Midcoast Legislators Take Aim at Charter Schools, Hemp Laws, and "Critter Gitters"



Education



As was expected after the Democratic wins in November, charter schools have moved front and center in the education debate in Augusta. The Maine Education Association, the state's teacher's union, campaigned aggressively against many Republican incumbents who supported the 2011 charter school law, paving the way for the controversial privately run, but publicly funded, institutions.



Charter school advocates, including Governor LePage, argue that charter schools provide a choice for parents to meet their child's specific needs in a space free from the rigidness of the public education system. However, critics, including Rep. Bruce MacDonald (D-Boothbay), the new chair of the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee, believe that charter schools drain money from already struggling public schools as the funding must follow the student. MacDonald also says that charter schools are less accountable to taxpayers since they are not governed by local, popularly elected school boards. MacDonald has several bills regarding charter schools, including An Act To Eliminate the Requirement That Local Funding Follow a Pupil to a Charter School. Another bill would require that virtual schools, which are online charter schools that allow students in grades K-12 to go to school on the Internet, must be run publicly, not privately or for profit.



MacDonald would also provide more state funding to schools for starting teachers. Prior to 2006, first-year teachers in Maine made an average of $27,000 a year, ranking the state's starting salary among the five lowest in the country. The 2006 law provided state funding to schools to boost starting salaries to a $30,000 minimum, but due to budget cuts, the state has stopped providing funding for the $30,000 minimum. MacDonald's bill would restore that subsidy for school districts who can't afford to pay those teachers at that level.



Another controversial education issue MacDonald will address is the question of to what extent standardized test scores should be considered when evaluating teachers. School reformers have argued that teachers should be even more focused on "measurable results" and "teaching to the test." However, critics and many teachers complain that standardized tests only measure a narrow sliver of a student's knowledge and the policy doesn't consider other contributing factors to a student's performance such as poverty and family background. A task force, comprised of various stakeholders including the MEA, failed to agree on what percentage test scores should account for in teachers' evaluations, so the Maine Department of Education has proposed 25 percent, while the MEA insists it should be no more than 10 percent. MacDonald's bill would require that standardized test results account for no more than 30 percent in a teacher's evaluation. However, he says he would prefer that standardized test scores not be considered at all in teacher evaluations.



On the higher-education front, Rep. Deb Sanderson (D-Chelsea) wants to allow students to audit classes (receiving no college credit) at University of Maine campuses for a reduced rate. Currently students can audit courses through UMaine, but they have to pay the full price.



Agriculture and Marine Resources



Rep. Jeff Evangelos (I-Friendship) is submitting a bill that calls for a $1 million appropriation from the General Fund for the Department of Marine Resources to support sales and marketing for the lobster industry. The measure would also allow the commissioner to undertake an investigation of lobster pricing.



"We don't have a transparent market," says Evangelos. "Right now the wharves will get a phone call saying the prices dropped a buck today. I want to enhance the ability of the commissioner to investigate the price of lobsters if we enter another crisis."



Also on lobsters, Rep. Bruce MacDonald is proposing a bond to provide funds to develop lobster processing capacity in the state.



As for agriculture, Rep. Deb Sanderson would like to amend Maine's hemp law, which currently allows industrial hemp to be grown only if the federal restriction on growing is removed. Sanderson would like to get rid of the federal restriction from state statute and give farmers the right to grow it now. Commonly grown in colonial America for its fiber, hemp can be used to make products such as hemp seed foods, hemp oil, wax, resin, rope, cloth, pulp, and fuel.



Meanwhile, Sen. Chris Johnson (D-Lincoln County) and Rep. Brian Jones (D-Freedom) are working with Rep. Lance Harvell (R-Farmington) on a bill to place Maine in an interstate compact requiring genetically modified foods to be labeled if five states join.



"I don't think a state Maine's size could pull off this kind of requirement on its own," says Harvell. "With the compact, you take away a bit of the argument that some of the products wouldn't show up here if we require GMO labeling. Certain groups of people have an interest in what they're eating. This is just about information."



The bill is model legislation from Food Democracy Now, a national organization behind the failed Proposition 37 referendum in California, which aimed to enact a GMO labeling law. Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) will certainly be lobbying hard in support of the bill, while biotech giant Monsanto will likely be spending heavily to oppose it. Currently 30 other states are considering similar initiatives.



Rep. Lizzie Dickerson (D-Rockland) has resubmitted an Act to Forbid the Slaughter of Horses for Human Consumption, which would ban the slaughter and transport to slaughter of horses in Maine. Last legislative session the same bill, supported by animal welfare groups, was proposed by Rep. Gary Knight (R-Livermore Falls), but withdrawn under heavy pressure from horse farmers who transport their horses for slaughter out of state and across the border to Canada. In 2006, the US House of Representatives passed a law to prohibit the slaughtering of horses by a vote of 263-146, but it was never taken up by the Senate. Since then, similar measures have been introduced on the federal level, but have not been called to a vote.



Criminal Justice



Rep. Jeff Evangelos is calling on the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee to investigate the conditions of the Maine State Prison and publicly explain why Warden Patricia Barnhart was fired last month. No reasons for the firing have been officially divulged as of yet.



"The public has a right to know," says Evangelos. "Secrecy doesn't work for me."



Evangelos, whose district includes the prison, would also like to provide a public forum for prison guards and employees to express their views on working conditions, as well as for prison advocacy groups to discuss inmate conditions.



"Prison guards have told me that they are understaffed and that it's a potentially dangerous situation," says Evangelos.



Evangelos also has proposed legislation to require that mental health professionals contact law enforcement if a client appears to be potentially violent. According to the National Behavioral Intervention Team Association, 22 states have mandatory so-called "duty-to-warn" laws, while other states have other forms of the law. Maine is one of five states with no version of the law. A few weeks ago we reported on some of the proposed bills that midcoast legislators had offered up for debate during this legislative session in Augusta. However, not all of the lawmakers representing towns in Waldo, Knox and Lincoln counties were able to answer our queries in time for the deadline, so here are some more legislative proposals that policy committees at the State House will be holding public hearings on in the coming weeks and months.As was expected after the Democratic wins in November, charter schools have moved front and center in the education debate in Augusta. The Maine Education Association, the state's teacher's union, campaigned aggressively against many Republican incumbents who supported the 2011 charter school law, paving the way for the controversial privately run, but publicly funded, institutions.Charter school advocates, including Governor LePage, argue that charter schools provide a choice for parents to meet their child's specific needs in a space free from the rigidness of the public education system. However, critics, including Rep. Bruce MacDonald (D-Boothbay), the new chair of the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee, believe that charter schools drain money from already struggling public schools as the funding must follow the student. MacDonald also says that charter schools are less accountable to taxpayers since they are not governed by local, popularly elected school boards. MacDonald has several bills regarding charter schools, including An Act To Eliminate the Requirement That Local Funding Follow a Pupil to a Charter School. Another bill would require that virtual schools, which are online charter schools that allow students in grades K-12 to go to school on the Internet, must be run publicly, not privately or for profit.MacDonald would also provide more state funding to schools for starting teachers. Prior to 2006, first-year teachers in Maine made an average of $27,000 a year, ranking the state's starting salary among the five lowest in the country. The 2006 law provided state funding to schools to boost starting salaries to a $30,000 minimum, but due to budget cuts, the state has stopped providing funding for the $30,000 minimum. MacDonald's bill would restore that subsidy for school districts who can't afford to pay those teachers at that level.Another controversial education issue MacDonald will address is the question of to what extent standardized test scores should be considered when evaluating teachers. School reformers have argued that teachers should be even more focused on "measurable results" and "teaching to the test." However, critics and many teachers complain that standardized tests only measure a narrow sliver of a student's knowledge and the policy doesn't consider other contributing factors to a student's performance such as poverty and family background. A task force, comprised of various stakeholders including the MEA, failed to agree on what percentage test scores should account for in teachers' evaluations, so the Maine Department of Education has proposed 25 percent, while the MEA insists it should be no more than 10 percent. MacDonald's bill would require that standardized test results account for no more than 30 percent in a teacher's evaluation. However, he says he would prefer that standardized test scores not be considered at all in teacher evaluations.On the higher-education front, Rep. Deb Sanderson (D-Chelsea) wants to allow students to audit classes (receiving no college credit) at University of Maine campuses for a reduced rate. Currently students can audit courses through UMaine, but they have to pay the full price.Rep. Jeff Evangelos (I-Friendship) is submitting a bill that calls for a $1 million appropriation from the General Fund for the Department of Marine Resources to support sales and marketing for the lobster industry. The measure would also allow the commissioner to undertake an investigation of lobster pricing."We don't have a transparent market," says Evangelos. "Right now the wharves will get a phone call saying the prices dropped a buck today. I want to enhance the ability of the commissioner to investigate the price of lobsters if we enter another crisis."Also on lobsters, Rep. Bruce MacDonald is proposing a bond to provide funds to develop lobster processing capacity in the state.As for agriculture, Rep. Deb Sanderson would like to amend Maine's hemp law, which currently allows industrial hemp to be grown only if the federal restriction on growing is removed. Sanderson would like to get rid of the federal restriction from state statute and give farmers the right to grow it now. Commonly grown in colonial America for its fiber, hemp can be used to make products such as hemp seed foods, hemp oil, wax, resin, rope, cloth, pulp, and fuel.Meanwhile, Sen. Chris Johnson (D-Lincoln County) and Rep. Brian Jones (D-Freedom) are working with Rep. Lance Harvell (R-Farmington) on a bill to place Maine in an interstate compact requiring genetically modified foods to be labeled if five states join."I don't think a state Maine's size could pull off this kind of requirement on its own," says Harvell. "With the compact, you take away a bit of the argument that some of the products wouldn't show up here if we require GMO labeling. Certain groups of people have an interest in what they're eating. This is just about information."The bill is model legislation from Food Democracy Now, a national organization behind the failed Proposition 37 referendum in California, which aimed to enact a GMO labeling law. Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) will certainly be lobbying hard in support of the bill, while biotech giant Monsanto will likely be spending heavily to oppose it. Currently 30 other states are considering similar initiatives.Rep. Lizzie Dickerson (D-Rockland) has resubmitted an Act to Forbid the Slaughter of Horses for Human Consumption, which would ban the slaughter and transport to slaughter of horses in Maine. Last legislative session the same bill, supported by animal welfare groups, was proposed by Rep. Gary Knight (R-Livermore Falls), but withdrawn under heavy pressure from horse farmers who transport their horses for slaughter out of state and across the border to Canada. In 2006, the US House of Representatives passed a law to prohibit the slaughtering of horses by a vote of 263-146, but it was never taken up by the Senate. Since then, similar measures have been introduced on the federal level, but have not been called to a vote.Rep. Jeff Evangelos is calling on the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee to investigate the conditions of the Maine State Prison and publicly explain why Warden Patricia Barnhart was fired last month. No reasons for the firing have been officially divulged as of yet."The public has a right to know," says Evangelos. "Secrecy doesn't work for me."Evangelos, whose district includes the prison, would also like to provide a public forum for prison guards and employees to express their views on working conditions, as well as for prison advocacy groups to discuss inmate conditions."Prison guards have told me that they are understaffed and that it's a potentially dangerous situation," says Evangelos.Evangelos also has proposed legislation to require that mental health professionals contact law enforcement if a client appears to be potentially violent. According to the National Behavioral Intervention Team Association, 22 states have mandatory so-called "duty-to-warn" laws, while other states have other forms of the law. Maine is one of five states with no version of the law. Health and Human Services



Rep. Lizzie Dickerson (D-Rockland) has submitted a bill at the request of Appleton pot activist Will Neils to add post-traumatic stress disorder and opiate addiction to the list of qualifying conditions to treat with medicinal marijuana. The original 2009 medical marijuana initiative called for a process to add qualifying medical conditions, but since then no movement has been made to set it up. Rep. Mark Dion (D-Portland) held a press conference in December with the ACLU to promote his bill to allow doctors discretion in recommending medicinal marijuana to patients, citing PTSD as a specific example. However, Neils says he isn't convinced Dion's bill is enough.



"What we've done is a very simple concept," says Neils. "It relates to amending the qualifying conditions that should have been done in committee, but as we've seen recalcitrance by the Department of Health and Human Services to be pro-active in making these things happen, it's necessary to take these precautionary gestures to make sure that we get this done."



HHS Committee member Rep. Deb Sanderson has submitted a bill to establish an immediate advocate for persons who have been involuntarily committed, to communicate with the employer of the patient in order to protect the individual's employment status. According to Sanderson, the bill would also protect the employer from potential litigation for terminating an employee while committed for health reasons.



"If an employee is involuntarily committed and doesn't show up for work, an employer may not necessarily know that there were legitimate extenuating circumstances surrounding that employee's absence," says Sanderson.



Labor and Taxes



Rep. Jeff Evangelos wants to raise the state minimum wage from $7.50 to $8.50 an hour. In 2011, a measure to raise the minimum wage by 75 cents over two years failed on straight party lines, with Democrats supporting it and Republicans opposed. Those opposing the bill argued that it would hurt small business and that wages are best determined by the market, not government.



"The current minimum wage of $7.50 an hour is not liveable," argues Evangelos in response. "Quite honestly, $7.50 an hour is a disgrace."



Rep. Bruce MacDonald is proposing a bill to restore the state's top rate of income tax from 7.9 to 8.5 percent in order to fund education. Governor LePage and the Republican-led previous Legislature lowered the tax rate from 8.5 to 7.9 percent as part of a tax-cut package, which Democrats say helped create the current budget shortfall.



Also on taxes, Rep. Brian Jones has a bill requiring that landowners taking advantage of property tax breaks through Maine's Tree Growth law have the timber harvested by Maine workers in a Maine facility. The issue of companies hiring bonded Canadian loggers at the expense of Maine workers has been a contentious one for years, pitting labor groups against large landowners, who maintain that they can't find Maine workers to do the jobs.



"The original intent of the tree growth tax law was to encourage forest productivity," says Jones. "Some now see it as a state program to subsidize the forest industry. No matter how we see it, it's a subsidy that benefits the commercial forestry industry and landowners at the expense of Maine workers. I hope to make this tax law work for Maine workers."



Elections



Rep. Brian Jones and Rep. Jeff Evangelos are sponsoring a resolution calling on Congress to pass an amendment to the Constitution to overturn the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision, which has opened up elections to unlimited spending from corporations and labor unions. Evangelos says he is also working with Maine's native tribal representatives on legislation that would create a single district for electing members of the Passamaquoddy, Maliseet, Mic Mac and Penobscot tribes to the Legislature. Currently, the Penobscot, Passamaquoddy and Maliseet tribes each have a seat in the Maine House, but they are not permitted to vote. As Evangelos notes, Maine native tribal members were not given the right to vote in statewide elections until 1967.



Coyote Hunting and Trapping



In the midcoast, coyote hunting has come under scrutiny in recent years as landowners have complained that using hounds to drive predators across wide stretches of land often involves trespassing. Some have also expressed ethical questions about the practice. Currently, the state pays bounties to trappers, also known as "critter gitters," to kill coyotes, in an attempt to reduce deer predation, but Rep. Lizzie Dickerson wants to eliminate that program.



"My bill would eliminate the $100,000 a year the state is spending to kill coyotes instead of managing the forest habitat in a more ecological manner," says Dickerson.



The Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife has so far spent $31,732 and last year spent $15,000 of a $50,000 appropriation to pay for the bounties. According to the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, 136 coyotes have been killed this winter by 49 paid trappers in designated areas where coyotes are thought to be thinning deer herds.



"[Dickerson's] probably got nothing to worry about, because the governor's budget doesn't include an ongoing appropriation for the Maine Game Plan for Deer's coyote-control program," writes George Smith, outdoors columnist and former director of the Sportsman's Alliance of Maine, in his blog. "And at the current cost of more than $200 per coyote, it's hard to justify continuing the program."



Several other bills this session will attempt to allow coyote hunters to night-hunt during deer hunting season and on Sunday. Currently, the coyote night-hunting season is from December 16 to August 31, one half hour after sunset to a half hour before sunrise, Monday through Saturday.



Miscellaneous



And like clockwork An Act To Reimburse Phillip Wolley for Litigation Expenses Incurred in Connection with His Termination and Reinstatement as a State Employee has returned to the Legislature for the 13th time since 1990. Wolley is a former Bureau of Lottery employee who lost his job due to a criminal charge, for which he was later found not guilty. According to legislative records, in 1987 Wolley was rehired for his position at full seniority and all other contract benefits. The bill is an attempt to recoup $28,000 in legal expenses accrued during the trial. Over the years, the bill has been introduced by both Democrats and Republicans on behalf of Wolley, and this year Rep. James Gillway (R-Searsport) has submitted it for the second time. In 2011, the same bill lost on a committee vote of 13 to 1.



It should also be noted that not every legislator submits legislation. Freshman lawmaker Rep. Ellen Winchenbach (R-Waldoboro) says she's researched some ideas, but has decided not to put in any bills this session. Instead she says she's focused on just learning the ropes. She is one of seven legislators, six of them Republicans, who have opted not to put in bills this session. Taking to Twitter, Governor LePage expressed his appreciation for the seven legislators.



"Sometimes less is more," he tweeted. "I applaud the lucky 7." Rep. Lizzie Dickerson (D-Rockland) has submitted a bill at the request of Appleton pot activist Will Neils to add post-traumatic stress disorder and opiate addiction to the list of qualifying conditions to treat with medicinal marijuana. The original 2009 medical marijuana initiative called for a process to add qualifying medical conditions, but since then no movement has been made to set it up. Rep. Mark Dion (D-Portland) held a press conference in December with the ACLU to promote his bill to allow doctors discretion in recommending medicinal marijuana to patients, citing PTSD as a specific example. However, Neils says he isn't convinced Dion's bill is enough."What we've done is a very simple concept," says Neils. "It relates to amending the qualifying conditions that should have been done in committee, but as we've seen recalcitrance by the Department of Health and Human Services to be pro-active in making these things happen, it's necessary to take these precautionary gestures to make sure that we get this done."HHS Committee member Rep. Deb Sanderson has submitted a bill to establish an immediate advocate for persons who have been involuntarily committed, to communicate with the employer of the patient in order to protect the individual's employment status. According to Sanderson, the bill would also protect the employer from potential litigation for terminating an employee while committed for health reasons."If an employee is involuntarily committed and doesn't show up for work, an employer may not necessarily know that there were legitimate extenuating circumstances surrounding that employee's absence," says Sanderson.Rep. Jeff Evangelos wants to raise the state minimum wage from $7.50 to $8.50 an hour. In 2011, a measure to raise the minimum wage by 75 cents over two years failed on straight party lines, with Democrats supporting it and Republicans opposed. Those opposing the bill argued that it would hurt small business and that wages are best determined by the market, not government."The current minimum wage of $7.50 an hour is not liveable," argues Evangelos in response. "Quite honestly, $7.50 an hour is a disgrace."Rep. Bruce MacDonald is proposing a bill to restore the state's top rate of income tax from 7.9 to 8.5 percent in order to fund education. Governor LePage and the Republican-led previous Legislature lowered the tax rate from 8.5 to 7.9 percent as part of a tax-cut package, which Democrats say helped create the current budget shortfall.Also on taxes, Rep. Brian Jones has a bill requiring that landowners taking advantage of property tax breaks through Maine's Tree Growth law have the timber harvested by Maine workers in a Maine facility. The issue of companies hiring bonded Canadian loggers at the expense of Maine workers has been a contentious one for years, pitting labor groups against large landowners, who maintain that they can't find Maine workers to do the jobs."The original intent of the tree growth tax law was to encourage forest productivity," says Jones. "Some now see it as a state program to subsidize the forest industry. No matter how we see it, it's a subsidy that benefits the commercial forestry industry and landowners at the expense of Maine workers. I hope to make this tax law work for Maine workers."Rep. Brian Jones and Rep. Jeff Evangelos are sponsoring a resolution calling on Congress to pass an amendment to the Constitution to overturn the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision, which has opened up elections to unlimited spending from corporations and labor unions. Evangelos says he is also working with Maine's native tribal representatives on legislation that would create a single district for electing members of the Passamaquoddy, Maliseet, Mic Mac and Penobscot tribes to the Legislature. Currently, the Penobscot, Passamaquoddy and Maliseet tribes each have a seat in the Maine House, but they are not permitted to vote. As Evangelos notes, Maine native tribal members were not given the right to vote in statewide elections until 1967.In the midcoast, coyote hunting has come under scrutiny in recent years as landowners have complained that using hounds to drive predators across wide stretches of land often involves trespassing. Some have also expressed ethical questions about the practice. Currently, the state pays bounties to trappers, also known as "critter gitters," to kill coyotes, in an attempt to reduce deer predation, but Rep. Lizzie Dickerson wants to eliminate that program."My bill would eliminate the $100,000 a year the state is spending to kill coyotes instead of managing the forest habitat in a more ecological manner," says Dickerson.The Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife has so far spent $31,732 and last year spent $15,000 of a $50,000 appropriation to pay for the bounties. According to the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, 136 coyotes have been killed this winter by 49 paid trappers in designated areas where coyotes are thought to be thinning deer herds."[Dickerson's] probably got nothing to worry about, because the governor's budget doesn't include an ongoing appropriation for the Maine Game Plan for Deer's coyote-control program," writes George Smith, outdoors columnist and former director of the Sportsman's Alliance of Maine, in his blog. "And at the current cost of more than $200 per coyote, it's hard to justify continuing the program."Several other bills this session will attempt to allow coyote hunters to night-hunt during deer hunting season and on Sunday. Currently, the coyote night-hunting season is from December 16 to August 31, one half hour after sunset to a half hour before sunrise, Monday through Saturday.And like clockwork An Act To Reimburse Phillip Wolley for Litigation Expenses Incurred in Connection with His Termination and Reinstatement as a State Employee has returned to the Legislature for the 13th time since 1990. Wolley is a former Bureau of Lottery employee who lost his job due to a criminal charge, for which he was later found not guilty. According to legislative records, in 1987 Wolley was rehired for his position at full seniority and all other contract benefits. The bill is an attempt to recoup $28,000 in legal expenses accrued during the trial. Over the years, the bill has been introduced by both Democrats and Republicans on behalf of Wolley, and this year Rep. James Gillway (R-Searsport) has submitted it for the second time. In 2011, the same bill lost on a committee vote of 13 to 1.It should also be noted that not every legislator submits legislation. Freshman lawmaker Rep. Ellen Winchenbach (R-Waldoboro) says she's researched some ideas, but has decided not to put in any bills this session. Instead she says she's focused on just learning the ropes. She is one of seven legislators, six of them Republicans, who have opted not to put in bills this session. Taking to Twitter, Governor LePage expressed his appreciation for the seven legislators."Sometimes less is more," he tweeted. "I applaud the lucky 7." X