As a past member of the education committee, I now know that hunger is one of the most severe roadblocks to learning. A child who doesn’t have enough to eat, won’t do as well in school. They’re more likely to get sick more often—and, less likely to finish high school. Tom was that kid”. That was more than 25 years ago.

Today, there are 84,000 students who qualify for free or reduced lunch.

Today, twenty percent of Maine kids are food insecure–that’s nearly one in five.

Today, the state of Maine ranks third–only two other states in America have more children in hunger.

That’s a list that we shouldn’t be on. In fact, that’s a ranking we should be ashamed of.

Sometimes, the best solutions are the simplest. This bill is one small step–one common sense step toward making sure a hungry kid in Maine has the opportunity to get one meal a day during the summer-vacation months.

Feeding hungry students is nothing new. We already have a program in place for making sure hungry students get fed during the school year. It’s a federal program, that Maine schools take part in. It’s called the National School Lunch Program.

And feeding students during the summer is nothing new. In fact, the first summer food program began in 1968.

Government–and our society–has long seen the need, and accepted the responsibility, to help provide nutrition to our neediest children.

Today, if you all join me in supporting this bill (again), we can make a difference to 84,000 Maine kids who currently qualify for free or reduced lunch. Today, all we are asking–and expecting–is for the adults to have a conversation about the hungry children at their school, in their community. Today, we are asking schools who already offer summer programming like a rec program, to consider whether a summer food program is right for them.

The food costs are paid for. The federal Summer Food Program picks up the food costs.

The bill even allows schools to partner with churches or nonprofits or other community and civic organizations. In my home town of Portland, there’s a summer food program in the park—at Deering Oaks. The goal is to go to where the kids are and make it as easy as possible.

But even still, if a school doesn’t want to participate, they can opt out. Ultimately, it’s a local decision.

Some may ask, “why is this necessary if schools already can ‘opt-in’ to a summer food program?”. The answer is simple: because there are still 70,000 kids across our state, in each of our districts, who are not getting fed in the summer. They are hungry.

The question I ask each of you is, “why wouldn’t we do this now?”

Again I will ask you: Why wouldn’t we do this now when food insecurity for Mainers is increasing.

This bill is more than just a bill, it’s a pledge, it’s a commitment by all of us that we need to change course; we need to build momentum to help our most precious assets, the children of our state.

Today, you have a second chance to help feed our state’s hungry children so that we can make sure all of our kids, even the hungry, have the basic building blocks to go toe to toe with their classmates or in fact with anyone, anywhere.

I hope you will join me.

Let me start by saying how surprised I am that revenue sharing has become such a political issue. Revenue sharing is one of the most direct ways that we as legislators can support the communities we represent. Each of us was sent to Augusta to make sure our neighbors back home have good schools, safe neighborhoods, and paved roads. And revenue sharing is not only one of our only tools, it is one of the best tools we have to support our towns.

So I’m surprised and disappointed when I hear things like ‘revenue sharing is welfare for towns.’ You and I know first-hand how inaccurate and unhelpful that label is. Because, when we talk about cutting or eliminating revenue sharing, what we’re really talking about is raising property taxes on our constituents.

Let’s be clear. We are not going to save money by cutting revenue sharing. This is a classic false choice – if we break our promise of revenue sharing, we will simply be shifting the costs to our towns; and our homeowners and business property owners will pay the price. I don’t believe anyone here wants to do that, no matter which political party you belong to.

Luckily, we don’t have to. If you want to help your constituents back home, I urge you to support the bill in front of you. Revenue sharing ensures our communities keep local control. It continues a partnership between state and local governments that was started over 40 years ago, in 1972. It funds critical items, like schools and public safety.

And it fulfills a promise that all of us – Democrats and Republicans alike – made to towns last session when we passed the biennial budget.

Everyone on this committee and almost all of our colleagues made a promise to our constituents back home that they would receive $65 million in revenue sharing next year. If we don’t pass this bill, we will be virtually eliminating this property tax relief program for our towns. This program was $120 million program in 2007. Without this bill, next year it will be just $20 million.

I don’t want to do that. I don’t want to face my neighbors and constituents this summer and tell them that their towns are going to see another 60% reduction in revenue sharing, and that their property taxes are going to go up as a result. I want to support my communities, and I know you want to, too.

In Support Of

L.D. 997, “An Act To Establish Restrictions on Ammunition Feeding Devices.”

Senator Gerzofsky, Representative Dion and esteemed members of the Joint Standing Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety. My name is Justin Alfond, I am a resident of Portland, and I am proud to serve as President of the Maine Senate and honored to represent Senate District 8 which includes most of Portland and the islands of Peaks, Cliff and Great Diamond. Today, I am pleased to appear before you as the sponsor of L.D. 997, “An Act To Establish Restrictions on Ammunition Feeding Devices.”

The bill I place before you today is a straightforward and common sense step towards solving a huge and complex problem. A problem that has caused a nation to grieve–and brought sorrow to families and communities. A problem that has given us pause about the tenuous nature of our own life and the lives of our loved ones. And a problem that at times has shaken our faith and called into question the very nature of humanity.

It’s a problem that demands action. This bill is only one part of the solution, and when coupled with other common sense measures that address addiction, violence and mental illness, an opportunity is presented to help prevent a horrible tragedy here in Maine.

The gun debate has a history of being a charged issue. But this is a different gun debate. Times have changed.

I am sure that later today you will hear impassioned testimony from both sides of the issue. Acknowledging that fact, and to avoid confusion about this legislation, I would like to explicitly state what exactly this bill does and does not do.

If this bill becomes law, it will:
ban the possession, transfer or importation of ammunition feeding devices that can carry more than ten rounds after the bill becomes law, making it a Class D crime;
exempt the high-capacity magazines already legally owned by Mainers before the law takes effect; and,
exempt current and former law enforcement officials.

This bill will not:
Criminalize the possession of high-capacity magazines already legally owned by Mainers;
Ban the sale or possession of any firearm in Maine;
Take away any guns currently in anyone’s possession;

I grew up in Dexter, Maine, far-off I-95, on the western edge of Penobscot County. I still remember getting to school and seeing guns on racks in my friends’ pickup trucks. I come from rural Maine, and have a deep and abiding respect for hunting and sporting culture. I believe in protecting our liberties as laid out in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. I respect the Second Amendment and what it stands for.

This is the first time I have brought forward a bill about guns. In fact, this is the first time I’ve testified in front of this committee. What’s changed? Newtown, Connecticut.

I still remember where I was when the news of the tragedy of Sandy Hook hit. Coincidentally, I was just leaving an education event. My first phone call was to my wife Rachael, which was then followed immediately by a call to my son’s childcare. I needed to be reassured that my family was safe. I was overcome by the same dizzying, heartbreaking sorrow that hit every parent in America that day.

We must take what steps we can to prevent the horrible tragedies that we see unfolding with each new news cycle. We can no longer put off having these conversations and making these decisions. The citizens of our country and our state support reasonable measures such as the measure before you today. And they expect us as lawmakers to do what we can to keep their loved ones safe.

Unfortunately, the parents of the Sandy Hook school children cannot benefit from the laws passed in Connecticut. They will never get their children back, but those laws might prevent more lives lost.

On that day, the murderer managed to fire 154 rounds with ten 30-round magazines. Twenty-six people shot dead, twenty of them children. It only took twelve minutes. In the time it took him to reload in one of the classrooms, 11 children were able to escape.

Oak Creek, Wisconsin. That shooter entered a Sikh temple armed with a 9mm semiautomatic handgun and three 19-round magazines. He killed seven people, and injured four.

Aurora, Colorado. The murderer that night managed to shoot 70 people in 7 minutes. 12 of them died. 58 injured. He fired 30 rounds from a 100-round drum, then fired shots from two Glocks with modified 40-round magazines.

Tucson, Arizona. That shooter had only one gun, but he had with him four magazines; two thirty-three-round magazines and two fifteen-round magazines. Thirteen injured, including Congresswoman Gabby Giffords. Six dead, including a judge and a nine-year-old girl.

It should be noted that the Tucson shooter was stopped only when, after exhausting the first 33-round magazine, paused to reload, dropped his second magazine, and he was restrained by bystanders. That nine-year-old girl, Christina Taylor Green, was killed by the 13th bullet fired.

Virginia Tech. Columbine. Fort Hood. The list goes on and on. More than 325 people dead or injured during mass shootings in the last 10 years where the killers used high capacity magazines.

You see, these high-capacity magazines serve one purpose, and one purpose only: to free the person wielding the gun of the inconvenience of frequent reloading. Hit more; faster; and with less effort. The goal becomes firing as many rounds as possible, as quickly as possible.

In Maine, it’s illegal to hunt with a magazine that can carry more than five rounds, and for sport and recreational shooting the short time it takes to reload is a minor inconvenience at best. But when used by a mass murderer, those precious seconds could be enough to stop the shooter. Enough time to seek refuge. Enough time to save a life.

Eliminating the availability of high capacity magazines in no way limits an individual’s right to bear arms and is well within the courts interpretation of the Second Amendment.

I have no illusions that restricting access to these high-capacity magazines in and of itself will stop the next massacre, but it could reduce the number of lives lost. And this is exactly the kind of reasonable restriction that will protect Constitutional rights while saving lives.

I am certain that the Committee will hear a lively debate over this and other measures seeking to strike a balance between individual liberty and public safety. Everyone in this room that has come to testify is a patriot who cares deeply about their rights and the safety of their neighbors. My hope is that when the dust settles, and all of the evidence is placed before you, that the Committee will make the right decision that balances rights with saving lives and unanimously supports the measure before you.

I would like to thank the committee for your time, and I am happy to answer any questions you may have.

In Support Of
L.D. 745, “An Act To Promote Sustainable Food Policies”

Senator Jackson, Representative Dill and esteemed members of the Joint Standing Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee. My name is Justin Alfond. I am a resident of Portland, and I am proud to serve as President of the Maine Senate and honored to represent Senate District 8 which includes most of Portland and the islands of Peaks, Cliff and Great Diamond. Today, I am pleased to appear before you as the sponsor of L.D. 745, “An Act To Promote Sustainable Food Policies”

In 1919, the legislature had the good judgement to permanently include the farmer and the fisherman on our great State of Maine seal. Maine has a rich heritage of farming and fishing, and it was early agriculture and fishermen that helped build this state.

Unfortunately, Maine is in a food crisis. According to a 2010 Census, nearly 1 in 7 Mainers is food insecure, meaning they have a limited or uncertain food supply. In fact, just yesterday the Portland Press Herald reported on the growing lines at our food banks, with many of those patrons earning too much to qualify for food stamps, yet not earning enough for groceries. In the greatest country in the world, it is unacceptable for anyone to go hungry.

And we all know, it costs money to ship food across the country or across the world. As fuel prices go up, so does the cost of food.

While we struggle with this food crisis, we have farmland ready for production and a labor force ready to work. With 1.3M acres of arable farmland and a world-class fisheries system, we have the opportunity to not only feed every person in our state, but to become the breadbasket of New England.

Quite simply, we have within our power to produce much more food in Maine, and feed many more Maine people.

Now, I’m not the first person to think of this, and there has been great work done across the state to address some of these problems. With this legislation, we have the ability to bring these groups together and provide them the support they need.

In addition to the grant system laid out in my bill, I have an amendment to make the initiative more comprehensive and long-term.

First, the bill as amended would establish a 15-member board called the Board on Statewide Food Sustainability. The board would be made up of two Senators, two Representatives, the Commissioner of Agriculture, Conservation & Forestry, the Commissioner of Marine Resources, and nine public members, all with varying expertise in agriculture, aquaculture, and feeding people.
The board’s first task will be to develop both a statewide food scarcity plan, and a statewide food sustainability plan. The board will seek the expertise of the great work already being done by Maine Farmland Trust, the City of Portland, the Maine Food Strategy Initiative, and many other groups working on producing more food in Maine and feeding the people in our state.
In addition, the board will be tasked with administering the distribution of grants $1.1M annually to support municipalities and other groups working towards the goal of a sustainable food system. There are a number of innovative projects across the state already underway, and projects that are simply ideas waiting to get off the ground. If we don’t provide the support they need, these projects will never become the working models we need.

It is important to note that this bill is intended to serve as a starting point. There are several bills the Committee will work with, that aim, in one way or another, to grow more food in Maine and increase access to food for Mainers. I defer to the Committee and stakeholders as to the best way to move forward on a strong policy for sustainable food in Maine, and look forward to working with the Committee to that end.

I’d like to thank the committee for your time, and I am happy to answer any questions you may have.

In Support Of
L.D. 1066, “An Act To Increase Access to Health Coverage and Qualify Maine for Federal Funding”

Senator Craven, Representative Farnsworth and esteemed members of the Joint Standing Committee on Health and Human Services. My name is Justin Alfond. I am a resident of Portland, and I am proud to serve as President of the Maine Senate and honored to represent Senate District 8 which includes most of Portland and the islands of Peaks, Cliff and Great Diamond. Today, I am pleased to appear before you as a co-sponsor of L.D. 1066, “An Act To Increase Access to Health Coverage and Qualify Maine for Federal Funding”

I will be brief with my remarks because there are many people here that will be speaking to the details of Maine’s role in accepting federal dollars for health care coverage. However, I want to make two points.

First, accepting federal dollars for the people of Maine is the right thing to do. Right now, we have a unique opportunity to provide health insurance–at no cost–to more than 50,000 of our friends and neighbors. Think about the immediate impact that will have. Perhaps most importantly, is the impact this will have on people’s lives. Folks can get the health care they need based on medical and health decisions, not whether or not they can afford it.

Tens of thousands of Mainers that rely on the emergency room or free clinics for care will be covered. Tens of thousands of Mainers who delay getting the treatment they need because they don’t have insurance will be covered. And tens of thousands of our neighbors that don’t have access to affordable basic care when they need it will now be covered.

We can do this today. We can’t turn our backs on our neighbors–and what it will mean to their daily lives, their health, their well-being.

Second, let’s talk numbers. The deal that the federal government is offering Maine is sound. And, it will help our state’s financial situation. At first glance, the numbers are staggering: The $256 million in new health health care spending will generate more than $350 million in economic activity.

But again, accessing federal funds makes financial sense. It’s a good deal because, at no cost to our state, more Mainers will have health insurance, it will drive down our overall health care costs and benefit our hospitals by lowering the amount of charity care they provide without reimbursement.

If we don’t accept federal dollars for this year, we will have lost an amazing opportunity to expand access to healthcare for more than 50,000 Mainers at no cost to the state for an entire year. We have a responsibility to them–and to our state’s coffers to accept this.

I encourage the committee to complete your analysis and make sure this makes financial sense for Maine. I believe it does. I am also encouraged by the Chief Executive pursuing the strongest deal for our state.

The choice before us is simple and clear: we can fundamentally change the lives of tens of thousands of our friends and neighbors, or we can look the other way AND deny them the care they need. Today, I could not more strongly urge this committee to unanimously approve this measure and help our neighbors thrive and be healthy. Thank you.

Two years from today, should we be privileged to meet here again, my hope is that we meet here as friends. My hope is that we will be thanking each other. For sharing ideas. For working together. For putting Maine first.

With that future in mind, I am honored to serve as the 115th President of the Maine State Senate.

With so many people to thank, deserving friends and colleagues, I’d like to begin by thanking my family. My mother and father, Joan and Bill. My wife Rachael and our one-year old son, Jacoby. My in-laws, Deena and Jack.

And to all the families and friends able to join us today… Your love and support sustain us, your patience and sacrifice are a constant inspiration.

To my good friend, the Senator from Sagadhoc, Senator Goodall, I am honored by your kind remarks and continued support. Four years ago Senator Goodall and I were seat-mates when we first joined this body. We learned the ropes together, and now we have the opportunity to lead together.

To my dear friend, the good Senator from Cumberland, Senator Haskell, I thank you for your kind words, your support and guidance – I know we both share a deep and abiding love of Maine.

To the good Senator from Aroostook, Senator Jackson – Action Jackson as we call him in our caucus – your experience in the legislature, coupled with your career in forestry, bring invaluable perspective to the Senate leadership.

I thank the good Senator from Waldo, Senator Thibodeau. I know first-hand the challenges and opportunities of serving in the minority – and I look forward to working together.

I acknowledge my good friend, the Senator from Kennebec, Senator Katz. As the former Mayor of Augusta, and with your two years of experience serving on Appropriations, you bring immeasurable experience to our task.

I am honored that Governor Paul LePage joined us today. Governor, We stand ready to work with you . Maine needs us to all work together.

I also wish to extend a warm welcome to all of our Senators, both new and returning members. All of Maine is represented in this chamber.

We have a carpenter and a doctor, a realtor and a firefighter, a logger and a mill worker. We have lawyers, business owners, and more. Together, we embody the best of Maine.

Finally, I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge my predecessor, the Honorable Kevin Raye. It wasn’t always easy, serving in the minority. But under Kevin’s leadership, it was always equitable – he gave every point of view a fair chance to be heard.

Senator Raye understands that a leader does more than stand by his party. A leader brings factions together, and helps broker the compromise that makes law-making possible. For your accommodating perspective, Kevin, my sincere gratitude.

There’s a footnote to this thank you, by the way, that goes back a generation to a second grade classroom at Eastport Primary School. My mother, Joni, was a student in that class, and Kevin’s mother, Frances, was her teacher.

Frances loved teaching second grade she told me – because that’s when children learn to take off their own coats and boots. By now we’ve also learned to roll up our sleeves.

A community, somebody once said, is people who know the same stories. Just as Kevin and I share an unexpected link through our mothers, everyone here shares a reservoir of stories and memories that connect us to Maine.

The flood of ’87, the ice storm of ‘98.

Seth Wescott and Joanie Benoit winning gold.

Ten year-old Samantha Smith, our ambassador of peace and goodwill to the Soviet Union.

The leaves turning red in October ‘04 with the Red Sox at long last winning it all.

Above and beyond personalities and politics, it is our love of this state that unites us – and calls us to serve.

Some say Maine is a divided state. And there are those who want to divide us. Divide us by age or by gender. Divide us by geography, or by how we make our living.

And of course there will always be those who define and divide us by what we believe – and to what we belong. The polarizing voices, all too often the loudest in the room, that try to tell us what to fear and whom to blame.

Even as we meet here today, there are those on both sides spoiling for a fight, and expecting the worst – a showdown in Augusta between the Blaine House and the legislature.

I say – let’s disappoint them.

Let’s show the people of Maine what can happen when we seek common ground. As we did when Governor LePage and then Representative Cain stood by women in the fight against domestic violence.

Let’s show the people of Maine what can happen when we listen to both sides of an argument, and care about all sides of an issue. As we did last session when we adopted standards-based education throughout Maine.

Let’s show the people of Maine what can happen when we work together. As with the many examples, in this turbulent economy, of workers and management coming together to keep the lights on and keep people working.

Keeping the jobs we have, creating the jobs we need. No issue is more urgent than economic security, and nowhere are Mainers relying on us more to work together.

Our first order of business? Rebuilding Maine’s middle class by getting people back to work. At good-paying jobs with promising futures – more than a life lived from paycheck to paycheck.

We have a mandate. Let’s begin by developing a blueprint for job growth, region by region. We need to connect the dots between industry, education, and the future of small business in downtown Maine.

We need to analyze current jobs to identify future jobs, and teach the skills required to fill those jobs.

Why should any Maine business ever have to look elsewhere for qualified workers? And why should any Mainer ever have to leave the state they love to find the job they want?

By closing the education gap in our workforce, we put Maine business in a position to succeed. And by adding strength to strength, we put Maine government in a position to use all of our economic tools – research and development, bonding initiatives, partnerships with the private sector – to optimize job growth in the 21st century.

You see, economic security is not a partisan issue. We all pay bills, buy groceries, seek shelter in a storm.

And as elected representatives, we share something else in common. In a state that’s like one big small town, we’ve all met with thousands of our constituents – at their homes, in line at the market, here in the state house.

And what do they all tell us? They tell us that they’re tired of the gridlock. Fed up with party politics. They tell us to reassess our priorities – and to start by putting their interests first.

Education, healthcare, energy, the economy. The issues haven’t changed in two hundred years. What changes is us – this 126th Maine State Senate – and how we choose to interact.

We won’t always agree, but why let our differences divide us? An honest debate is the crux of democracy – it can only make us stronger. “Labels,” as Ed Muskie liked to say, “are for jam jars.” What matters is substance.

So as we take off our own coats, and roll up our sleeves, imagine looking back at this moment two years from today. What did we accomplish? And whom did we serve?

To those voices telling us we are destined to clash, I offer these words in reply. To quote John F. Kennedy:

Let geography make us neighbors.
Let history make us friends.
Let economics make us partners.
And let necessity make us allies.

Coming together today is a start. An invitation to listen. To collaborate. To ask the selfless questions.

And it is a mandate: to answer the call to public service by putting Maine and her people first.

With that future in mind, let’s get to work. Together.

State Sen. Justin Alfond, D-Portland, who serves on the Legislature’s Education Committee, said while it is within the legal right of the commissioner to overrule local school districts, he disagrees with the commissioner’s approach. He said the commissioner repeatedly said during meetings across the state that he would respect the education field.

“He is not respecting the field. He is saying he doesn’t care what they think,” Alfond said.

…

Click here to read more from the Bangor Daily News.

Others said the bill would have created a “voucher” program that sets a bad precedent.

“Siphoning taxpayer money to pay for religious education undercuts Maine’s public education,” said Assistant Democratic Leader Justin Alfond, who also serves on the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee. “Schools are already being asked to do more with less and taking money away from our public schools will result in cutting programs and lost opportunities for our students.”

…

Click here to read more from the Bangor Daily News.

They also discuss today’s Supreme Court decision not to answer legislative questions about the business interests of state Treasurer Bruce Poiliquin, and whether there is any conflict of interest.

Click here to read more from WCSH-6.