[Due ASAP] Maine - LD 1270 - Department of Energy Resources

Published on 26 June 2025 at 19:30

Background

LD 1270 has passed both the Maine House and Senate as of June 25, 2025, and is now officially “passed to be enacted”. That means it's effectively approved and awaiting enactment (signature or automatic taking effect)

You can read the bill here: https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/display_ps.asp?LD=1270&snum=132 

🧾 What L.D. 1270 Does

L.D. 1270 creates a new, cabinet-level Department of Energy Resources in Maine, transferring power from the Governor’s Energy Office and consolidating authority under a single Energy Commissioner—appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate.

This new Commissioner would gain broad, long-term powers to:

  • Negotiate and approve energy contracts lasting up to 30 years

  • Manage hundreds of millions in state and federal climate and energy funds

  • Shape critical infrastructure policy and dictate procurement processes

  • Reduce the oversight role of the Public Utilities Commission (PUC), turning it into more of a contract rubber-stamp than an independent watchdog

Once confirmed, this Commissioner could stay in place through multiple administrations—limiting future governors’ ability to course-correct.

📌 And Governor Mills may appoint the first Commissioner before leaving office.

💰 Why Maine Taxpayers Should Be Concerned

At a time when Mainers are already facing soaring electricity rates, property tax increases, and bloated local budgets, L.D. 1270:

  • Expands government bureaucracy, with over $20 million per year in new operating costs

  • Enables noncompetitive or politically driven energy contracts, locked in for decades

  • Centralizes power in an unelected official, reducing transparency and accountability

  • Risks long-term ratepayer burdens if politically favored renewable projects are chosen over cost-effective options

This is not responsible energy reform—it’s an administrative power grab with lasting fiscal consequences.

⚖️ What About Checks and Balances?

Historically, energy procurement and regulation in Maine have involved:

  • Legislative oversight,

  • A balanced role for the PUC,

  • And multiple layers of public input.

Under L.D. 1270, the Department of Energy Resources will now:

  • Run the bidding process,

  • Choose the winners,

  • Write the contracts,

  • Then ask the PUC to simply approve them.

This shift erodes independent oversight and makes our energy future dependent on whoever holds the executive branch and their preferred allies in Augusta.

🕰️ Where Things Stand Now

✅ June 17, 2025 — Passed by the Maine House
✅ June 18, 2025 — Passed by the Maine Senate
✅ June 25, 2025 — Final Senate action: Passed to be enacted
(See LegiScan for more detail)

The bill is now law, and implementation will begin soon. Governor Mills is expected to nominate the first Energy Commissioner, and the Maine Senate must vote to confirm that nominee.

This is a critical window for Mainers to speak up.

📣 What You Can Do Right Now

🛑 Speak up before the confirmation is finalized.

You can take action today:

🏛️ Contact your Maine State Senator
Respectfully urge them to:

  • Delay any confirmation until after the 2026 election

  • Reject any nominee with known ties to Central Maine Power (CMP), Iberdrola, or other politically connected firms

  • Require a thorough, public vetting process

🗣️ Raise awareness in your community
Write to local papers. Attend public hearings. Share this information with friends, neighbors, and town officials.

🧾 Support a follow-up bill

Encourage your representatives to file bills that:

  • Restore more authority to the PUC

  • Require additional public input on large energy projects

  • Limit contract lengths or add regular legislative review

🖋️ Send a letter or email
We’ve prepared a sample message to help you contact your Senator. (See below.)

🧭 This isn’t about left or right.

It’s about responsible government, ratepayer protection, and making sure Mainers—not bureaucrats or foreign utilities—control our energy future.

Now is the time to act.

Action Time-Window

⚠️ Please consider taking action now!

📍 Maine Senators

Ask your Senator to react in regard to LD 1270. 

You can use the link below to determine the contact information for your State Senator.

🔹 Senate: https://legislature.maine.gov/senate-home-page/find-your-state-senator

Suggested Message

When reaching out to your Senator, feel free to use the below or something of your own (recommended).

Subject: Request for Caution and Oversight in Energy Commissioner Confirmation

Dear Senator [Last Name],

I am writing as a concerned Maine resident regarding the recent passage of LD 1270, which creates a new Department of Energy Resources and significantly expands executive control over long-term energy policy, funding, and infrastructure.

While I support the pursuit of clean and affordable energy, I am deeply concerned about the consolidation of power this law enables. It places sweeping authority in the hands of a single, unelected official—a new Energy Commissioner—who will now require Senate confirmation.

This includes the ability to:

  • Sign multi-decade energy contracts,

  • Allocate federal and state energy funds with minimal oversight,

  • Influence the direction of Maine’s energy grid and workforce programs,

  • And bypass key public protections previously managed by the Public Utilities Commission.

In an era of growing public frustration with corporate-government entanglements, I urge you to ensure that this position is not used to reward political allies or energy corporations like CMP/Iberdrola.

Please take the following steps:

  1. Reject any nominee with corporate ties or partisan loyalties that compromise Maine's energy independence.

  2. Demand a public vetting process with clear criteria for fiscal responsibility, ratepayer protection, and energy neutrality.

  3. Insist on transparency in all early decisions and contracts coming out of this new department.

Maine deserves energy leadership that is accountable to the people, not beholden to insiders or special interests.

Please stand for transparency, limited government, and responsible oversight.

Thank you for your service and attention to this urgent matter.

Sincerely,
[Your Full Name]
[Your Town, Maine]
[Optional: Your Email or Phone Number]

Credit for sharing the above goes to multiple community members, including Jeremy (@ptpme23).

Disclaimer

A community member has shared this personal template for those who wish to express their views on the bill(s) mentioned above. This template is not an official PTP position, and using it is entirely up to you. Pine Tree Patriots encourages civic participation but does not endorse or support specific actions or policies. Please remember this is an individual initiative.

 

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