April 28, 2008 - 7:11am
7 jump OFF the cliff
By Wally Edge
Category: LocalTags: Appropriation Committee, Linda Valentino, Jeremy Fischer, Cliff bill, Ellsworth AmericanTop Story: Opinion
You have to love the end of session in the Maine State Legislature. In the final 24 hours, they raised taxes on beer, soda and health insurance, reconfigured the education consolidation bill and rearranged the country jail system.
In the midst of the chaos, one truly remarkable thing happened; the education lobby and the state employees association lost a huge battle over retirement funding, LD 1693 - An Act to Restore Equity to the Maine Public Employees Retirement System. In case you were wondering -- any time you see the words "restore equity" in a bill title, hold on to your wallet.
This bill was attempting to restore early retirement benefits, reduced during a state budget crisis in 1993. Folks on one side of the cut off date were known as "Cliff" members, denotinmg the steep cut off in benefits between those who were vested in the system prior to 1993 and those after. The difference in benefits is quite significant, which either means two things, depending on your point of view: Maine's retirement benefits were extravagant, unsustainable and needed to be fixed or this was an arbitrary date, completely unfair to thousands of workers who's only crime was their start date for employment.
I had not heard too much about this bill until I read an Ellsworth American editorial titled The Magnificent 7. Here is how the Ellsworth American described the event:
Maine taxpayers owe a vote of thanks to the 123rd Legislature's Appropriations Committee and most especially two of its Democratic members. Rep. Jeremy Fischer of Presque Isle and Rep. Linda Valentino of Saco joined with Republicans on the committee last week in a 7-6 vote that stopped dead in its tracks a proposal that would have cost the state of Maine hundreds of millions of dollars over the next 20 years.
Regardless of your opinion on this particular issue, these types of defeats don't happen very often. The Republicans on the Appropriation's Committee will be heroes, (with credit also to Senator Peter Mills), while the two democrats will undoubtedly endure the wrath of organized labor.
Of course, in the real world - the world where the voters are paying higher taxes, higher fuel bills, and higher grocery costs - I'm fairly confident that Reps. Fischer and Valentino will find gratitude from the voters for their fiscal restraint and will coast to victory in the Fall.
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"(The Democrats) questioned the validity of my signatures," he said. "They all have been vetted and validated by the Secretary of State. They're all registered voters. This is just one more effort to disenfranchise all the voters in Maine who would like to have a third choice in the race for U.S. Senate."
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LD 1693
Dear Wally,
They say ignorance is bliss, and if that's the case, then you, and Reps. Fischer and Valentino must be ecstatic!
I am a Maine school teacher with over 25 years experience, and in the interest of full disclosure, am not affected by LD 1693.However, I'd like to give the three of you a little history lesson:
First, teacher's salaries in Maine have been historically far below the national average. In fact at one time we were 48th out of 50th. So pay has been low. In fact, in the last ten years I taught, my salary remained static vis-a-vis inflation and at times, didn't keep pace.
On the other hand, astoundingly, (based on a number of national metrics), just about every year Maine students outperform other states' students in reading and math. Obviously, the citizens of Maine are getting value for their dollar.
Second, 1992 was the year Jock McKernan was elected by assuring everyone that there'd be no budget shortfall. After he was returned to the Governor's Mansion, a mysterious $350 million budget shortfall appeared. This shortfall, combined with the Maine State Employees Pension Fund being regularly pillaged by governors and other elected officials, was going to cause a serious negative impact on Maine's ability to borrow, etc. The legislature came up with the inventive approach of grandfathering pensions of pre 1993 teachers and ripping off new teachers.
The result? In a state where the citizens are enjoying low teacher salaries and high quality education for their children, the government showed its appreciation by a reduction in benefits which a previous legislature had already vetted and approved.
Third, and this is a current events issue:
After LD 1693 was passed by both the House and Senate,Reps Jeremy Fischer (D-Presque Isle)and Linda Valentino (D-Saco) were two of seven members of the Appropriations Committee who voted against this bill (six voting affirmatively). Rep. Jeremy Fischer (D-Presque has been quoted in various publications thusly:
"I was not here when the cliff was created and it is not my responsibility to fix it."
To be fair to Rep. Fischer, I don't know if this is an accurate quote. That I've seen it in a number of places, I'm going to assume it is fairly accurate. If not, I'd be interested in why it is not. Assuming it is a genuine, authentic quote, I'd like to point out the absolutely selfish, egregious, and counterproductive government we would have here in Maine and in the nation if this attitude had prevailed in the last 150 years: No one would have voted to end slavery. No one would have given women the right to vote. No one would have passed the voting rights or civil rights acts. No one would have fought for the end to Jim Crow laws.
My point, which I'm certain I've made clear, is that if Representatives and other elected officials think that they can represent their constituencies by refusing to consider any bill for which they are not personally responsible, they are not serving themselves, their constituency, their state, or taking seriously the right of citizens to demand a redress of their grievances, a FUNDAMENTAL right enumerated in the US Constitution. In short, this representative has decided to represent himself. How appalling and sad.
In closing: You may hold your wallet when a bill's title includes "restore equity." It's a funny line, I smiled. Realize, though, that in this case EVERY public school teacher in Maine who began teaching after 1993, was turned upside down and shaken by the Governor and the Legislature until their wallets fell on the ground. Then the contents were pillaged before the empty wallets were returned.
Understand that in the case of "restoring equity," it's much easier to think of the contents of your own wallet, rather than the wallets of the people who were robbed. THEIR pensions, reduced, have kept your taxes lower, and kept Maine teachers' pensions some of the lowest in the country, thus making teaching in Maine an even poorer choice for teachers.
I would encourage you and others who think this issue is 'all about you' to think about someone else for a change.
G Pighetti
Falmouth, Maine
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