Will the Public Own Maine's Electrical Utility?

That question is on the November ballot for Mainers to decide.  Question 3 would create a consumer-owned statewide electrical utility,  Pine Tree Power, to replace the state's two privately owned utility companies, Central Maine Power and Versant Power.  US Person, Bernie Sanders and the Sierra Club endorse the initiative. Campaigners have repeatedly hit a stone wall in the state legislature, showing once again the vice grip businesses have on state capitols.  Democratic governor Janet Mills vetoed a bill that made it through both houses of the state legislature.

Maine state capitol, Augusta

The ballot initiative end runs politicos that may be beholden to business interests like the Chamber of Commerce and the AFL-CIO. which have opposed the proposal. These lobby groups have outspent the proponents by $27 million to $840,000. Senator Sanders told the press in July,“Instead of a private power system that last year sent $187 million in profits out of the country, Mainers can have cheaper, more reliable power--and help fight climate change at the same time.”