credit references.)
On April 8, the Secretary of State will finish preparing the “People’s Veto” petition (2). Next, the petitioners print copies of the approved petition and hire petition circulators. Signature collection will continue until June 18, when circulators have to have collected at least 67,682 valid signatures. The Secretary of State then has to validate all the signatures, which by law they have 30 days to do. But as a practical matter, because the current budget ceases on June 30, the Secretary of State will undoubtedly try to finish the verification by that date. The proposers of the veto have not disclosed how they plan to fund the collection of signatures, but say they have plenty of money to spend on it, “well above 6 figures” (Rep. Drinkwater). It’s also unknown how much additional cost the Secretary of State’s office will incur due to the speeded-up signature verification, a cost that will fall on us taxpayers.
If the Secretary of State certifies enough valid signatures, the “People’s Veto” is valid, and (per the Maine Constitution Article 4 Section 17 subsection 2) the funding of state government stops cold turkey on July 1 of this year, meaning thousands of state employees will be laid off/unpaid, and state funding will not be distributed to municipalities or any other recipients who are counting on it, for at least 4 months, until November when the voters will have a chance to support or reject the “People’s Veto” in a referendum election. The devastating impacts include cutting funding for K-12 education, county jails, and municipal revenue sharing; stopping property tax relief; shutting state parks for the summer; ceasing services to Mainers with disabilities; and more.
House Speaker Ryan Fecteau said in a statement “Unlike the politics in D.C., we don’t need this sort of chaos and uncertainty here in Maine.”
Action: We should be urging our friends and neighbors NOT to sign this citizen budget “People’s Veto” petition (if the Republicans unwisely carry through with it). Budget brinksmanship is no way to run a railroad! Be prepared to write letters to the editor urging citizens not to sign. Tell them of the chaos that could ensue if state funding is cut off between June and November. Additionally, if you are in Senator Haggan’s district, call him and complain. Urge all legislators to negotiate (in good faith this time) and get an approved budget on the Governor’s desk ASAP! Also remind everyone to vote in November of THIS YEAR, as well as next year. This is the second referendum item on the November ballot that must be defeated. We will describe the other State referendum measure, a voter suppression initiative similar to the SAVE act, in a future action item.
Contacts: For Hancock County:
Urgency: Start now to alert your friends and neighbors.
Extra Credit:
(1) Putting a “People’s Veto” Petition in motion requires a petitioner and 5 other Maine voters. In addition to the petitioner Rep. Gary Drinkwater, R of Milford, the other five Maine voters (all Republicans) are: Assistant House Minority Leader Katrina Smith of Palermo, Rep. Mike Soboleski of Phillips (who thinks Maine should have its own DOGE!), Rep. Kimberly Haggan of Hampden, Sen. David Haggan of Hampden and former Rep. Heidi Sampson of Alfred. They should be required to disclose the funders! Also, we know from experience that professional signature gatherers sometimes mislead the signers, (intentionally or not) which seems highly likely in this case where the language of the bill to be vetoed is so darn bulky.
(2) To read how a People’s Veto Petition has to be constructed, go here:
https://www.maine.gov/sos/cec/elec/citizens/peoppak.html In this case the application is to veto the entire budget law. The petition form has to contain the full text of the public law to be vetoed. The law, LD 609, as it appears on the web is 400 pages long. Right now, the Secretary of State is trying to format the law so that it a more manageable number of printed pages. It’s the Secretary of State’s job to provide the exact language of the petition, and an approved petition form, back to the petitioner, so the petitioner can print copies. The due date for that is April 8. The approved petition form must include the following specifications:
A. Printed on paper no larger than 11 x 17 inches
B. Include full Text of the legislation
C. Ballot question and title (conspicuously placed on the face of the petition)
D. Instructions for petitioners
E. Common reasons signatures are rejected
F. Circulator's Verification
G. Certification of the Registrar
It is up to the petitioner to make exact copies for circulation. Per the Constitution, petitions must be circulated by any Maine registered voter, but we hear that the Republicans plan to hire other circulators who do not meet this criterion. (How are they getting away with that? It would be interesting to find out what qualifications they will require of the circulators, and what training they will receive.) Once the signatures have been submitted for verification (on June 18 in this case), the Secretary of State has 30 days to verify or reject signatures.
Estimating the cost of the petition drive: Let’s assume the Secretary of State can whittle 400 online pages down to 40 pages, or 20 sheets of tabloid-size paper printed double sided, including space for 36 signatures. Based on a recent petition-gathering exercise, about 73,567 signatures would need to be gathered in order to get 67,682 valid signatures. This would require about 2,044 copies of the petition to be circulated. At 20 sheets per petition, the petitioners would have to print 40,880 sheets at a cost of about 50 cents per sheet double sided, or about $20,440. Let’s say each signature circulator is tasked with collecting 360 signatures, or 10 petitions-worth, within a span of 2 months (April 8-June 18, allowing a bit of time for printing and organizing). They would need a crew of around 200 collecting petitions for two months. At, say, $25 per hour for 2 months full-time work (40 days x 8 hours/day x 200 collectors) the petitioners would have a staffing bill of at least $64,000, not including costs of transportation to and from their place of residence and within the state. It will be interesting to find out on April 8 just how many pages the Sec of State is able to condense the bill onto, with a large enough font to be readable. It would also be interesting to see just how many citizens who sign a petition haven’t read it – guessing 99% - and how many wisely decline to sign something they haven’t read.
More Extra Credit:
Ø https://www.wmtw.com/article/maine-budget-battle-republicans-peoples-veto/64289827
Ø https://www.themainewire.com/2025/03/gop-lawmaker-applies-for-peoples-veto-petition-to-repeal-11-3-billion-partisan-budget/ (The view from the right wing)
Ø https://legislature.maine.gov/ros/LawsOfMaine/#Const
Ø https://www.maine.gov/sos/cec/elec/upcoming/index.html