John,

As you know, much of MCV's work focuses on ensuring our lawmakers listen to the issues that are important to our members, including climate action, protecting our land and wildlife, and keeping us all healthy with clean air and water.

That's why we're excited to announce our top environmental priorities for the 2021 legislative session — which include specific legislation that will have the greatest impact on protecting Maine’s environment and public health and will work to tackle climate change, help create jobs, reduce pollution in our communities, increase investment in critical infrastructure, and bring more equity into environmental policy decisions. 

Our top nine priority bills include legislation that would:

• Recognize Tribal Sovereignty.
• Stop filling Maine landfills with out-of-state waste.
• Save municipal recycling programs.
• Phase out toxic PFAS chemicals.
• Ban aerial herbicide spraying for forestry management.
• Fund the Land for Maine’s Future program.
• Establish a Green Bank to finance climate solutions.
• Align state agencies with climate goals.
• Fund energy efficiency and weatherization projects.

We recently announced these priority bills with our partners from Maine's Environmental Priorities Coalition (EPC) — a partnership of 32 environmental, conservation, climate action, and public health organizations — and legislative leaders and hundreds of Mainers from across the state. You can watch a recording of the event here, and you can read more about these priority bills here.

In the coming weeks and months, we'll need your help to pass these critical bills, and we're looking for volunteers who can contact their elected officials. If you're interested, please sign our pledge here to commit to contacting your representatives, and we'll follow up soon with more details as they become available.

If you have any questions or would like to help us in this fight, please don't hesitate to reach out.

Thanks for everything you do,
Beth