Mark your calendars for our upcoming Advocacy Week, February 8 — 14. This week of action is our annual tradition where we come together to celebrate the League's birthday. Updates will be posted at www.lwvme.org/AdvocacyWeek. Read on for additional news coming out of D.C. and Augusta.
NEWS:
Can the Census Be Saved? As the Biden administration took office last week, former president Trump's plans to manipulate the 2020 Census collapsed. On January 20, President Biden signed an executive order "ensuring a lawful and accurate" Census. The order revoked two Trump directives: one requiring the Census Bureau to collect data about the citizenship status of every U.S. resident, and the other ordering the exclusion of undocumented residents from Congressional apportionment counts. The director of the Census Bureau, a Trump appointee, stepped down following calls for his resignation by civil rights groups.
Now it's up to the Biden administration to pick up the pieces and produce accurate population reports -- but when? The pandemic delayed the count for months. The data used to divide Congressional seats among the states, due last December, may be ready in early March. (Maine is expected to keep its two Congressional seats.) The data that states use for redistricting will be later still. The delays and uncertainty will create a dilemma for Maine, as the state Constitution requires that redistricting be completed by June 11. It looks like we may slip the deadline, but we're watching developments.
History Made: Last week, history was made as the first woman of color was sworn in as Vice President. Deborah Turner, president of LWVUS, writes: "This accomplishment is even more significant because Kamala Harris is a woman of color — a Black, Indian American daughter of immigrants. How sweet it is! While the League never endorses candidates or parties, we celebrate the election of a women to the vice presidency, because we cannot deny the historic significance of this moment." Read more from this blog post.
For the People Act: The Senate has announced that the #ForThePeopleAct will be the first bill introduced this year. This comprehensive set of democracy reforms will make our elections fairer and put power back into the hands of the people. We applaud the Senate for prioritizing democracy with #S1.
Here in Maine: Bills are starting to be printed, and while some committee hearings are being deferred, some committee orientation meetings have been scheduled this week. You can see the full legislative calendar here.
The Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee (VLA) is the committee of jurisdiction for most election bills. They will begin public hearings on their first bills next Monday, February 1, with another public hearing on Wednesday, February 3. You can see which bills are up for public hearing and find a link for the live audio here.
How to Participate: Legislative committees will not be receiving testimony at the State House until further notice. Committee meetings will be conducted electronically. To provide oral testimony over the electronic platform or via a toll-free phone number, contact the committee clerk no later than 30 minutes prior to the posted start time of the meeting. Committee meetings may be heard at www.mainelegislature.org or viewed at www.youtube.com/
WHAT IS THE LEAGUE WORKING ON?
That annual tradition is almost here: the week of advocacy where we celebrate the League's birthday and take action on our priority issues. As expected, we will celebrate online. Mark your calendars for February 8 — 14. We'll have a whole lineup of events, webinars, steps to take action, and while we're at it, we'll have some fun with a crafting night.