Bills Update – District 8 Legislative Update

Monday night, the Portland City Council voted 8-0 in support of the Midtown project by Federated Companies. This is exciting news for Portland. I commend the developers, community and City of Portland for running a solid process for approval. I look forward to seeing how the project progresses.

I give real credit to the Judiciary Committee for going to great lengths to try and strike a balance between privacy rights and a concealed weapons law that works. I heard from many of you about your reservations with this bill, I listened to you and voted against the bill. The measure passed the Senate 27 to 8, and will head to the Governor’s desk for final action.

This week, I introduced three bills I sponsored to their respective committees. These bills deal with military families, agency liquor store expansion and summer nutrition for students. I also testified in support of Rep. Mary Nelson’s bill to strengthen teacher certification.

Summer Nutrition for Students

On Tuesday, I introduced L.D. 1353, “An Act To Further Reduce Student Hunger,” to the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee. Maine’s food insecurity is at a perilously high rate. Nearly 1 in 7 Mainers do not know where their next meal is going to come from. While we work to address hunger statewide for all Mainers, we have an incredible opportunity to feed hungry students now. It’s called the Summer Food Service Program, and it’s administered by the US Department of Agriculture. The program is simple: in communities where 50% or more of students are eligible for free or reduced lunch, the USDA will pay for a summer food program to feed students when school is out.

This bill requires a school district with at least 50% of students qualified for a free or reduced-price lunch to operate a federal summer food service program in the area if that public school operates a summer school or summer recreational program. If a school district determines that operating a summer food program would be financially or logistically impracticable, the district can opt-out by a vote of the local school board.

Click here to read the bill.

Also on Tuesday, I introduced L.D. 1351, “An Act to Attract Military Families to Maine,” to the Labor, Commerce, Research and Economic Development Committee. The bill would help military spouses receive professional licenses. Last session, Senator Tom Saviello introduced a bill on behalf of Governor Paul LePage to authorize the Commissioner of Professional and Financial Regulation to recommend legislation or other measures to assist current and former members of the United States Armed Forces in obtaining professional licenses. This was an important initiative that the entire legislature supported.

This bill extends the directive to the Commissioner of Professional and Financial Regulation to also assist spouses of current and former members of the Armed Forces in obtaining professional licenses. This can be a great tool for Maine to use to attract a skilled and talented workforce. Many other states have passed similar measures and have had success.

Click here to read the bill.

I presented L.D. 941, “An Act to Facilitate the Expansion of the State’s Liquor Distribution System,” on Wednesday to the Labor, Commerce, Research and Economic Development Committee on behalf of several business owner constituents that would like to open or expand their stores.

The state distributes agency liquor store licenses to municipalities based on population. Because Portland has over 20,000 residents, we are allowed to issue up to 8 licenses. This bill would add an additional tier that would allow municipalities over 45,000 residents have up to 12 licenses.

Click here to read the bill.

While not my bill, I went before the Education Committee again on Wednesday to testify in support of Representative Mary Nelson’s L.D. 1361, “An Act To Strengthen the Teaching of Writing and Mathematics and Improve Maine High School Graduates’ College and Career Readiness”

The bill requires that all new elementary teachers and secondary school math and English teachers are proficient in math and can write well through testing and teacher prep programs. Currently, there is no requirement that math or English teachers demonstrate proficiency in their math or writing abilities. This bill closes that gap. The bill also addresses re-certification for those teaching math and writing. Current teachers would be required to demonstrate their own proficiency in math or writing through testing or take classes to improve their skills.

This bill requires students to demonstrate their own proficiency in math and writing by taking the ACCUPLACER be the fall of their junior year. If a student is falling behind, we can work with them and get them the help they need to succeed. These measure will give us better teachers, and better teachers make stronger students.

Click here to read the bill.

As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments. Please feel free to reply to this email and let me know what you think.

-Justin