Post Updated 7/7/15
Although we won victory in the legislature the first time around, it’s not over yet.
LD 1378, “An Act To Amend the Laws Governing the Issuance of Bonds and To Effectuate the Issuance of Bonds To Support Maine’s Natural Resource-based Economy,” was enacted by the Maine legislature a few weeks ago, and has now been vetoed by the Governor.
Presented by Senator Katz of Kennebec (R), LD 1378 requires the governor of our state to release bond funding for projects approved by voters. This is an important bill for good governance as well as land protection efforts through Land for Maine’s Future bonds, including both our own projects and others across the state. Read more about the bill, and our reasons for supporting it, here.
This bill has received lots of bipartisan support, and we would like to thank all our legislators who voted for this bill for their good work. However, it could be a challenge to override Governor LePage’s veto.
We need you.
Contact your state representative and senator. If they voted for the bill the first time, thank them for doing so and say that you are assuming (and expecting) that they will vote to override the veto. If they voted against the bill the first time, tell them that you are disappointed, because when the people have already voted to approve bonds, state government should follow through. Then tell them that you hope they will change their mind and support the bill when it comes back on July 16.
Check roll call for the list of votes (Nay in the Senate and Yea in the House are votes in favor of the bill). If you’d like to see what areas Land for Maine’s future impacts or has impacted in their district, Land for Maine’s Future Coalition has compiled a list of LMF projects by Senate District and by House District.
Contact information for each state representative and senator can be found here.
Our land is our future. Help protect it, and call your legislators today!
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