News From The State and Legislature

Members of the 124th Legislature sworn inThe members of the 124th Legislature were sworn in Dec. 3, by Gov. Baldacci.

Of the 151 members of the 124th Maine House, 96 are Democrats, 54 are Republicans, and one is Unenrolled. There are 47 women in the House; 37 are Democrats and 10 are Republicans. Six members have prior service in the State Senate. Of the 52 new members of the House, four have prior service in the House.

By way of occupation, the 124th House of Representatives is composed of 22 educators (10 active and 12 retired) while another five are in education administration (two active and three retired).

There are eight attorneys in the House, two farmers, and nine people who work in the healthcare profession.

Three legislators are involved in the pulp and paper industry. Seventeen members are businesspeople, five are consultants, and six are self-employed. There are 39 retirees in the House, many of those members having come from the ranks of business and local, state, and federal government.

Eighty of the 151 members were born in Maine, 27 of them in the communities they currently represent. Nineteen members were born in Massachusetts, 11 members were born in New York, one was born in England, and the rest were born in 19 other states and the District of Columbia.

Of the 35 members of the Senate, there are 20 Democrats and 15 Republicans. Eight are women (six Democrats; two Republicans) and 27 are men (14 Democrats; 13 Republicans). There are 10 new members; eight of these have served in the House of Representatives.

All members in the 124th Legislature have been elected to serve two-year terms.Snowmobile clubs and municipalities to get more trail fundsThe Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands (BPL) announced that snowmobile clubs and municipalities with snowmobile trails are receiving more grant money for trail maintenance this year. Eligible clubs will receive in total about $100,000 more this year than last year, while eligible municipalities will receive in total about $285,000 more.

The additional funding, generated by increased snowmobile registration fees, was requested by snowmobile users and approved last year by the state Legislature. Qualified clubs still can apply for the Club Trail Maintenance Grant until Wed., Dec. 31. Interested clubs can contact the BPL at 1-800-462-1019 or 287-4957 or e-mail shannon.d.morin@maine.com.MaineBureau of Parks and Lands awards recreation grantsThe Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands (BPL) has awarded more than $100,000 to four municipalities and one county government for outdoor recreation projects funded by a federal grant program. A total of $113,885 has been approved for the government entities under the Land and Water Conservation Fund Program. The program is administered by BPL for outdoor recreation programs for all towns, school districts, and Indian tribal governments.

The projects are: $25,000 for the Town of Woodland to replace an aging playground at the Woodland Community School; $25,000 for the City of Gardiner to replace the playground at the Town Common; $20,000 for the Town of Skowhegan to upgrade the playground at Memorial Field; $23,885 to the Piscataquis County Commission for acquisition of a two-acre parcel in Greenville Junction for trailhead access; and, $20,000 for assistance to the City of Portland for its skateboard park.

Only seven applications were received this year. For more information on the program, contact the BPL Community Recreation Division at 287-4962.

State Representative Jonathan McKane represents Edgecomb, Newcastle, Damariscotta, Bristol, South Bristol and Monhegan Plantation

As always, he encourages constituents to send thoughts, ideas, questions and opinions. Contact McKane for more information on this or any other issue at 563-5427 or by email at Jon@JonMcKane.com.