Action Alert: Bills to Support Affordable Workforce Housing and Maine's Dairy Sector

A ‘Thank You’ and Two Opportunities to Support Maine Farms

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First off: Thank you to everyone who responded to our last action alert on LD 579, An Act to Support Farmland Conservation. Your support matters! We were so excited to see the enthusiasm for the amended bill at its public hearing and through written testimony. Members of the Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee decided to go straight into work session on the bill and unanimously voted it Ought to Pass - As Amended! This is an important step forward; keep an eye out for more opportunities to support this bill as it moves through the legislative process. ‍

Next up: Public hearings are scheduled next week for two bills that address important issues related to farm viability in Maine: affordable workforce housing and rising costs of production for dairy farmers. The success of farming as a business is paramount to the future of farming in Maine and to farmers’ ability to keep their land in agricultural production.

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Affordable Workforce Housing

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Agricultural labor shortages as well as increasing labor costs in Maine are having a tremendous impact on farm viability. The ability to find and retain reliable and skilled workers can make or break a farming operation, and the lack of available, affordable, and adequate housing in rural and farming communities across the state is contributing to the agricultural workforce shortages.

LD 2169, An Act to Support the Development of Workforce Housing to Promote Economic Development in Maine, seeks to establish a loan fund within Maine’s Department of Economic and Community Development to support the development of affordable workforce housing. A public hearing for LD 2169 is scheduled for Tuesday February 6, 2024 at 1pm before the Legislature's Housing Committee.

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Take Action to Support Workforce Housing

Provide live or written testimony for the public hearing about why you think workforce housing matters for economic development in Maine. If you are a farmer, member of the agricultural workforce, or other stakeholder with stories or examples to share about the need for affordable workforce housing and its connection with farms, this insight could especially help committee members understand how this bill could support agriculture as a key sector of Maine’s economy.

Options for getting engaged:

Testify at the pubic hearing (1pm on Tuesday February 6)

• In-person: The hearing is being held in Cross Building, Room 216. There is a 3-minute time limit per person, so be prepared to keep your oral delivery of your testimony brief. Written testimony is not required, but if you want to distribute copies of your written testimony to committee members you should bring 20 copies. If you are testifying in-person, you do not need to submit your written testimony through the online portal.
• Over Zoom: You can submit written testimony and/or sign-up to deliver oral testimony over Zoom by following this link. Once there, select “public hearing,” select the Housing Committee, the date of the hearing (February 6, 1pm), and the bill title (LD 2169 - An Act to Support the Development of Workforce Housing to Promote Economic Development in Maine). You will then be able to upload written comments and/or sign up to provide live testimony. If you would like to deliver your testimony orally, you need to sign-up at least 30 minutes prior to the start of the hearing. There is a 3-minute time limit per person, so be prepared to keep your oral delivery of your testimony brief.

Submit written testimony: If you cannot make it to the hearing in-person or on Zoom, you can submit written testimony online anytime before the hearing by following this link (follow the steps above for testifying over Zoom).

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Rising Costs of Production for Maine’s Dairy Sector

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Rising production costs are challenging for all types of farms across Maine, and can be especially difficult for dairy farms that ship milk and face significant volatility in the price they receive for their milk. Maine’s Dairy Stabilization Program, or the Tier Program, provides critical economic support to dairy farmers, allowing more dairy farms to stay in business when the price they receive from the marketplace for their milk falls below their cost of production.

Dairy farms steward vast acreages of farmland in Maine and are often described as “anchor farms” because they provide the necessary threshold of business for veterinarians, feed suppliers, and machine suppliers to set up shop in the towns containing these farms. Ensuring the economic viability of dairy farms is therefore important for farms of all types and sizes and for rural communities across the state.

LD 2188, Resolve, Regarding Legislative Review of Chapter 26: Producer Margins, a Major Substantive Rule of the Maine Milk Commission, aims to ensure that the Tier Program adopts the most up-to-date cost of production numbers from the Maine Milk Commission, which are based on a recent survey of dairy farmers in Maine. For the Tier Program to effectively support Maine dairy farms, it must be informed by current realities and data.

A public hearing for LD 2188 is scheduled for Wednesday February 7, 2024 at 1pm before the Legislature's Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee.

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Take Action to Support Maine Dairy

Provide live or written testimony for the public hearing about why Maine dairy farms matter to you and why their success is important for Maine (consider reasons like food security for our state and region in the face of climate or supply chain disruptions, keeping our agricultural land base in farming and safeguarded from conversion to non-agricultural uses, the role dairy farms play in rural economies and supporting other farms, or other factors that matter to you in your community).

Options for getting engaged:

Testify at the pubic hearing (1pm on Wednesday February 7)

• In-person: The hearing is being held in Cross Building, Room 214. There is a 3-minute time limit per person, so be prepared to keep your oral delivery of your testimony brief. Written testimony is not required, but if you want to distribute copies of your written testimony to committee members you should bring 20 copies. If you are testifying in-person, you do not need to submit your written testimony through the online portal.
• Over Zoom: You can submit written testimony and/or sign-up to deliver oral testimony over Zoom by following this link. Once there, select “public hearing,” select the Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee, the date of the hearing (February 7, 1pm), and the bill title (LD 2188 - Resolve, Regarding Legislative Review of Chapter 26: Producer Margins, a Major Substantive Rule of the Maine Milk Commission). You will then be able to upload written comments and/or sign up to provide live testimony. If you would like to deliver your testimony orally, you need to sign-up at least 30 minutes prior to the start of the hearing. There is a 3-minute time limit per person, so be prepared to keep your oral delivery of your testimony brief.

Submit written testimony: If you cannot make it to the hearing in-person or on Zoom, you can submit written testimony online anytime before the hearing by following this link (follow the steps above for testifying over Zoom).

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Questions?

Reach out to Shelley Megquier, MFT’s Policy and Research Director at smegquier@mainefarmlandtrust.org.

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