PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • June 28, 2021
In a few days the state legislature can decide to allow Maine people to take control of our State’s two failing electric utilities – CMP and Versant/Bangor Hydro – which rank at the bottom for reliability and customer satisfaction nationwide and charge high rates too. The Pine Tree Power bill sailed through the Energy and Utilities Committee with a 10-3 vote from a bipartisan group of legislators who heard the testimony and examined the facts. The bill then passed in the House and Senate. Then, the foreign corporations that own our two large electric utilities engaged an army of lobbyists who persuaded two Senators to change their votes. On Tuesday, June 30, there is one last chance for the Senate to vote again and pass LD 1708. ~ Wayne R. Jortner, Freeport