Gov. John Baldacci acknowledged the troubled present but focused on his vision for a prosperous future Tuesday as he unveiled a range of initiatives that lawmakers from both parties described as bold and ambitious.
Baldacci used his State of the State address to announce a strategy that he said will help lift the state out of recession and keep it out. At the center of his plan is an extensive energy initiative that ranges from weatherizing every home within 20 years to creating a renewable energy industry that benefits Maine as both consumer and producer.
He also announced a new agreement with Bangor Hydro to explore the use of the state’s transportation corridors for underground energy transmission lines.
“We have within reach the power to shape our own future, to write the next chapter of this great state’s story,” said Baldacci. “What I’m talking about is a new economy, one that’s built to succeed in a rapidly changing world.”
In addition to the energy initiative, Baldacci proposed launching two medical schools in Maine, instituting a temporary voucher system to help laid-off workers with healthcare costs and instituting a statewide health wellness program.
Rep. John Martin (D-Eagle Lake) who has watched dozens of State of the State addresses during his 44 years in the Legislature, said he’d never seen one quite like this.
“In terms of the boldness of this one compared to those I’ve seen, this is certainly at the top of the list,” Martin said. “In terms of the total energy initiative and its impact on this state, this is a first, really.”
House Speaker Hannah Pingree (D-North Haven) agreed.
“We have to think big,” she said. “If half of what he talked about happens, Maine will become a major energy exporter.”
Republicans said many of Baldacci’s ideas intrigue them, although, as Assistant Senate Minority Leader Jonathan Courtney (R-Springvale) put it, “sometimes the devil is in the details.”
“The governor’s emphasis on energy is a real challenge for the Legislature to work together, to move these proposals together,” Courtney said. “A lot of it is doable. But a lot of these things depend on the stimulus funding. We don’t know how much money is coming from the federal government. We need to be very cautious.”
Rep. Seth Berry (D-Bowdoinham), also saw the speech as a challenge to the Legislature.
“Our job now is to make sure we get the details right,” Berry said.
To pay for his proposals, Baldacci proposes a mix of federal stimulus funding for short-term projects along with private investments and a $306 million bond package he proposed last week. For Courtney and other Republicans, $306 million of borrowing is too much.
“One area where we have concerns is the size of the governor’s bond proposal,” said Senate Minority Leader Kevin Raye (R-Perry). “We must be mindful that debt is at the root of the economic crisis we face.”
Baldacci addressed that concern in his speech.
“I understand that folks are nervous and that some might question the wisdom of borrowing right now, even for worthy projects,” he said. “Our state has always been conservative with bonds. We don’t borrow more than we can afford, and we don’t extend ourselves beyond good sense.”
Among the specifics in Baldacci’s new proposals are:
-Creating a temporary voucher system to help newly unemployed workers pay for health insurance. This is a temporary proposal that will end when the stimulus dollars funding it run out.
-Creating “Maine’s Universal Wellness” program. Beginning in July, the statewide system of Healthy Maine Partnerships will begin providing health risk reviews and educating Mainers about resources available to them. This will be done using existing resources, Baldacci said.
-Launching two medical schools using $3.5 million in stimulus funding. Tufts University will partner with Maine Medical Center and the University of Vermont will partner with Eastern Maine Medical System and the University of Maine.
-Instituting a pilot project, with $500,000 in stimulus funding, involving 15 medical practices in Maine. The project would explore ways for health care professionals to focus on keeping patients healthy as opposed to waiting for them to get sick.
-Introducing the “Maine Energy Independence Act,” which will consolidate all of the state’s efforts in the area of energy under one roof. This initiative includes a goal of weatherizing every Maine home and half of all businesses within 20 years, partially through the use of state-guaranteed loans in an arrangement between the state, banks and credit unions. Also, the state will train a “Weatherization Corps” this summer of about 100 college students to work on energy-related projects.
-Putting $7.5 million from the proposed bond package into a “Maine Marine Wind Energy Fund” to support development of a test site for wind energy. This is part of a long-term ambition to place wind turbines off the coast of Maine.
-Exploring the possibility of routing utility transmission lines along Maine’s transportation corridors. Baldacci announced that he signed a Memorandum of Agreement with Bangor Hydro toward that end on Tuesday. “We are also investigating the potential for a second energy corridor that would run between Maine and New Brunswick,” he said.
(Statehouse News Service)
