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For Maine's credit unions, the First Regular Session of the 127th Maine Legislature can be summed up in one word: SUCCESS! In your League's Annual Legislative Summary and Recap that was distributed to all Maine CUs last week, the results of the session highlighted your League's 100% success rate on legislation identified as a priority and strong legislative advocacy by your League and Maine's credit unions during the session. In addition to the most significant bill passed this session, a bill drafted and amended by your League to expedite the foreclosure process and, despite long odds, received overwhelming support and passage, your League tracked a total of 66 bills during the session, took a leadership role on numerous others, and provided testimony on 15 pieces of legislation.
"This session had many components that reinforced the value of relationships and the strength of our grassroots. Many thought the idea of a bill to provide an option to expedite the foreclosure process had no chance of success; however, our advocacy efforts including meeting with every member of Leadership, discussing it with nearly all legislators, key officials in the Judiciary branch, and housing advocates, as well as generating more than 1,000 emails from credit union officials to legislators seeking support for our legislation. All of these efforts combined to get this legislation passed and it will become law on October 15th. This was a significant accomplishment for Maine's credit unions and we appreciate everyone's contributions in making it happen," explained your League's President John Murphy.
In addition to your League's success on the foreclosure bill, other issues that your League was involved with this past session and helped to achieve a successful outcome on include: rules dealing with abandoned property; condo liens; transportation network company insurance; student privacy; and financial literacy.
"We reviewed each of the nearly 1,500 bills that were submitted for consideration this past session to determine the impact, if any, on credit unions. It was a busy session for everyone, but our collective efforts and hard work paid off with a 100% success rate. Credit unions are viewed very positively by legislators, and many are proud members so their relationship with their local credit union is certainly a critical piece of our success. Thank you to everyone who was involved in any of our legislative activities and events this past session - it made a big difference," remarked your League's Director of Governmental Affairs Elise Baldacci.
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