PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 22, 2024
I introduced legislation to establish the Maine Climate Corps, which received a unanimous committee vote and was signed into law by Gov. Janet Mills. This landmark legislation has greatly enhanced our state’s ability to address a wide array of challenges through a climate-focused lens, including transportation, energy, housing and land and freshwater preservation. The corps works on climate mitigation issues along with climate resiliency, which is needed now more than ever as communities recover from the recent devastating storms and flooding. Alarmingly, this program and the Maine Service Fellows program are set to run out of funding this year, cutting off support for the Climate Corps coordinator position that connects programs with federal opportunities. As a Legislature, we cannot allow that to happen. ~ Rep. Morgan Rielly, Westbrook