Maine lawmakers outline competing visions for energy policy, agree affordability is key
Lawrence suggested Maine can expand its renewable energy sectors to export more power and boost economic growth. But their Republican colleagues see it differently."
Published on: November 28, 2025
......................The policy outlook panel hosted by the chamber featured four lawmakers with deep institutional knowledge, gained from their years on the Energy, Utilities and Technology Committee: Sen. Mark Lawrence (D-York), the Senate co-chair; Rep. Melanie Sachs (D-Freeport), the House co-chair; Rep. Steve Foster (R-Dexter), ranking committee member; and Sen. Matt Harrington (R-York), the assistant Senate Republican leader. (You can watch their discussion here; it starts at 3:19.)
Solar policy has been among the most divisive issues handled by the committee. Maine has wrestled in recent years to adjust financial incentives, championed by Democrats, that unleashed a wave of solar development but proved too generous and created a multi-million-dollar burden for electric customers. A recent law, L.D. 1777, restructured the incentives and set the stage for designing a successor program.
During the panel discussion, Sachs and Lawrence expressed satisfaction with the reforms, with Lawrence saying solar policy is now “in the rearview mirror.” But Harrington and Foster disagreed, saying the changes didn’t go far enough. Whether solar stays in the rearview mirror will depend on whether Democrats remain in the driver’s seat, or if a suit filed this week by the solar industry to block the law gets traction.
On the challenge of balancing affordability with clean energy goals, Sachs said Maine can do both. And Lawrence suggested Maine can expand its renewable energy sectors to export more power and boost economic growth. But their Republican colleagues see it differently.
Referring to a large wind farm in Bingham, near his district, Foster noted it was built to satisfy out-of-state contracts and didn’t directly benefit Maine electric customers. More pointedly, Harrington questioned the entire premise of building clean energy projects to meet “our climate goals.”
Harrington continued: “I do not share in those goals. The last six years in the Maine Legislature, the only focus has been on ‘their climate goals.’ There has been zero emphasis on affordability. And Maine people are feeling that so badly today.”
Continue article at https://themainemonitor.org/maine-lawmakers-outline-competing-energ...
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Comment
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Comment by Dan McKay 13 hours ago
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The only thing that needs to be seen in the “rearview mirror” is Lawrence’s membership in the EUT Committee. This mathematically challenged buffoon who thinks he is clever mocking Jim LaBrecque and CMP analysts is as much of an economist as Bugs Bunny.
Energy is a component of every sector of the business world and when man found that abundant storable fuels were much more magnificent than manual labor, the world took off, enhancing every phase of our lives. But, for energy to be useful it must be reliable as well as abundant and wind, solar and storage batteries are not reliable and not in abundance due to their dilute energy density properties.
But, like all Democrats, Lawrence thinks spending enough of other people’s money can overcome the shortcomings of his favored renewables. It is unbelievable that he thinks of energy as a commodity owned by the Government and increasing the generation of solar, wind and batteries can be exported for huge profit margins. The Government does not own energy, can not direct the use of energy, and surely has failed everytime it meddles in the private energy sector. We now have overly expensive electricity with costs out of the reach of many Maine people. The Democrats want to ration electricity by the time of day. They want to store solar and wind into batteries, sending prices into the statosphere. And, how, Chair Lawrence are you going to export solar and wind generated electrcity when your plan is to keep it within the distribution system, forcing CMP to collect all the funds needed to pay your beloved solar and wind profiteers and making CMP out to be the profiteering culprits.
Lawrence has no regard for Maine people, he thinks he is “above them” It is best to “view” him for what he is, a screwball.
Senator Harrington is correct. The goals for renewable energy should be trash-bound, as should Net Energy Billing, RGGI, Efficiency Maine Trust, Power Purchase Agreements conducted by the PUC and the private sector should regain control over energy matters; the Democrats are destorying Maine, one electron at a time and destorying CMP by a thousand rate hikes and Lawrence is the clown leading the circus.
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Comment by Thinklike A. Mountain 16 hours ago
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New Jersey Governor-Elect Mikie Sherrill Picks Biden Lackey Jennifer Granholm to Lead Energy Transition Team
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2025/11/new-jersey-governor-elect-...
Maine as Third World Country:
CMP Transmission Rate Skyrockets 19.6% Due to Wind Power
Click here to read how the Maine ratepayer has been sold down the river by the Angus King cabal.
Maine Center For Public Interest Reporting – Three Part Series: A CRITICAL LOOK AT MAINE’S WIND ACT
******** IF LINKS BELOW DON'T WORK, GOOGLE THEM*********
(excerpts) From Part 1 – On Maine’s Wind Law “Once the committee passed the wind energy bill on to the full House and Senate, lawmakers there didn’t even debate it. They passed it unanimously and with no discussion. House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, a Democrat from North Haven, says legislators probably didn’t know how many turbines would be constructed in Maine if the law’s goals were met." . – Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, August 2010 https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/wind-power-bandwagon-hits-bumps-in-the-road-3/From Part 2 – On Wind and Oil Yet using wind energy doesn’t lower dependence on imported foreign oil. That’s because the majority of imported oil in Maine is used for heating and transportation. And switching our dependence from foreign oil to Maine-produced electricity isn’t likely to happen very soon, says Bartlett. “Right now, people can’t switch to electric cars and heating – if they did, we’d be in trouble.” So was one of the fundamental premises of the task force false, or at least misleading?" https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/wind-swept-task-force-set-the-rules/From Part 3 – On Wind-Required New Transmission Lines Finally, the building of enormous, high-voltage transmission lines that the regional electricity system operator says are required to move substantial amounts of wind power to markets south of Maine was never even discussed by the task force – an omission that Mills said will come to haunt the state.“If you try to put 2,500 or 3,000 megawatts in northern or eastern Maine – oh, my god, try to build the transmission!” said Mills. “It’s not just the towers, it’s the lines – that’s when I begin to think that the goal is a little farfetched.” https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/flaws-in-bill-like-skating-with-dull-skates/
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Hannah Pingree on the Maine expedited wind law
Hannah Pingree - Director of Maine's Office of Innovation and the Future
"Once the committee passed the wind energy bill on to the full House and Senate, lawmakers there didn’t even debate it. They passed it unanimously and with no discussion. House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, a Democrat from North Haven, says legislators probably didn’t know how many turbines would be constructed in Maine."
https://pinetreewatch.org/wind-power-bandwagon-hits-bumps-in-the-road-3/
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