Legislative recap for Monday, June 16

With days left to go before the planned adjournment date on Wednesday, Maine lawmakers are continuing to cast votes at a breakneck pace.

Here’s an overview of some of the biggest items of debate Friday and Monday as well as what happened with legislation and issues that we’ve followed all session.

Senate action

The Senate late Monday did an about-face on a bill (LD 1089) that place an income tax surcharge of 2% on the portion of a resident’s taxable income beyond $1 million for single filers, $1.5 million for heads of households and $2 million for married people filing jointly. This revenue would then go toward funding public K-12 education.

Both the upper and lower chambers previously rejected the so-called “millionaire’s tax,” but it was brought back again in the Senate and passed 19-16. It now goes back to the House. (Read more about this and similar bills here.)

Both chambers

An effort to withdraw the state from the National Popular Vote Compact (LD 252) signed into law last year has now been rejected by both chambers after the Senate late Monday voted 16-18 against passage, following the House vote last month. (Read more about this here.)

With the House voting 64-79 on Monday, both chambers have now voted down an amended version of LD 1299, which would prohibit a person from storing a handgun in an unoccupied vehicle, unless it is out of view and locked specifically in a hard-sided container with the car locked. 

Members of the House voted 79-62 to align with the Senate against passage of LD 613, a bill supported by the Maine Medical Association that allows terminally ill patients to waive the current 17-day waiting period for access to life-ending medication.

Not enough members of the House or Senate backed enactment of an emergency bill LD 365 that would impose a three-month moratorium on the sale of mobile home parks unless it is the park residents making an offer to purchase the park.

Legislation (LD 525) that would clarify that someone has the right to discharge a firearm within 500 feet of school property if acting in self defense of their property is essentially dead after both chambers insisted on their positions Monday, with the House in favor and the Senate opposed. 

Another bill (LD 1743) that would allow municipalities to adopt policies prohibiting firearms within municipal buildings and polling places is also dead after the chambers failed to agree, with the Senate in support and the House opposed. (Read more about this and other gun bills here.)

The House voted 76-69 and the Senate 20-12 to back legislation (LD 670) that would explicitly name behavior patterns known as “coercive control” in state statute under types of domestic violence, allowing victims to seek protection and abusers to be arrested or prosecuted. (Read more about this issue here).

After significant back and forth, the House on Monday agreed to align with the Senate in backing a controversial bill (LD 297) that extends a loophole for out-of-state waste to be brought to Juniper Ridge Landfill. Even lawmakers who supported the bill said they did not want to extend the loophole but were concerned about obligations to local municipalities and said if no action is taken, it would mean “serious problems at the landfill.” (Read more about this issue here).

The Maine House and Senate also passed legislation (LD 1868) updating renewable and clean energy procurement laws. Among other changes, it clarifies that the Public Utilities Commission may coordinate with other states to procure transmission capacity, capacity resources, renewable energy credits or clean energy credits if it determines that the likely benefits to Maine ratepayers will exceed the likely costs.

Legislation (LD 1784) requiring law enforcement agencies to make their policies and procedures publicly available, and provide orientation training for all officers on those procedures, was backed by both chambers.

Both chambers have also passed legislation (LD 1691) to create a loan program under the Finance Authority of Maine to eligible residents interested in providing legal services in an underserved area of the state and who are enrolled or intend to enroll in an accredited law school, or who have recently graduated from law school and have outstanding loans.

The House on Friday insisted on its rejection of a proposal (LD 1200) that would prohibit the sale of items intended to be used to inhale nitrous oxide for recreational use. Following the Senate’s insistence on passage, the bill is now essentially dead.

Legislation (LD 1138) which sought to better align the state’s transportation projects and planning under the Maine Department of Transportation and Turnpike Authority with the Climate Action Plan was also killed after both chambers failed to agree, with the House opposed and the Senate in support.

Both chambers rejected legislation (LD 1318) that sought to enhance data collection requirements related to immigration status and asylum seekers, with the Senate voting 21-13 and the House 78-70. 

Senators voted 20-12 to pass a resolve (LD 244) directing the Department of Corrections to contract with a community-based organization to establish a transitional housing pilot program to provide for individuals recently released from correctional facilities.

Both chambers have now rejected legislation (LD 1321) that would have significantly restricted the state’s clean energy credit program, known as net energy billing, by reducing the capacity of eligible projects, limiting compensation, increasing transmission costs for program participants. (Read more about this and other proposals here.)

Legislation (LD 1938) that, among other things, changes the definition of “smoking” to include natural or synthetic tobacco or other plant products as well as electronic smoking devices — thus prohibiting their use in places where smoking is banned — passed late last week.

A bill (LD 1723) that would amend the laws governing mobile home communities to protect against excessive rent and fee increases passed the House 78-67 and the Senate 20-12 on Friday. The chambers also voted to back a proposal (LD 1765) increase requirements on owners applying for licenses for a mobile home park, which proponents say will help enhance oversight.

The House voted 77-69 and the Senate 19-13 to back a proposal (LD 340) that would establish the Maine Speedy Trial Act, which would create time limits for a defendant’s criminal trial in an effort to address the significant backlog in the state’s indigent defense system. (Read more about this issue here).

Lawmakers rejected a provision (LD 165) that would modify school discipline policies regarding out-of-school suspension of students in grade 5 or below.

Both chambers unanimously backed legislation (LD 1944) that makes several changes to the Maine Criminal Code in an effort to protect individuals from threats of unauthorized dissemination of certain private images, including AI images.