Sen. Susan Collins' Staff: It's Not Worth It; Tax Bill Protesters: Au Contraire

Mainers continue to struggle against tax laws that benefit only the wealthy.

Three Maine women -- Sharon Dean of East Machias, Ridgely Fuller of Belfast, and Jessica Stewart of Bass Harbor -- were arrested at Senator Susan Collins’ Bangor office last December demonstrating against her support for a very bad federal tax bill.

Their belief that the tax bill would harm Maine’s most vulnerable people led the three to remain in the office after they were asked to leave. Collins' staff called Homeland Security and had the three arrested.

"Protesters outside U.S. Sen. Susan Collins' Bangor office on Monday. Gail Leiser is dressed as 'Darth Traitor" to protest Collins' support of the Republican tax overhaul bill." Bangor Daily News 12/18/17

All have vowed to keep speaking truth to power until Collins is accountable to all Maine people. Fuller said in a statement to local reporters after the first day of their trial on March 21, 

The health care component of it that [Collins] is addressing today is one component of a really disastrous tax bill that will promote inequality throughout our country.

logan@belfastcriminallaw.com

Their attorney, Logan Perkins of Belfast, argued that calling in federal law enforcement was "meant to intimidate people from exercising their first amendment rights in her office as well as punishing political speech," according to an email sent to me by Fuller. Sen. Collins' office staff have called in the Bangor police during previous sit-ins, but the District Attorney subsequently refused to press charges.

Perkins is the attorney who represented Stewart and myself at our trial for criminal trespass at Bath Iron Works earlier this year. She achieved a victory for the 1st Amendment when Justice Dan Billings granted her motion to acquit saying that, when BIW holds an event open to the public, it cannot exclude people solely on the basis of protected political speech.

Defendant Stewart shared her written reflection with me after their day in court this week. Both sides in that trial now have until April 7 to file briefs outlining their views of the 1st Amendment issues at stake in the case.

There Comes a Time

by Jessica Stewart

At the close of our trial, the prosecutor, Andrew Lizotte, walked to the podium and  began dramatically, “There Comes a Time...” Shocked, I imagined him about to launch into the words of Mario Savio. But no, he wanted to anticlimactically explain that “there comes a time to leave a congressional office.”

In fact, there comes a time RIGHT NOW, that we need to walk into our congresspeople’s offices, our public squares, and our streets to lift up a vision for a more fair world and lessen preventable suffering and hardship.

As we were in Senator Collins’ office, just before the DHS police arrived, Collins’ staff person, Carol Woodcock, lectured us that the tax plan “wasn’t worth it, was not worth staying in the office over...” Those words galvanized my commitment more than any of the recycled, incorrect explanations for the tax bill that had been tossed around all afternoon. Maybe none of this is “worth it” to Senator Collins or her staffers. But to those of us whose family, loved ones, and friends will be harmed by the tax bill, it is beyond worth it. Maybe it does not seem so to Senator Collins’ staff, but the tax plan is a life and death matter for some people in our communities. Tax policy choice means the difference between people getting critical medical care or suffering, even dying without, children going to school hungry versus universal access to healthy food, prison versus college for young people, families becoming homeowners versus becoming homeless.

We are all co-creators of our society and our world. If we do not ask for a more just, peaceful, and sustainable world, it will not happen.

If we believe compassionate and fair economic policy is possible and attainable, we are called to breathe life into that possibility through action. We must also offer a passionate, loving, and firm No when we see wrong being done in our names. However, more than saying no, when I stayed at Senator Collins’ office, I was saying YES to a world where we ensure everyone in community has healthcare, where social mobility is possible, where we build sustainable infrastructure to allow young people from all communities to thrive, and where we care for elders.

The tax plan, was and is, an act of violence toward the poor, the young, communities of color, people with disabilities, and any individual or community who lacks wealth and political power. It is also a paean to hopelessness about the possibilities of the human community. We live in a country with tremendous wealth, smart and innovative people, and a vast array of resources.  If only we choose to allocate our resources ethically and compassionately, we can afford to ensure that everyone has healthcare. We can provide an excellent education to all children. We can repair the racial wealth gap. We can make sure everyone has access to enough healthy food - and so much more. Shared prosperity and wellbeing are attainable.

But we cannot do it by funneling every more money to the wealthy. As we sat in Collins’ office, her staff reiterated disproven tropes about trickle down economics. We were asked accept that the best way to help our poorest community members was to funnel ever more money to the wealthiest individuals and corporations and trust that wealth would could magically trickle down to those of us nearer the bottom. This is like being told that the best way to help the Cratchett family and the poor of London  is by pouring money into Scrooge’s business.

In reality, the tax plan provides a permanent cut in the corporate income tax rate that overwhelmingly benefits people with significant capital, mostly the top 1 percent. While the plan included some temporary cuts that may potentially benefit some low- and moderate-income families, these benefits are both minimal and temporary, whereas the tax cuts for the largest corporations are large and permanent.

The net effect of the tax bill will be an increase in wealth inequality. 83% of the benefits will accrue to the top 1% by the time it is fully phased in, in 2027, according to the Tax Policy Center.

Defenders of the bill, such as Collins, argue that the benefits of corporate tax cuts will trickle down to workers in the form of faster productivity growth and higher wages, but this claim falls apart when compared to real economic data.

A large body of empirically sound research shows that the benefits of a cut in corporate income taxes accrue overwhelmingly to wealthy owners of capital instead of to workers and ordinary low and middle income people. In turn, capital ownership is extraordinarily concentrated at the top of the income distribution. For example, the top 1 % of households own roughly 40 % of all stocks.

Besides the permanent cut to corporate tax rates, the tax bill’s temporary cuts to individual income taxes includes a preferential rate for “pass-through” businesses—businesses that pay no corporate taxes but whose owners must pay taxes on profits on their individual tax returns when those profits are “passed through” to them. While this is often described as a tax cut for “small businesses,” it is in fact a tax cut for high income financial elites. Pass-through income is even more concentrated at the very top of the income distribution. 69% of pass-through income is claimed by the richest 1% of households. This means that most of those benefits will not go to small businesses like mom and pop restaurants or day care centers, but instead to hedge funds, large law firms, and big Wall Street consulting and accounting firms.

Years of top notch economics research tells us that trickle down economic policies do not lead to shared prosperity or economic growth, but to widening gap between rich and poor.

Likewise, wealth inequality is not an unfortunate abstraction of our era. It has agonizing and preventable real-world consequences. The people of Maine and this county deserve so much more.

Defendant Dean said at a press conference following Wednesday's trial:

I would just like to encourage people, average people, who are struggling in this country right now, with a lot of the stuff that's hitting us from all sides, from different fronts, that we all have to step up.

We all have to get out of our comfort zones.

Struggling with tears, Dean continued, "This isn't something that I set out to do, but when we care about stuff we've got to step up, we've got to do it."

Rather than pay a $130 fine, Dean and the others chose to go to trial. If they are found guilty of the charge of failing to obey a lawful order (i.e. to leave the offices) they could be sentenced to 30 days in jail and/or fined $5,000.

These women are my sheros. They speak up for people in Maine who are too sick or preoccupied with economic hardships to communicate with senate staffers in person. They use their white privilege to get arrested not beaten, or even killed, by police. They are all mothers who sacrifice their own comfort to struggle for a better life for their children and grandchildren's generations.

Resisting Corporate Government And Whipping The Vote Against Corporate Welfare In Maine

A Bath Iron Works executive tried to convince LD1781's sponsor that constituent "Bruce [Gagnon] is a one man band" back in December. There are now so many members of the band that I can no longer fit their names in a legible font on my cartoon. 

Tireless tax resister Ginny Schneider sent a great email to all the legislators she could reach via organizer Bob Klotz's "whip" list for opposing LD1781. You can, too, using this handy tool that looks up your state representative and senator and sends them a message you can customize. If you're out of state but want to send a message, the whip list has email addresses for you to use. There is also a toll-free message center: (800) 423-2900.

Ginny's email signature includes some quotes. This one is pertinent:

This is a government of the people, by the people, and for the people no longer. It is a government of corporations, by corporations, and for corporations. — U.S. President Rutherford B. Hayes, 3/11/1888

A successful marijuana lobbyist in Maine, Paul Carrier, shared this tip:

Try to find a Republican member of the House that is willing to speak against LD1781 in caucus. Emphasize that many small business owners in Maine are struggling and could use tax relief -- why give it to a corporation that had $3.5 billion in free cash flow last year?

Meanwhile, organizer Jason Rawn has been doing his homework on corporate extortion at the state government level. He shared these articles with me and with many of the legislators on the whip list:

Corporate extortion: states are giving billions to corporations that don't create jobs by Steven Rosenfeld (Alternet, 12/12/13)

Corporations lead taxpayers to the shearing by Michael Hiltzik (Los Angeles Times, 1/5/14)

Several of us went on WERU yesterday for Amy Browne's Maine Currents show. Bruce Gagnon explained how effective the citizen lobbying effort against this bill has been. A senator told his constituent yesterday at the State House that he had never received as many message about any other issue or bill. Based on that, I'd say Bruce's hunger strike --which many of us joined by fasting for one or more days -- was a success. He had vowed to hold out until the bill came to a vote, but yesterday he ended his 37 day hunger strike in favor of his health.

Emails between the bill's sponsor Rep. Jennifer DeChant (D) of Bath and General Dynamics subsidiary Bath Iron Works vice president John Fitzgerald indicated both hoped the bill would be rushed through the legislature early in this session. Instead, the battle has dragged on for months while hundreds of letters opposing the bill have been sent to Maine newspapers; so many, they've stopped publishing them all.

The biggest argument for these bills is always the same: support the corporations who generate jobs. But BIW's largest union, S6, has declined to endorse the bill. Perhaps because GD has used past tax relief to further mechanize the shipyard and has cut thousands of jobs at BIW in recent years?

Bob Klotz spoke on WERU about how Democrats and Republicans in Maine can be seen to be drinking the "jobs, jobs, jobs Kool-Aid" and Bruce mentioned how former Democrat and legislator Ralph Chapman described the corporate money flowing to the leadership[sic] of both parties. Chapman explained that eaders who follow corporate directives are the ones promoted to chair the committees that send bills to the legislature.

Alex Nunes has been investigating and reporting on tax heists by General Dynamics in Rhode Island, Connecticut and Maine. He told Amy yesterday about stock buybacks indicating the vast wealth that weapons corporation GD holds, and an alarming development in the town of Bath. The police chief there has declined to comply with his Freedom of Access request for communications between BIW and the police around their collaborations to have protesters at the shipyard arrested during warship "christenings" recently. The chief cited an exception to Maine's FAA law: if it's planning about security around terrorism, he doesn't have to reveal it.

Jessica Stewart being arrested with eight of us at Bath Iron Works on April 1, 2017. Judge Daniel Billings ruled that our arrests for criminal trespass were wrong, and that "basically the police department is outsourced to BIW on these events. It was pretty clear that Lieutenant Savary was taking his direction [from] Mr. Cielinkski, [BIW’s chief of security]." The judge added, "And that’s not how this is supposed to work.” Jessica was subsequently arrested at Senator Susan Collins' Bangor office protesting Collins' vote for the federal tax bill that provides enormous cuts for wealthy corporations and individuals. Her trial for that arrest begins today in federal court today at 10am. FMI: Mainers for Accountable Leadership.

Pressed by Nunes, Chief Michael Fields denied that he was characterizing nonviolent protesters at BIW as terrorists. But, he still won't release the requested information. Hopefully Nunes will appeal the denial.

Violence is not actually as effective as its proponents would have you believe. Nonviolent direct action is powerful. And look how much we've accomplished by wielding pens (and radio ads) mightier than swords. Onward to defeat LD1781!

BIW Plays The Victim: 'For Us To Be Punished Because Our Owner Has Capital Seems Unjust!'

I'm sure Bruce Gagnon will post this today on his excellent blog Organizing Notes, but in the meantime I'll repost it here from my email.

Report on LD 1781 Taxation Committee Work Session in Augusta 

Rep. Jennifer DeChant (D-Bath), along with a coterie of other Democrat legislators and BIW executives, appeared before the Taxation Committee today with her ‘amendments’ to LD 1781 – the bill to give General Dynamics $60 million in corporate welfare over the next 20 years.

Earlier in the day I had received an email from a fellow Bath resident that had originated from Rep. DeChant in response to my friend’s request that she not vote in favor of the controversial bill.  In the email DeChant told my friend: “I will recommend changing the amount for half in half the time and require review (of data collected) before renewing it again.”

Rep. DeChant’s amendments called for ‘improvements in BIW reporting’ on how they spend the proposed funds from the state.  During the previous $200 million tax credit that BIW/GD got back in 1997 there was no reporting by the company on how they spent the funds or how many workers were hired.

The committee had some questions like the one from Rep. Denise Teplar (D-Topsham) who asked, “What is the state’s interest in providing a 90% tax credit in years when jobs are reduced?”

The best exchanges of the day though were between BIW V-P John Fitzgerald and a couple committee members.

Rep. Ryan Tipping (D-Bangor) asked, “Is this credit going to make a difference?  Is there a smaller amount the state can invest? Can we audit BIW’s books?”

Fitzgerald responded to Rep. Tipping, “It would be a challenge to answer that question.  What would you ask the auditor to find?”

Sen. Justin Chenette (D-Saco) then asked, “I’m not understanding why the investment of $60 million can’t come from your parent company?  In order for me to make decisions I need a commitment from you [BIW] to disclose the profits of the company.”

Fitzgerald responded emphatically:  “The answer is no.”

At one point during the meeting Fitzgerald cried out, “For us to be punished because our owner has capital seems unjust!”

DeChant’s amendment to “changing the amount for half in half the time” is actually no more than a legislative smoke and mirrors gambit.  In the end the amendment calls for BIW to spend $100 million per year in ‘qualified investments’ and if done, then after the first 10 years the second round of $30 million more in corporate subsidies would automatically kick-in for the next 10 years.  So in the end GD would still get their $60 million.

In the amended bill ‘qualified investments’ is defined as virtually any cost that BIW has except for salaries or other compensation paid to employees.  So all other expenses on Aegis destroyers that cost $1.5 billion each and Zumwalt destroyers that cost between $4-7 billion each would count toward the required annual BIW investment of $100 million per year.  Easy as pie – no tough nut to crack there.

Recognizing that BIW is currently building two Zumwalt and four Aegis destroyers with at least 1-2 being ‘christened’ per year there is virtually no way in the world that BIW/GD would not meet that meager criteria to qualify for state support.  Under questioning Fitzgerald admitted that currently GD is bidding on 10 more destroyers and anticipates likely getting half of those contracts from the Navy.

Training of a new generation of BIW workers is still GD’s key talking point to sell the bill even though their Navy contracts include funds for all their costs – including training and reimbursement for their taxes to the state of Maine.

Currently BIW is receiving an $81 million property-tax break from the City of Bath that runs out in 2022.  In addition BIW got another $3.7 million from Bath in 2013.

Fitzgerald reluctantly admitted that BIW/GD also receive an unknown about of money via Maine’s Pine Tree Development Zone program.  The Press Herald reported late last year that “BIW is a participant in the Pine Tree Zone program and believes it has been an important incentive for businesses to locate in Maine or stay here while continuing to invest in operations that provide jobs and economic activity,” Fitzgerald wrote.  The amount that any individual company benefits from the program is usually not disclosed under state laws that protect the confidentiality of tax returns and shield proprietary information from competitors.

In the end the Taxation Committee tabled LD 1781 but it appears that most members of the committee are prepared to support the bill once all the new amendments are fully added and understood by those on the committee.

It is ever more clear to me that GD not only runs Bath but also runs the State of Maine – as any colonizer controls the land and people where they have set up operations.

It will be up to the people of Maine to wrest back control of its own state treasury from this mega-corporation that bought back $12.9 billion of its own stocks between 2009-2016.

We’ll let you know when the next Taxation Committee Work Session will be held.  Despite what some might want you to think this show ain’t yet over.

Bruce

The fact that Bath Iron Works (BIW) is playing the victim in a legislative work session where the public isn't allowed to speak but their CEO is would be laughable if we were not already living in Kafka-esque times almost impossible to parody.

Note that the "punishment" would be paying the state taxes they owe on their considerable income. I get "punished" every year by being fully taxed on my salary as a teacher. How about you?

Just for reference, last year BIW's parent company General Dynamics paid its CEO $21 million.

Letter: 'No Plausible Reason' For Maine Taxpayers To Contribute Even More To Enhance General Dynamics’ Bottom Line

Here's the latest on General Dyamics' tax giveaway legislation. The first item is a letter to the editor from Mary Beth Sullivan who often speaks and writes about the survival imperative of conversion. She would like to see the Bath Iron Works (BIW) shipyard in her town converted to producing life-sustaining products like trains or sustainable energy systems -- rather than the weapons of mass destruction that are built there now.

Portland Press Herald  1/28/18

No need for Maine taxpayers to subsidize BIW

Rep. Jennifer DeChant, a Democratic state lawmaker from Bath, has submitted L.D. 1781 for consideration in Augusta this legislative session. This bill would provide $60 million, over 20 years, in tax subsidies to Bath Iron Works, owned by General Dynamics.

General Dynamics is a wealthy corporation, sitting within the top 100 of the Fortune 500 companies. In 2016, according to Morningstar, the corporation’s top five executives received more than $42 million in compensation.

Maine is not a wealthy state; the list of unmet needs includes a crumbling physical infrastructure, the costs to expand MaineCare, people living with hunger and without housing in our midst and an opiate crisis, to name a few of the key issues.

Bath Iron Works contracts to make expensive naval destroyers, at costs of $4 billion to $7 billion each. Each ship is fully paid for with federal tax dollars, and a healthy profit margin is built in for General Dynamics. In Washington, D.C., Republicans just passed a hefty tax reduction for corporations, which will surely contribute to General Dynamics’ profit margins. There is no plausible reason for Maine taxpayers to contribute even more from our state coffers to enhance General Dynamics’ bottom line.

Please express your opposition to L.D. 1781 to your local legislators. Come to the Taxation Committee hearing in Augusta at 1 p.m. Jan. 30 to show your opposition. Enough is enough!

Mary Beth Sullivan

Bath

And here is a link to an investigative piece by local reporter Nathan Strout in the Times Record, about the spotty history of tax giveawaysand their results: Impact of previous tax breaks at BIW unclear. Strout has the day of the hearing wrong -- Wednesday is actually a Taxation Committee work session on LD1781, which the public may witness but not participate in. The public hearing where taxpayers can weigh in is on Tuesday, i.e. tomorrow.

Finally (because I have to get ready for work) here is a link to a report by Alex Nunes about General Dynamics, owner of Bath Iron Works, gloating over their recent tax bonanza from the federal government. General Dynamics' CEO Calls Republican Tax Law A 'Happy Event' gives a flavor of just how much this corporation is swimming in cash and does not need corporate welfare from Maine, where 40% of children live in poverty.

Maine Rep. Jennifer DeChant Wants To Hear From General Dynamics But Not From Mainers

Here in Maine we're still waiting for an LD number for the bill that Rep. Jennifer DeChant and Sen. Eloise Vitelli are sponsoring for General Dynamics.

The fifth largest weapons manufacturer on the planet needs Maine taxpayers to pony up $60 million in tax breaks next year or else (insert repeated threats of job loss at the Bath Iron Works shipyard owned by GD).

Ironically, Rep. Jennifer DeChant has blocked me on twitter after I sent her this photo of my Sunday bridge vigil:

That's the Kennebec River in the background, the same river that General Dynamics regularly pollutes and dredges in order to make enormous profits, buy back its own stock, and pay its CEO $21 million a year.

Here's the informative article by investigative reporter Alex Nunes that I wanted to share with Rep. DeChant: Extending Bath Iron Works Tax Break Would Ignore State Consultant’s Review. The article details how a study in Maine determined that continuing to put all our eggs in the weaponized ship building basket was a bad gamble for the future of our state economy.

Also ironically, the Maine bill's co-sponsor, State Senator Eloise Vitelli, had this to say on twitter about the GOP's recent corporate tax giveaway:

Tax bill will not get better in conference1 https://t.co/lU2Y8UolYt

— eloise vitelli (@evitelli) December 5, 2017

There’s still time for lawmakers to reject the tax bill abomination https://t.co/6p5aHAGm4A via @bangordailynews #mepolitics #goptaxscam

— MECEP (@MECEP1) December 5, 2017

Both DeChant and Vitelli are Democrats, carrying water for General Dynamics. They barred a videographer from a meeting with concerned constituents in December, and now one of them has barred me from tweeting information that her followers might see.

You can check out my twitter account in case you think I might have gotten blocked because I had sunk to name-calling, threats or vulgar language. But that's not my style.

The ugly, naked truth is powerful enough.

Susan Collins Brags To Me About Her Vote For Tax Law To Benefit General Dynamics

Not only Congress but also the Maine Legislature is pressured by General Dynamics to provide tax relief. Maine Democrats Rep. Jennifer DeChant and Sen. Eloise Vitelli are sponsoring a bill to give GD $60 million from state coffers this year  --  because servicing corporations is a thoroughly bipartisan affair.

Maine's senators are wealthy people. Senator Susan Collins has just sent me a long email explaining why I should be delighted that she helped pass a tax bill that 78% of her constituents responding to a poll in the Bangor Daily News said will not benefit them.


Most of us allegedly represented by Collins are not at all wealthy, and her claim that we will benefit under the new tax laws is only true in the very short term.


Long term, the already wealthy will become much, much wealthier. In Collins' letter these are known as employers, and she is proud of talking to them:

How the legislation treats employers has been the subject of much debate, but the reality is that the United States cannot continue to have the highest corporate tax rate in the world at 35 percent.  We are losing jobs.  I talked to General Dynamics, which owns Bath Iron Works; United Technology, which employs over 1,900 people at Pratt & Whitney in North Berwick; General Electric, which has a major plant in Bangor; Procter & Gamble, which employs 400 workers in Auburn; and Idexx, an important high-tech employer in Westbrook, about the positive difference the new law will make in their ability to create jobs in Maine.  Indeed, on the day Congress sent the bill to the President, Cianbro Corporation announced it intends to hire an additional 300 people next year.

 ("Talking" here means finding out what they want her to do in exchange for massive campaign contributions these corporations have and will continue to make.)

Graph from a Providence Journal article by Alex Nunes "Defense firms spend big on lucrative stock buybacks" 12/3/17

Maine is indeed losing jobs, because corporations like General Dynamics use their extra cash from tax relief to buy back their own stock and to provide massive salaries and bonuses to their CEOs. They do not use tax relief to create jobs (nor are they paying taxes at 30%) despite their claims to the contrary.



Mainer Michael Anthony calculated that "$60 million in proposed tax cuts is the equivalent of rewarding BIW $375,000 for every job they cut last year."

I spent the day in Sagadahoc County court yesterday with my trial family, the Aegis 9, who were arrested last April protesting at BIW. We stood nonviolently with our messages intended for senators and other dignitaries being whisked through the gates in limousines, and as a result were charged with criminal trespass. Our messages were not allowed into the public relations event "christening" another warship that the U.S. does not need, while 43,000 children in Maine are living in poverty.

I could take my concerns to Maine's other senator, the allegedly moderate, independent Angus King.

But I have to work. Also, this school teacher doesn't have $1,000 to take a "really inexpensive cruise" with the senator and his corporate cronies.

The organizer of Senator King's fundraising event also brags on his website about his skill in "talking" to lawmakers, because this is how the sausage gets made in Washington.

But who opens doors for the approximately 20,000 Maine children in deep poverty currently enduring weeks of subzero temperatures? 

For this reason, and so many more:

Onward, Kleptocracy: General Dynamics Writes Your Tax Legislation

General Dynamics and its lawyers are busy "helping" representatives in Maine write tax legislation to benefit their bottom line. Here I share the report back of tireless peace organizer Mary Beth Sullivan about her meeting December 21 with legislators promoting a big tax break for this mega wealthy corporation (it paid its CEO $21 million last year).

Also the opinion of a former member of the Maine legislature that the meeting MB attended was illegal on several counts.

I have added the bold emphasis, and the contact information for two Maine legislators.

Former Rep. Jeff Evangelos is of the opinion that any meeting concerning tax legislation is public in nature, and may be videotaped or otherwise recorded.

See his comments below Mary Beth's. Note that BIW means Bath Iron Works, which is owned by the General Dynamics corporation.

It has been reported in newspapers that State Representative Jennifer DeChant is submitting a bill in this legislative season to provide a $60 million tax subsidy to BIW over the next 20 years.  This Bill would extend Maine's Shipbuilding Facilities Credit which has delivered BIW an annual $3.5 million subsidy since the 1990s. 

When she received correspondences opposing this bill, she invited people to her home for a meeting to discuss this bill.  She then changed the venue to the Bath Library, then changed it again to City Hall. 

The meeting took place on Thurs, Dec 21. Besides myself and State Rep. Jennifer DeChant, the following people were there: State Sen. Louise Vitelli (who will be a Senate sponsor of the bill), Brown Lethem, Karen Wainberg, Jerry Provencher, Gary Anderson, Lisa Ledwidg, Lou Ensel ~ and two VFP members who don't live in Bath, John Morris and Peter Morgan. 

Martha Spiess showed up early to videotape the event, and Jennifer did not allow that to happen, so Martha left. 

I did not know that occurred until I got home and read Martha's email.  I'm sorry that happened. 

Jennifer reported that she did not intend for this to be a public meeting; she intended an “informal meeting.” She also reported that she is willing to hold a “public meeting” anytime. I disagree that a meeting held with constituents about pending legislation is something less than public. Transparency should be at the heart of a democratic process. I heard nothing in that meeting that an audience of Mainers would not benefit from knowing.  

State Representative Jennifer DeChant

Home Telephone: (207) 442-8486

Jennifer.DeChant@legislature.maine.gov

Jennifer ran the meeting.  As I understood the basics:  she was asked by a constituent (BIW) to submit a bill to allow BIW to continue to receiving the tax break it has been receiving for the last 20 years. She agreed. The language for the bill is being written; it is in the legislature's Revisor's Office;

BIW lawyers are assisting in drafting the language; 

it is important to her that language using some of these dollars training is in the bill. 

State Senator Eloise Vitelli
Home Phone: (207) 443-4660
Eloise.Vitelli@legislature.maine.gov

Jennifer and Louise described that the process is this:  the bill's language will be completed soon.  The Taxation Committee will take it up, and hold a public hearing.  By law, the Taxation Committee needs to hold a public hearing, and give a 10-day notice to the public. When people come to the hearing, they can speak for three minutes on the bill and submit something in writing to the committee. The next step is a work session.  The public is allowed to attend, but not to speak or participate.  Then, if it passed out of committee, the bill goes to the floor. If passed, it goes to the Governor to sign. 

I perceived the conversation that ensued as civil, lively, honest and blunt. Many of those attending had many questions, and expressed opposition to the bill.  My notes cannot do justice to the great questions and concerns that were expressed; I urge those who attended to add to this email any of the important exchanges that should be shared. 

We were urged to pay attention to the Taxation Committee agenda (Jennifer said we could sign up as friends of the taxation committee to be apprised by email of when the hearings will happen) and to show up at the hearing to express our opposition.  Jennifer also urged us to stay in touch with her if we have any questions along the way. 

Thanks to all for paying attention to this issue.  It is never too early to contact your local reps/senators to express your opinion of this bill. Consider letting them know that BIW is a strong, capable, successful shipbuilding company.  At $4 billion of taxpayers dollars a ship, they (and their parent company, General Dynamics) should certainly be able to budget well enough to meet their financial responsibilities. 

On the other hand, Maine is constantly stressed in its efforts to meet the needs of its constituents impacted by a decaying physical, educational, medical and social infrastructure.

Create a vision for what you think might be a higher priority for the $3 million a year over the next 20 years, and share it with your State Representatives and Senators. 

If you have not yet seen it please watch the interview with emeritus USM Law professor Orlando Delogu who discusses this tax subsidy - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ei_OsCLh-k&feature=youtu.be 

Thanks for you attention and activity around this issue. In peace, Mary Beth Sullivan Bath, Maine

Dear Mary Beth,
As a former member of the Maine Legislature, I am disturbed to hear that 2 legislators attempted to hold a private meeting in a public space for what is clearly public business, done in an effort to influence public opinion, on a clearly public issue, ie, the use of taxpayer money to subsidize a corporation. Legislators must strictly adhere to the Right to Know Laws in Maine. A meeting of legislators and members of the public at City Hall is a public meeting and is subject to all FOAA requirements. State law also says you are allowed to video tape and record what are clearly public proceedings. There are no exceptions to this as long as the taping does not interfere with the meeting. Martha had an absolute right to tape thisproceeding and she should have refused to leave and told Rep. DeChant she was violating the law. In public business, there is no such thing as an informal meeting, everything we do as legislators is public. 

The Attorney General's Office has an employee who works on these issues and handles complaints, here is the link to her contact details:http://www.maine.gov/foaa/ombudsman/index.htm 

The Maine Ethics Commission also advises on ethical breaches by legislators:http://maine.gov/ethics/legislators/index.htm

Neither Rep. DeChant or any other elected official has the right to determine what is public and what is private. This is a matter of law and the public's right to know. 

Yes she can have a few constituents over to her private house for a conversation, the content of which  is still public if what is discussed pertains to pending legislation. But once that meeting goes to City Hall, a public building, the entire Right to Know Law comes into play, especially when a meeting in a public space is called by a Legislator to discuss pending legislation and the possible expenditure of public money. 

 From what you have described, this meeting violated your rights and violated Maine law. Preventing the video taping also violated the law 

Sincerely,
Jeffrey Evangelos 

Friendship, Maine

former member, Maine House of Representatives 2012-2016

Under the current system of kleptocracy, taxation without representation has become the order of the day. And in case you think it is only the bad, bad Republicans who are in government in order to represent their corporate sponsors, note that both DeChant and Vitelli are from the other corporate party. Because Democrats are eager to carry water for their corporate donors, too.

From the corporate tax bonanza just enacted in Washington DC to the one about to be proposed in Augusta, Maine, corporations are bailed out while we, the people, are sold out.

Join me in contacting the Maine Attorney General to register a complaint about the "informal" meeting to discuss tax legislation where the public's right to know was violated.