MAINE PUBLIC • May 22, 2025
More than 100 clean energy advocates gathered at the Maine State House in Augusta Thursday to urge lawmakers to pass several bills. Sierra Pearl is an electrical apprentice who said she sees solar as the future. But with federal uncertainty and sometimes hostility toward clean energy, she said the work she and her fellow apprentices have been counting on has dried up. Under consideration are bills aimed at reaching 90% clean energy by 2040, creating a cabinet-level Department of Energy, and creating new affordability standards for utilities. With the chilling effect uncertainty at the federal level has caused over clean energy tax credits and other funding, House and other advocates said that it's more important than ever to invest in renewables at the state level.