On Friday, May 10, the legislative session came to a close after a long day of voting, hard work and negotiations. There were things the Legislature did not accomplish this year that many of us wish we had. Disappointingly, a number of bills with bipartisan support were left unfunded, while 35 others passed but languished on the governor’s desk.
We left feeling tired and frustrate as well as relieved and proud. That same night, Maine was treated to a miraculous show of the northern lights. Later, at home, standing out under a glowing sky, we were reminded to pause, reflect and appreciate not only the wonders of the world around us but what lawmakers were able to accomplish for the people of our great state.
One of the issues we heard about the most this session is a lack of housing options. Far too many people need emergency housing or help overcoming chronic homelessness. Mainers with limited incomes are having a hard time finding reliable, safe housing. Retired Mainers are trying to find ways to safely stay in their communities. Families are struggling to find a place to put down roots.
In Augusta, we’re facing this crisis head-on. This year, we invested $16 million in emergency housing projects, with an additional $5 million specifically for low-barrier shelters. We’ve also invested in programs to promote homeownership, increase the availability of affordable rental units in rural communities, support residents of mobile home parks and help families of young students who are facing homelessness. Sen. Mattie Daughtry sponsored a bill that directs the Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation and the Future to find more pathways to help working Mainers find the housing they need, whether that’s renting or owning a home. This bill, which is now law, will set lawmakers up with work to dig into next year.
Last year, our communities were rocked by mass shootings — in Bowdoin and in Lewiston. Families across our state were impacted forever. Law enforcement officers and first responders stepped up to wrest control of these crises. When lawmakers came back together in January, there was wide agreement that we needed to look at our laws, find the gaps in our safety nets and do all we could to prevent further deaths by gun violence. We worked with police, mental health advocates and the many responsible gun owners across our state to make sure we’re keeping our communities safe while respecting individual rights.
One of the clearest ways to do this is to expand mental health services. To help Mainers who are in immediate need of help, we invested funds to create a 24/7 behavioral health crisis receiving center in Lewiston, with an anticipated plan for a statewide network of crisis receiving centers. We bolstered funding for mental health assessments made under our yellow flag law. This is especially important as we see a marked increase in the use of this law. To help law enforcement officers have more tools to keep people safe, we strengthened the yellow flag law, allowing police to seek a protective custody warrant signed by a judge and, in unusual circumstances, to take a person into protective custody.
We passed laws to keep firearms out of the hands of people who are a danger to themselves or others. We expanded the requirement for background checks on gun sales to cover all private sales, in line with the existing requirement for commercial sales. To prevent firearm suicides, we passed a 72-hour waiting period for firearm purchases. This puts a critical time period between an impulsive decision and a fatal act. The measure includes exemptions for sales to law enforcement officers, to individuals who need a firearm for employment and to federally licensed firearm dealers. We also invested in the Safe Homes Program, which highlights programs that help people safely store their firearms at home.
In addition, we continued our fight to lower the cost of prescription medications and make quality health care more accessible. We continued to keep our promise on 55% funding for school districts and provide free meals for public school students. We provided vital funding for support services that help victims of violent crimes, filling a federal funding gap created by dysfunction in D.C. We passed a law to protect older Mainers from having their utilities cut off during extreme weather. We provided additional funding for nursing homes and Maine Veterans’ Homes.
There’s always more work that needs to be done. In these summer months, lawmakers will be out in their communities, and they’ll want to hear from you to help direct their work next year. In the meantime, we can celebrate all that we have accomplished together this year.
Sen. Eloise Vitelli, D-Arrowsic, represents Senate District 24 in the Maine Senate, which includes all of Sagadahoc County and the town of Dresden in Lincoln County. Sen. Mattie Daughtry, D-Brunswick, represents Senate District 23 in the Maine Senate, which includes Brunswick, Chebeague Island, Freeport, Harpswell, Pownal and part of Yarmouth.
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