We begin the second session of the 124th Legislature on January 6th. During the coming months we will face some serious challenges. A budget shortfall of more that $400 million dollars, issues relating to school consolidation, the environment, labor and wage bills and the need to correct language on some laws enacted during the first session which have had difficulties in implementation. This is the peril of pushing through legislation to meet a delf proclaimed deadline, as opposed to assuring the issue has been properly reviewed and the concerns of various parties have been considered, including those of the end users who must apply the results of the new law. Two good examples of this were a bill to require all rental units and  homes sold after Oct 31st 2009 to have a functioning carbon monoxide detector installed. There is no doubt that this can be a real and concerning life safety matter, however in the rush to pass the final version many changes were made which left unanswer questions as to how to enforce the new statute.

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Our class began with an opening retreat at Camp Wavus in Jefferson and has included trips to locations in Piscatiquis, and Kennebec Counties to tour and learn about different parts of our state’s economy. We will also visit manufacturing businesses in south western Maine, travel to Bath Iron Works shipyard, participate in  forums on  health care and Maine’s energy needs and then hold a session in Augusta where we will participate in a mock Legislature.

One of the the great joys in a parents life is to see you children grow and achieve success in their lives. All three of ours are now young adults. Grace has completed college and is working in Washington DC. She has a position working at the Republican National Committee helping with the next National Convention. Andre & Gerald are attending St. Joseph’s College where they both are members of the men’s soccer team. Gwen and I had a wonderful fall as we travelled around watching the team progress through a very good season. It was not without some challenges including last spring’s announcement that the college had to reduce expenses which resulted in the coach’s full time position being cut. A new part time coach stepped in during the summer and life when on. These young men turned adversity into triumph as they went on to win their conference title and be selected for an NCAA playoff berth.  During which they set 21 team and individual records.

Below is an article from the Bangor Daily News.

Brothers help St. Joseph’s into NCAA tourney

Cushings and Monks join Division III field

St. Joseph’s College of Standish will be making its first NCAA Division III Tournament appearance in men’s soccer after winning the Great Northeast Athletic Conference tourney title.

And two brothers from Hampden, senior Andre Cushing and freshman brother Gerald, have played key roles for the 14-7-1 Monks.

St. Joseph’s will travel to play Wesleyan (Conn.) on Saturday.

“They’ve both had a huge impact on our team,” said Monks coach Steve Babineau. “Andre was a first team all-conference choice. He scored some great goals and had a bunch of assists. With his work ethic, he leads by example in training and in games.

“Gerald has come such a long way since day one. He’s a great young man who is always working hard and always asking what can he do to get better,” Babineau said. “He’s willing to play different positions and he competes with the best of them.

“We’ve used him at outside midfield and in the back and he’s done well,” he added.

“This [title] has been something we’ve been working for over the past three years,” said Andre Cushing, who has scored two goals and notched four assists. “We felt we should have won it last year so we’ve played with a chip on our shoulders this year.”

He said being named All-GNAC was nice “but it was a collective team effort. I was just able to make some key plays in key situations. It’s a reflection on how well we’ve played together.”

He said he has been motivated by a heartbreaking 3-2 loss to Greely of Cumberland Center in the 2004 Class A state title game, in which Hampden squandered a 2-0 lead. He has also been motivated by a frustrating 2008 season.

“That [Greely] game has been eating at me for five years and I told the guys [in the 2-1 GNAC title game win over Emerson] that wasn’t going to happen to us,” said Cushing.

He said he didn’t play as well as he wanted to last season “but I’ve been more consistent this year.”

Cushing added that the season has been “very rewarding” and getting to share it with his brother has added to it.

“It’s cool. He was a JV when I was a senior at Hampden Academy. It’s nice to share something like this with him,” said Andre Cushing.

I was selected in August to attend the Council of State Government- Eastern Region Conference in Burlington, VT. as a member of the Maine Delegation. This annual conference brings together legislators and state department heads from all New England and other states as far south as Maryland with the Candadia n provinces and Puerto Rico to discuss issues of mutual concern and share ideas on policy and means of cooperating on matters of regional interest. THe event rotates to one of the ten different states each year and Maine will be the 2010 host. This will be a special event as it is the fiftieth anniversary of CSG. I am a member of the organizing committee and we are working hard to assure this will be a memorable event that will encourage others to visit Maine again and perhaps showcase some of our wonderful businesses and university campuses.

After a busy session we ended on a relatively quiet note. Speaker Pingree and the House Leadership did an outstanding job of managing the calendar to get legislation processed while being respectful of our time. I don’t believe we were in session after 5pm more than three days. The final week we were able to accomplish much by the afternoon break. The final night was a bit long as we awaited final action by the Senate so we could then ajourn sine die, which in Latin means “without day” (A legislative body adjourns sine die when it adjourns without appointing a day on which to appear or assemble again.).
The only unfortunate part of this final week was the Democratic effort to run through a tax increase on the last day of session. This was the result of passage of LD 1088,
“An Act To Modernize the Tax Laws and Provide over $75,000,000 to Residents of the State in Tax Relief”. This bill was run through the hearing process and passed by primarily Democratic party line vote.

Governor Baldacci declined to sign the legislation as presented so an intense effort to negoiate a compromise was undertaken by Democratic leaders bent on passing a bill before the end of session. The result was a proposal, LD 1495 “An Act To Implement Tax Relief and Tax Reform”. This legislation was deposited on our desk 15 minutes before a vote was expected. There was not the customary public hearings nor even a review by the full Taxation Committee. It was an last minute attempt to craft tax reform in a very closed environment.
On a strict Democratic vote it passed the House and won the support of only one Republican, Sen. Peter Mills, in the Senate.

Following the Governor signing the bill a coalition of concerned legislators and citizen’s mobilized a petition drive to allow Maine voters a chance to have a say on the newly passed tax bill. Over a short time more than 70,000 signatures were collected and in September they were submitted to the Secretary of State for review and certification. After a delay which resulted in a lawsuit being filed by the group’s spokesman Charles Webster the courts found the Secretary of State had not properly fulfilled his duties and ordered that the petitions be certified. The vote will take place in June of 2010.

I spent a busy summer working on personal and family business and dealing with some items on my Legislative schedule. Not too many trips to Augusta were necessary but we did have some hearings before the LAbor Committee for Gubernatorial appointments.

Governor Baldacci delivered his 7th State of the State address on Tuesday March 10th. Below is a link to the text of his speech if you would like to review it:

http://www.maine.gov/tools/whatsnew/index.php?topic=Gov+News&id=69160&v=Article-2006

I have been travelling to Augusta now for two month’s and I must say it has been an enlightening experience. We convene session most Tuesdays and Thursday and after the beginning ceremonies ( where  ministers from various regions of the state are invited to open  in pray, and school bands or local vocalists lead us in the national anthem), we introduce the doctor of the day, honorary pages who are visiting with their  elected representatives and special guests in the gallery. Then we get down to “Business” referring bills to committee and offering up special sentiments. I know this sounds odd but it is part and parcel of the operations of the state legislature. A bit of background from those of you scratching your heads and wondering what the heck are they doing???  The process of the Legislature is similar to a long train leaving the station, the engine is pick up steam before the caboose starts to move. We typically have had a date (cloture day) by which members need to file the intent of bills (at least the title) they are working on, these are reviewed by the Legislative Council comprised of the leadership of both parties in the House and Senate (Speaker, President, Minority and Majority Leaders and their Assistant Leaders, a total of ten individuals). This council reviews proposed bills and determines if they can be paired with similar measures, then they try to coordinate the flow of proposed legislation and set a schedule for moving these items through the committee structure. In an effort to try and reduce the number of bills usually submitted, the cloture day was extended from December 23rd 2008 to January 23rd 2009. The goal was somewhat successful as it appears we have about 20% less bills this session. These measures then go to the Office of the Revisor where they are reviewed, refined and compared to current statue to make sure there is not a law currently on the books similar to or conflicted  with the proposed legislation. Now the proposals have to be “loaded on the right train” meaning they must come before the House and Senate and be referred to committees for public hearings and work sessions. This is where the public can have their say and members of the committees of jurisdiction will work with proponents and opponents to craft a suitable proposal to present to the full Legislature for a vote.

 As the date for cloture was moved back so too has the flow of bills ready for consideration, the result  has slowed down the committee process and meant we spend more time driving to and from Augusta then we do in session. It has been somewhat frustrating for those of us who are busy but we have learned to be patient, the Legislature runs on  its own special time.

With over 2,000 bills you can see the benefit of this process, as you have a full plate just researching issues before your committee and bills you are sponsoring, it is near impossible to read every bill that will come up for a vote let alone all proposals submitted for consideration. You come to rely on the process to do its work and bring forward a reasonable and well researched product. If a committee unanimously supports a proposal it gives you some assurance that the process has run its course and likewise a unanimous report of ought not to pass tells you this issue may not yet be ready for consideration.

In fairness the clerks and staff have use some of this time to provide more training for new members, we have had various groups hosting events to bring us more information on issue that will come before the Legislature so there has been productive opportunities.

During these challenging economic times we are dealing with the need to reduce spending to accommodate reduced revenues. The Appropriations Committee has been going full tilt and we can be thankful for some of the veteran members like Senators Bill Diamond and Richard Rosen and Representatives Sawin Millett, John Martin, Bob Nutting and Peggy Rotundo, they understand the process and how to ask the right questions. I will continue to outline aspects of the supplemental budget in a future posting.

During the week of January 5th the 124th Legislature began its session. As the Republican Ranking Member of the Labor Committee I attended training on Monday provided for Committee Chairs as Leads. We received presentations on many issues that go into properly holding public hearings and work session. We then met for a brief time with our committee clerk and policy analyst to discuss meeting procedures and review initial bills. The Labor Committee appears to have a light load at this time with less than 25 bills presently submitted. Cloture date is January 12th which is the date for all regular bill requests to be submitted for this session. The Joint Committee on Labor is comprised of thirteen members. They are listed below:

Senate: Troy Dale Jackson, Chair (D-Aroostook)

                 Stan Gerzofsky (D-Cumberland)

                 Peter Mills (R-Somerset)

     House:  John L. Tuttle, Jr., Chair (D-Sanford)

                 Herbert E. Clark (D-Millinocket)

                 Timothy E. Driscoll (D-Westbrook)

                 Anna D. Blodgett (D-Augusta)

                 Steven J. Butterfield II (D-Bangor)

                 Paul E. Gilbert (D-Jay)

                 Andre E. Cushing III (R-Hampden)*

                 James Michael Hamper (R-Oxford)

                 Michael D. Thibodeau (R-Winterport)

                 Bruce A. Bickford (R-Auburn)

We will be responsible for hearing bills that deal with the Department of Labor; wage and hour laws; working conditions, including health and safety; workforce development; unemployment compensation; workers’ compensation; labor relations; collective bargaining; retirement eligibility and benefits for state and municipal employees, including teachers; judicial and legislative retirement systems; Workers’ Compensation Board; and Maine State Retirement System.

We currently are scheduling our meetings for Monday and Wednesday afternoons.

Due to the significant budgetary issues facing the state the Appropriations Committee began holding hearings on Monday. Their goal is to review the Governors proposals to reduce spending in this year’s budget by $150 million. Following hearings there will be work sessions the week of the 12th with a goal of completing deliberations by the end of January. This is an agressive schedule especially with a new Legislature being seated on the 7th of the month. However we are facing serious times and we must deal with this shortfall as we then face the Governor’s proposed budget for 2009-2001(Maine’s fiscal year begins on July 1st and ends the following year on June 30th. The Legislature votes on a tow year or biennial budget) which will address an $860 million projected reduction to meet the expected lower revenues in the coming biennium.

Tuesday morning, along with many members of the Labor Committee,  I attended Labor Commissioner Laura Fortman’s presentation to the Appropriation Committee.

On Wednesday We officially opened the 124th Legislature, there was the regular opening ceremonies then we quickly handled routine business, as there was not much to address since committee have generally not met. After adjourning many of us boarded buses to embark on the Policy Leaders Academy Northern Tour.

On December 3rd we, the members of the 124th Legislature were officially sworn in. The oath ofwas administered by Gov. Baldacci f which we elected leadership for the next two years and in the course of this we made some history. Sen Elizabeth Mitchell was selected as President of the Maine Senate making her the first woman in the nation to serve as both Speaker of the House and President of the Senate Rep. Hannah Pingree became the second woman to serve as Speaker and Janet Mills was elected as the first female Attorney General to serve the State of Maine.

Secretary of State Matt Dunlap, State Treasurer David Lemoine and State Auditor Neiria Douglass were all re-elected. It should be noted that Maine is the only state to elect all constitutional officers by vote of the Legislature.

Following lunch in the hall of flags we were invited to a reception at the Blaine House hosted by Governor Baldacci and the First Lady, Karen Baldacci. My mother, father and sister had come to the ceremony along with my wife Gwen.

It was a special day for those of us who are elected to serve and it was a treat to have family and friends there to share it with us. The day was a good time to get to know our fellow members and to reflect on the special privilege that we have all been granted to serve our friends and neighbors.This was a nice respite before we go to work on some important issues facing our state.

New members of the 124th Legislature came together for their first meeting on November 12th for an orientation. We did many housekeeping details, filling out forms, getting pictures for our security badges, meeting with staff members of the legislature and learning important things such as… where the bathrooms and cafeteria are located.

We also began to learn about the operation of the Legislature and the many non-partisan and dedicated people who will assist us in making the process work.

There are the offices of:

Policy & Legal Analysis – which reviews proposed bills to assure that they don’t conflict with current statutes, the staff also prepares reports for the legislature and compiles the results of studies commissioned by state government.

Fiscal & Program Review – which reviews all fiscal questions that may come before the legislature prepares budget and revenue summaries and other reports that may be of value in the discussion of legislative matters.

Office of the Revisor- this office is charged helping craft the proper language for proposed legislation and withreview of all proposed bills to assure they do not conflict with present statutes.

For more details on these entities, their staffs and how they serve the Legislature cand be accessed at www.legislature.maine.gov

The new incoming members were back in Augusta on December 1st for additional orientation, this morning we convened in the House chambers and received training on the protocol of the House asnd its operations.

We had a presentation by Gene Ross, Director of Communications for the National Conference of State Legislatures on services provided by their organization and a primer on effective means of communicating with constiuients.

Later in the day we were briefed on fiscal & policy conditions in the state and then we held a mock session. Things can move quickly when we are in session, so there are procedures which can be very effective in maintaining order and allowing the business  to flow, understanding the procedures and when and how to address the Speaker is important.

The following day, December 2nd  was mandatory for all members of the incoming Legislature to attend during this day we were provided training on legislative ethics and right to know laws. Tuesday evening we attended a reception and banquet where outgoing members of the Legislative Council were honored for their service.

It was a very full two days and provided a glimpse of what the coming months will bring.