The letter urges lawmakers to commit to raising $400 million in new revenue annually. While that figure would not meet all of Maine’s unmet needs, it would allow lawmakers to fully fund the state’s 55% commitment to public schools and municipalities “for the first time ever” and leave roughly an additional $250 million available to meet other urgent needs, it says.
The letter’s signers are Behavioral Health Community Collaborative, Maine AFL-CIO, Maine Center for Economic Policy, Maine Council on Aging, Maine Education Association, Maine Equal Justice, Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition, Maine People’s Alliance, Maine Service Employees Association – SEIU Local 1989, Maine Women’s Lobby, Mainers for Working Families, Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund and Southern Maine Workers’ Center.