Latest news with #Mainers
Boston Globe
3 days ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Maine's battle to protect public lands
But Mainers have as much of a stake in the current political fight over the future of federal resources as anyone else. Public lands, waters and wildlife are part of our birthright as American citizens, a public domain that we all collectively own, regardless of our proximity. Over the last five months, the Trump administration has worked to slash funding for federal land management agencies and conservation programs; open up more public lands to fossil fuel drilling, mining and other extractive development; and lay off or force out thousands of park rangers and other civil servants. Advertisement The words 'protect' and 'conserve' have been largely absent from the administration's vocabulary, as it prioritizes dismantling environmental safeguards in its quest for so-called 'energy dominance.' Meanwhile, Congress is considering federal land sales to help offset Trump's tax and spending cuts — a contentious proposal that House lawmakers ultimately yanked from that chamber's version of Trump's so-called 'big, beautiful' budget package, but that Senate Republicans Advertisement During a recent congressional hearing to outline the Trump administration's budget proposal for fiscal year 2026, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum invoked Maine and other East Coast states to argue that Western states with large amounts of federal land are at an economic disadvantage. 'We've got states in the East, including the 13 states that were part of the original colonies, none of them have more than 2 percent of federal land,' he said. 'I don't think any of them would stand up and say, 'We need more federal ownership in our states.'' Burgum's statement is both inaccurate — nine of the original 13 states have more than 2 percent federal land, with New Hampshire on top at 14 percent — and casts aside the history of the nation's East-to-West settlement. David Feinman, vice president of government affairs at the Conservation Lands Foundation, said it also seemed designed to pit regions of the country against each other. 'Americans across the political spectrum in every state support public land protections, whether it's Maine or Utah or anywhere else,' Feinman said. 'Regardless of the secretary's narratives, these lands do belong to everybody.' Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), Feinman and others The Maine Monitor spoke to encouraged Mainers to pay close attention to the battle taking place in Washington, as it will likely impact everything from visits to national parks to our ability to stave off the worst impacts of climate change. 'It does impact all of us,' Pingree said. 'If there's one thing that the changing climate has taught us it's that we're all in this together, that overheating in one part of the country impacts another part of the country, that our weather is all impacted, that we need land to sequester carbon. There's just a whole variety of reasons that we need undeveloped lands in this country wherever it may be.' Advertisement Pingree worries what the current turmoil inside the National Park Service and other federal agencies will mean not only for federally managed sites in Maine, including Acadia National Park and Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument, but parks, monuments and wildlife refuges around the country. Since Trump took office, NPS has 'It's a real crime what they've done to these precious jewels,' Pingree said. Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) echoed that sentiment during a budget hearing last week, telling Burgum 'it's hard for me to understand how gutting 'America's best idea' isn't America's worst idea.' Trump's agenda also threatens to stymie future conservation, outdoor recreation and forest protection efforts here at home. Among other things, Trump's Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, Advertisement In Maine, the FLP has been key to As for LWCF as a whole, Trump's 2026 budget request Over the last five decades, Maine has received 'It's really important that we have these tools fully funded, because there's always going to be developers with deep pockets who want to acquire pieces of land,' Lindholm said. 'We just have to balance that out a little bit with access for the local community and for growing and diversifying rural economies.' Andy Cutko, director of the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands, said cuts to federal conservation funding could impede progress toward Maine's goal of conserving 30 percent of its land by 2030, part of Maine's 'Programs like the Land and Water Conservation Fund and Forest Legacy protect forests, strengthen the forest products sector, support rural communities, and expand outdoor recreation,' Cutko said in an email. 'They are vital tools for protecting the natural resources that are the essence of Maine.' Advertisement In the absence of more public land — just 7 percent of Maine is owned by federal, state and local governments — a network of land trusts has become a model for conservation and for meeting the growing demand for outdoor access in the Pine Tree State. More than 80 land trusts have collectively safeguarded nearly three million acres, almost 15 percent of all land in the state, primarily through conservation easements on private land, according to a recent 'Apart from what's happening out West, the Maine model works,' said Jeff Romano, public policy director at Maine Coast Heritage Trust, which runs the Maine Land Trust Network. 'Hopefully we can push back some of these cuts to agencies and conservation programs because we do rely on that collaboration with those entities to do some good work here.' At the end of the day, public demand for open space and protecting nature isn't going anywhere, Lindholm said. 'Everybody loves the outdoors,' she said. 'It's the thing that brings people together across the political spectrum.'
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Democrats see Maine governor as best option to unseat Susan Collins
Eyes in Maine are on Gov. Janet Mills (D) as Democrats await a final decision from her on whether she will challenge Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), their top target in the 2026 midterms. Mills, subject to months of speculation about a possible Senate run as she's unable to seek a third term in office, is viewed as perhaps Democrats' best chance of finally ousting Collins after several failed attempts in the past. She cast some doubt in April about whether she would run, though she didn't definitively rule it out. Democrats likely face an uphill battle to defeat Collins regardless, but they believe the two-term governor could be the ideal candidate to take on the longtime senator. 'She's demonstrated twice that she is able to win statewide. There's not too many people in the state that can say that. She's got a long record in public office. Mainers know her. They like her,' said David Farmer, a Democratic consultant who worked for former Gov. John Baldacci (D). 'They're energized by the fact that she stood up to the president, not because she wanted to, but because he singled her out.' Collins has been one of the strongest political figures in Maine for decades, building a reputation as a maverick, independent-minded senator. As Maine's only Republican statewide officeholder, Collins has been a target in the past but has repeatedly held on. Democrats were bullish about their chances in 2020, centering enthusiasm and significant spending on then-state House Speaker Sara Gideon. The broader political headwinds seemed likely to help, as Maine is a Democratic-leaning state on the federal level and voted for former President Biden by 9 points. But Collins won comfortably over Gideon by almost the same amount, taking many by surprise. Still, observers see Mills as having a solid shot. She comfortably won both of her gubernatorial elections after eight years of Republican leadership, becoming the state's first female governor. She's also enjoyed a net positive favorability rating, though it has dropped over the past few years. 'She knows the state of Maine well. She guided the state through the pandemic as well as any other governor. She is a careful, smart campaigner,' said Daniel Shea, a professor of government at Colby College in Maine. 'She would run the campaign the way a seasoned Maine politician would run the campaign.' Mills came onto the national stage more recently for her faceoff with President Trump over his executive order to withhold federal funding from states that permit transgender athletes to compete on women's and girls' sports teams. But Mills hasn't been clear about whether she'll actually enter the race. She told a local Maine outlet in April that she wasn't currently planning to challenge Collins or seek another office. But she also said 'things can change week to week, month to month.' If she doesn't enter, Democrats have alternatives. Jordan Wood, who served as chief of staff for former California Rep. Katie Porter (D) but is originally from Maine, became the first Democrat to enter the race in April. 'I was born and raised in Lewiston, Maine and I'm running for Senate because Washington's broken political system is holding us back from solving the problems Mainers face,' he said in a statement. 'Mainers are ready for a new generation of leadership that has the courage to take on both parties to do what's best for Maine, not just offer concern.' David Costello, the 2024 Democratic nominee for Senate who lost to independent Sen. Angus King, launched his bid last week. 'Not only am I trying to sell my candidacy on the ideas of substantive reform, I'm also trying to say that if you look at my background, having grown up in a mill town and working-class family in Maine … [being] engaged in government at all levels and [having] a very extensive public service record, I think it certainly could resonate very well against Sen. Collins,' he said. Other possible candidates who've expressed interest include state House Speaker Ryan Fecteau and former state Sen. Cathy Breen. Regardless of who eventually becomes their nominee, Democrats point to potential vulnerabilities for Collins. An April poll found 71 percent of voters don't want Collins to run for reelection, and her approval rating was significantly underwater. She also faces a potentially perilous vote ahead as Trump's 'big beautiful bill' advances in Congress. Collins has expressed concerns about possible cuts to nondefense spending, including Medicaid, but Democrats have signaled their intent to go on offense against the GOP over it. Her position as chair of the powerful Appropriations Committee will put even more of a spotlight on her. She's also taken tough votes in the past, such as her vote in favor of confirming Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who was a key vote in the Supreme Court's ruling overturning Roe v. Wade. 'Mainers are fed up with Susan Collins for selling them out to advance her party's agenda of gutting Medicaid, laying off workers, threatening Maine businesses to enable chaotic economic policies, and being the decisive vote to confirm the Supreme Court Justice who overturned Roe v Wade,' said state Democratic Party spokesperson Tommy Garcia. 'Susan Collins has failed Mainers — and that's why they are eager and ready to elect a new Senator in 2026.' But Republicans expressed optimism about her chances of winning again, presuming she goes forward with her expected reelection bid, particularly given her past success. Lance Dutson, who served as communications director for Collins's 2014 campaign, noted that several notable figures have jumped into the governor's race already, but they haven't entered the Senate race yet, possibly signaling hesitation to face Collins. 'The top-tier Democrats in the state are not getting into the Senate race. And I firmly believe it's because of the results of 2020 that [they] threw everything they possibly could throw at Senator Collins in a very challenging year, and she crushed them,' Dutson said. Republicans also say even a candidate with high name recognition like Mills could have baggage from a declining approval rating and being out front on an issue like transgender athletes in women's sports, which Democrats have taken attacks on. 'Janet Mills is a classic Maine politician. She's from the rural part of the state. She's more grounded than some of the other candidates the Democrats have put up,' Dutson said. 'But it's a big difference being at the Maine State House and then going against this really juggernaut political machine of Senator Collins.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
3 days ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Democrats see Maine governor as best option to unseat Susan Collins
Eyes in Maine are on Gov. Janet Mills (D) as Democrats await a final decision from her on whether she will challenge Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), their top target in the 2026 midterms. Mills, subject to months of speculation about a possible Senate run as she's unable to seek a third term in office, is viewed as perhaps Democrats' best chance of finally ousting Collins after several failed attempts in the past. She cast some doubt in April about whether she would run, though she didn't definitively rule it out. Democrats likely face an uphill battle to defeat Collins regardless, but they believe the two-term governor could be the ideal candidate to take on the longtime senator. 'She's demonstrated twice that she is able to win statewide. There's not too many people in the state that can say that. She's got a long record in public office. Mainers know her. They like her,' said David Farmer, a Democratic consultant who worked for former Gov. John Baldacci (D). 'They're energized by the fact that she stood up to the president, not because she wanted to, but because he singled her out.' Collins has been one of the strongest political figures in Maine for decades, building a reputation as a maverick, independent-minded senator. As Maine's only Republican statewide officeholder, Collins has been a target in the past but has repeatedly held on. Democrats were bullish about their chances in 2020, centering enthusiasm and significant spending on then-state House Speaker Sara Gideon. The broader political headwinds seemed likely to help, as Maine is a Democratic-leaning state on the federal level and voted for former President Biden by 9 points. But Collins won comfortably over Gideon by almost the same amount, taking many by surprise. Still, observers see Mills as having a solid shot. She comfortably won both of her gubernatorial elections after eight years of Republican leadership, becoming the state's first female governor. She's also enjoyed a net positive favorability rating, though it has dropped over the past few years. 'She knows the state of Maine well. She guided the state through the pandemic as well as any other governor. She is a careful, smart campaigner,' said Daniel Shea, a professor of government at Colby College in Maine. 'She would run the campaign the way a seasoned Maine politician would run the campaign.' Mills came onto the national stage more recently for her faceoff with President Trump over his executive order to withhold federal funding from states that permit transgender athletes to compete on women's and girls' sports teams. But Mills hasn't been clear about whether she'll actually enter the race. She told a local Maine outlet in April that she wasn't currently planning to challenge Collins or seek another office. But she also said 'things can change week to week, month to month.' If she doesn't enter, Democrats have alternatives. Jordan Wood, who served as chief of staff for former California Rep. Katie Porter (D) but is originally from Maine, became the first Democrat to enter the race in April. 'I was born and raised in Lewiston, Maine and I'm running for Senate because Washington's broken political system is holding us back from solving the problems Mainers face,' he said in a statement. 'Mainers are ready for a new generation of leadership that has the courage to take on both parties to do what's best for Maine, not just offer concern.' David Costello, the 2024 Democratic nominee for Senate who lost to independent Sen. Angus King, launched his bid last week. 'Not only am I trying to sell my candidacy on the ideas of substantive reform, I'm also trying to say that if you look at my background, having grown up in a mill town and working-class family in Maine … [being] engaged in government at all levels and [having] a very extensive public service record, I think it certainly could resonate very well against Sen. Collins,' he said. Other possible candidates who've expressed interest include state House Speaker Ryan Fecteau and former state Sen. Cathy Breen. Regardless of who eventually becomes their nominee, Democrats point to potential vulnerabilities for Collins. An April poll found 71 percent of voters don't want Collins to run for reelection, and her approval rating was significantly underwater. She also faces a potentially perilous vote ahead as Trump's 'big beautiful bill' advances in Congress. Collins has expressed concerns about possible cuts to nondefense spending, including Medicaid, but Democrats have signaled their intent to go on offense against the GOP over it. Her position as chair of the powerful Appropriations Committee will put even more of a spotlight on her. She's also taken tough votes in the past, such as her vote in favor of confirming Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who was a key vote in the Supreme Court's ruling overturning Roe v. Wade. 'Mainers are fed up with Susan Collins for selling them out to advance her party's agenda of gutting Medicaid, laying off workers, threatening Maine businesses to enable chaotic economic policies, and being the decisive vote to confirm the Supreme Court Justice who overturned Roe v Wade,' said state Democratic Party spokesperson Tommy Garcia. 'Susan Collins has failed Mainers — and that's why they are eager and ready to elect a new Senator in 2026.' But Republicans expressed optimism about her chances of winning again, presuming she goes forward with her expected reelection bid, particularly given her past success. Lance Dutson, who served as communications director for Collins's 2014 campaign, noted that several notable figures have jumped into the governor's race already, but they haven't entered the Senate race yet, possibly signaling hesitation to face Collins. 'The top-tier Democrats in the state are not getting into the Senate race. And I firmly believe it's because of the results of 2020 that [they] threw everything they possibly could throw at Senator Collins in a very challenging year, and she crushed them,' Dutson said. Republicans also say even a candidate with high name recognition like Mills could have baggage from a declining approval rating and being out front on an issue like transgender athletes in women's sports, which Democrats have taken attacks on. 'Janet Mills is a classic Maine politician. She's from the rural part of the state. She's more grounded than some of the other candidates the Democrats have put up,' Dutson said. 'But it's a big difference being at the Maine State House and then going against this really juggernaut political machine of Senator Collins.'
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
What the public lands fight means for Maine
Maine is about as far away as you can get from the bulk of America's federal public lands, the vast majority of which are concentrated in a dozen states west of the Mississippi River — a result of the nation's history of westward expansion. Whereas states like Utah, Nevada and Alaska are each between 60 and 80 percent federal land, just 1.5 percent of Maine is federally managed. But Mainers have as much of a stake in the current political fight over the future of federal resources as anyone else. Public lands, waters and wildlife are part of our birthright as American citizens, a public domain that we all collectively own, regardless of our proximity. Over the last five months, the Trump administration has worked to slash funding for federal land management agencies and conservation programs; open up more public lands to fossil fuel drilling, mining and other extractive development; and lay off or force out thousands of park rangers and other civil servants. The words 'protect' and 'conserve' have been largely absent from the administration's vocabulary, as it prioritizes dismantling environmental safeguards in its quest for so-called 'energy dominance.' Meanwhile, Congress is considering federal land sales to help offset Trump's tax and spending cuts — a contentious proposal that House lawmakers ultimately yanked from that chamber's version of Trump's so-called 'big, beautiful' budget package, but that Senate Republicans resurrected this week. During a recent congressional hearing to outline the Trump administration's budget proposal for fiscal year 2026, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum invoked Maine and other East Coast states to argue that Western states with large amounts of federal land are at an economic disadvantage. 'We've got states in the East, including the 13 states that were part of the original colonies, none of them have more than 2 percent of federal land,' he said. 'I don't think any of them would stand up and say, 'We need more federal ownership in our states.'' Burgum's statement is both inaccurate — nine of the original 13 states have more than 2 percent federal land, with New Hampshire on top at 14 percent — and casts aside the history of the nation's East-to-West settlement. David Feinman, vice president of government affairs at the Conservation Lands Foundation, said it also seemed designed to pit regions of the country against each other. 'Americans across the political spectrum in every state support public land protections, whether it's Maine or Utah or anywhere else,' Feinman said. 'Regardless of the secretary's narratives, these lands do belong to everybody.' Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), Feinman and others The Maine Monitor spoke to encouraged Mainers to pay close attention to the battle taking place in Washington, as it will likely impact everything from visits to national parks to our ability to stave off the worst impacts of climate change. 'It does impact all of us,' Pingree said. 'If there's one thing that the changing climate has taught us it's that we're all in this together, that overheating in one part of the country impacts another part of the country, that our weather is all impacted, that we need land to sequester carbon. There's just a whole variety of reasons that we need undeveloped lands in this country wherever it may be.' Pingree worries what the current turmoil inside the National Park Service and other federal agencies will mean not only for federally managed sites in Maine, including Acadia National Park and Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument, but parks, monuments and wildlife refuges around the country. Since Trump took office, NPS has lost 13 percent of its workforce, according to the National Parks Conservation Association, and the administration's budget proposal calls for slashing more than $1 billion from NPS next year, approximately one-third of its entire operating budget. Current staffing shortages have already created numerous operational issues and public safety concerns at America's national parks. 'It's a real crime what they've done to these precious jewels,' Pingree said. Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) echoed that sentiment during a budget hearing on Tuesday, telling Burgum 'it's hard for me to understand how gutting 'America's best idea' isn't America's worst idea.' Trump's agenda also threatens to stymie future conservation, outdoor recreation and forest protection efforts here at home. Among other things, Trump's Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, froze $68 million in funding for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Forest Legacy Program, which focuses on protecting private forest lands through conservation easements and land acquisitions. The program is one of several funded through the Land and Water Conservation Fund, or LWCF, which uses offshore oil and gas drilling royalties to buy land and establish and protect parks, trails, wildlife refuges, forests and important wildlife habitat. In Maine, the FLP has been key to safeguarding more than 700,000 acres of forested land, according to the LWCF Coalition. As for LWCF as a whole, Trump's 2026 budget request proposes diverting $387 million from the fund to pay for deferred maintenance at the National Park Service and other federal land management agencies — a move that Amy Lindholm, director of federal affairs at the Appalachian Mountain Club and a national coordinator at the LWCF Coalition, said would 'rob Peter to pay Paul.' Over the last five decades, Maine has received more than $220 million in LWCF funding, which has helped boost protection for places like Acadia and the Appalachian National Scenic Trail as well as supported hundreds of conservation projects via state grants. 'It's really important that we have these tools fully funded, because there's always going to be developers with deep pockets who want to acquire pieces of land,' Lindholm said. 'We just have to balance that out a little bit with access for the local community and for growing and diversifying rural economies.' Andy Cutko, director of the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands, said cuts to federal conservation funding could impede progress toward Maine's goal of conserving 30 percent of its land by 2030, part of Maine's four-year climate plan. 'Programs like the Land and Water Conservation Fund and Forest Legacy protect forests, strengthen the forest products sector, support rural communities, and expand outdoor recreation,' Cutko said in an email. 'They are vital tools for protecting the natural resources that are the essence of Maine.' In the absence of more public land — just 7 percent of Maine is owned by federal, state and local governments — a network of land trusts has become a model for conservation and for meeting the growing demand for outdoor access in the Pine Tree State. More than 80 land trusts have collectively safeguarded nearly three million acres, almost 15 percent of all land in the state, primarily through conservation easements on private land, according to a recent report from the Maine Land Trust Network. 'Apart from what's happening out West, the Maine model works,' said Jeff Romano, public policy director at Maine Coast Heritage Trust, which runs the Maine Land Trust Network. 'Hopefully we can push back some of these cuts to agencies and conservation programs because we do rely on that collaboration with those entities to do some good work here.' At the end of the day, public demand for open space and protecting nature isn't going anywhere, Lindholm said. 'Everybody loves the outdoors,' she said. 'It's the thing that brings people together across the political spectrum.'
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Maine House gives initial approval to ban on untraceable 'ghost guns'
Jun. 12—AUGUSTA — Lawmakers in the Maine House of Representatives gave initial approval Thursday to a bill prohibiting undetectable firearms and requiring serial numbers on firearms. The House advanced the bill on a 77-70 party-line vote, with Democrats in support and Republicans opposed. Similar bills have failed in previous Legislatures, but the latest push comes in the aftermath of the high-profile killing of a health care CEO in downtown Manhattan last year involving a so-called ghost gun. Ghost guns are untraceable firearms, often assembled at home or by mail-order kit, that are not marked with serial numbers. The bill advances to the Senate and also faces an additional House vote. And while the initial vote was in its favor, it also will need to compete with other bills for funding since it currently includes a fiscal note of $1.9 million over two years for new positions in the Maine State Police and Department of Public Safety, and associated technology costs. Rep. Sam Zager, D-Portland, the bill's sponsor, said during Thursday's floor debate that requiring serial numbers and prohibiting untraceable firearms is critical for enhancing public safety and giving law enforcement the ability to trace weapons used in crimes. "Passing LD 1126 will ensure our law enforcement agencies are fully equipped to investigate and trace guns found at crime scenes while upholding the constitutional rights of all Mainers," Zager said. Zager, a physician, said firearms are the leading cause of death for children and youth in the United States, and firearms contribute daily to the deaths of Americans across the country. Unserialized firearms are increasingly used by domestic terrorists and arms traffickers because they can't be traced, he said, while serial numbers are critical in helping law enforcement with investigations. "Each time a law enforcement officer in this state, and this country, performs a trace, they are essentially attesting to the notion that serialization aids in their investigation," Zager said. Federal law requires that firearms manufactured for sale in the United States have serial numbers stamped on them and it's a crime to obliterate or obscure a manufacturer's serial number. The U.S. Supreme Court also ruled in March to uphold Biden administration rules that guns built from at-home kits be treated like other firearms by requiring companies to add serial numbers, run background checks and verify that buyers are 21 or older. Still, the rise of the at-home kits and 3D printing to assemble firearms have made it easier for the rules to be skirted and for untraceable firearms to be circulated. Fifteen states have banned ghost guns, including Massachusetts and Rhode Island, according to gun safety organization Everytown for Gun Safety. "Recent advances in technology and materials have created a dangerous loophole," Zager said. "In Maine, law enforcement agencies are contending with an increasing prevalence of unserialized firearms ... assembled by individuals at home, not firearms manufacturers." The use of ghost guns in crimes has increased by more than 1,000% since 2017, according to a U.S. Department of Justice study released in 2023. One high-profile recent example was when 26-year-old Luigi Mangione allegedly used a ghost gun to kill UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. The bill would make it a Class C crime to manufacture or sell an untraceable firearm and a Class D crime to intentionally or knowingly possess an untraceable firearm. Firearms that meet a federal definition of curio or relic would be excluded. Rep. Jim White, R-Guilford, a firearms dealer and gun shop owner, was among Republican lawmakers who spoke against the proposal Thursday. White said that tracing firearms can be a complicated and lengthy process and a serial number is not a guarantee a crime will be solved or the owner of the weapon will be tracked down. "There is no protection given by serializing a firearm," White said. "All it is is a method to assist law enforcement in tracing the history of that firearm. And there's no guarantee of an outcome that's not a dead end." The ban on untraceable firearms was among several firearms bills lawmakers took up this spring. On Thursday, the House also rejected a bill to prohibit the possession of large-capacity ammunition feeding devices and a bill that would allow municipalities to prohibit firearms in municipal buildings and voting places. They gave initial approval to a bill to facilitate firearms hold agreements through which people could temporarily store their firearms with a gun shop. That bill was sponsored by Rep. Stephen Wood, R-Greene, but also gained the support of some Democrats Thursday. It was introduced with the intent of helping veterans and first responders going through a mental health crisis, though a similar Democrat-sponsored bill sought to facilitate the agreements for other groups, such as people selling their homes or those who have visiting family and thus wouldn't want firearms around. "I support this bill," said Rep. Adam Lee, D-Auburn. "I think it's a good bipartisan solution for folks who are in crisis and want to temporarily relinquish their firearms, but don't want to do so by court order. I think we should give every opportunity for those folks in crisis to avoid the potential devastating outcomes of remaining with those firearms." Copy the Story Link
