LD 1959 holds Maine’s large electric utilities accountable to ratepayers and our climate future. It requires Central Maine Power (CMP) and Versant to develop integrated grid plans to improve electric system reliability and resiliency; enable the cost-effective achievement of the greenhouse gas reduction obligations and climate policies in Maine’s Climate Action Plan; and assist in the transition to a clean, affordable, and reliable electric grid. LD 1959 also requires separate climate change protection plans including specific actions for addressing the expected impacts of climate change. Crucially, the legislation mandates that the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) publish quarterly report cards on utility performance and impose administrative penalties for a utility's poor performance, and provides for a process for divesting an underperforming investor-owned utility of its utility assets to a qualified buyer. The PUC must also report back to lawmakers how it can best support this work, including an assessment of staffing and resource needs and its potential use of competitive procurement of goods and services by the utilities and the resource.
| District | Name | Vote |
|---|---|---|
| 31 | Donna Bailey | |
| 19 | Richard Bennett | |
| 30 | Stacy Brenner | E |
| 29 | Anne M. Carney | |
| 27 | Benjamin M. Chipman | |
| 20 | Ned Claxton | E |
| 4 | Paul T. Davis | |
| 32 | Susan A. Deschambault | |
| 26 | Bill Diamond | |
| 3 | Bradlee Thomas Farrin | E |
| 18 | Lisa Keim | |
| 35 | Mark W. Lawrence | |
| 21 | Nathan L. Libby | |
| 34 | Joseph Rafferty | |
| 2 | Trey Stewart | |
| 22 | Jeffrey L. Timberlake | |
| 23 | Eloise A. Vitelli | |
| 33 | David C. Woodsome | E |