Cheaper, more reliable electric power 
What if there was a way to cut our electric power outages in half, and it would cost us 15% less than CMP charges. And the billing would be accurate and regular. Wouldn’t you vote for that in Maine? Well, Representative Seth Berry from Bowdoinham has introduced a bill in the Maine Legislature to do just that by turning electricity delivery into a public-run entity.

Here’s how it works. CMP, Bangor Hydo-Electric and Eastern Maine Electric Coop would sell their power lines to a semiautonomous entity run by a nine-person board, which would generate revenue bonds that would be offered at a very low interest rate that would be paid by the portion of our power bills the CMP now gets. This board could not get any revenue from state government and would act like the Maine Turnpike Authority in delivering service and being paid by the users.

Maine would join the other states like Nebraska, which have public utilities that have the consumers’ best interest determining all they do. No longer would CMP get a guaranteed 12% on all their infrastructure investments, as they now do, which explains why they have invested in one huge power line expansion and are applying for another. All these profits go out of country to giant corporation Iberdrola in Spain, which has incentives to minimize repair and power restoration services to increase profits for shareholders, not save money for ratepayers. Mainers get poor service and higher prices, and a new metering system for homes with solar PVs, a system that us ratepayers paid for and argued against creating, yet it doesn’t work! We have had enough appalling service from CMP, so it’s time for Maine people to take control of their electric distribution systems.

Phippsburg Democrats invite you to Phippsburg Town Hall 1-2 p.m. April 14 to hear Rep. Berry describe this exciting bill.

Nancy Chandler, 

Phippsburg 

National Donate Life Month 

April is National Donate Life Month, a time for our nation to honor the tremendous generosity of organ, eye, tissue, marrow, and cord blood donors who make the selfless decision to give the gift of life to their fellow Americans. It is also an opportunity to honor the families and friends of donors who support their choice as well as our hardworking and dedicated health care professionals who serve the transplantation community. Medical advancements in the field of transplantation have saved hundreds of thousands of lives. Yet, right now, more than 250 men, women, and children of all ages and ethnicities in Maine are on the national transplant waiting list. Across the nation, 20 people die every day waiting for organs.

As part of National Donate Life Month, the Health Resources and Services Administration (www.HRSA.gov) is celebrating the life-saving potential inside each and every one of us. HRSA invites you to learn about the amazing power of organ donation and let the good in you live on as organ, eye, and tissue donors. To learn more and sign up visit www.organdonor.gov or www.donaciondeorganos.gov. We also invite you to “Like” Organdonor.gov and Donaciondeorganos.gov on Facebook.

And, if you are wondering whether transplantation really saves lives, just consider that in 2018 alone, more than 110 people in Maine received the gift of life thanks to the people who said “yes” to donation. 

Thank you for the gift of life and for letting the good in you live on! 

Jeffrey Beard, Regional Administrator, 

Health Resources and Services Administration, 

Boston