Monday, July 7th, 2025

Federal News

We’ll start with the bad news first - Congress recently passed the “Big Beautiful Bill”, which includes billions of dollars in cuts to programs Mainers rely on, like  Medicaid  (MaineCare) and  SNAP  (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). President Trump is expected to sign the Bill in the coming days. We are very worried about what this will mean for our rural hospitals, our low-income neighbors, and Maine’s health system at large. Maine’s Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) did a great analysis on what to expect  here.

In the next few weeks, MCA and our partner organizations will be taking a deep breath, processing, and thinking about what we can do to mitigate harm to our communities. We will lean on each other and into community as we navigate the unknown. Stay tuned for more information from MCA about what to expect and any action steps you can take with us. 

Despite the Bill ultimately passing, we’re grateful that every single member of Maine’s Congressional Delegation voted against it - Senator Susan Collins, Senator Angus King, Representative Chellie Pingree (District 1), and Representative Jared Golden (District 2).  Your calls, emails, and outreach had an impact. Thank you, for showing up, for speaking out, and demanding that the federal government do its part to support our kids and families. 

State News

On the other hand, we’re excited to share that the First Session and the First Special Session of the 132nd Legislature have finally come to a close - woohoo! Our team has been working hard since January to translate our policy priorities into law.

We’ll be honest - this was a tough session. Maine is strapped for cash and is gearing up for major funding cuts from the federal government, which will create a big hole in our state budget. Our friends at the  Maine Center for Economic Policy  predict that Maine could be short nearly  190 million dollars  down the line. We wouldn’t be surprised if the Legislature returns to Augusta in the fall to address this budget crisis.

Our collective advocacy will be critical to ensure we mitigate the worst impact of the federal funding cuts on food, health care, and many more programs and services Maine children and families rely on for their well-being. 

That being said, it’s important to celebrate the wins too - and there was a lot to be proud of!   

• The Maine Children’s Alliance hand-delivered copies of the  2024 KIDS COUNT Book  to legislators, leadership, and government officials, providing them with the context and evidence they need to pursue policies that support children and families.  
• The Paid Family and Medical Leave program (PFML) emerged unscathed, despite plenty of efforts to weaken it. We were honored to join our friends at the  PFML Coalition  in leading the charge to defend this essential program for Maine’s working families. Mainers can officially take paid family and medical leave starting next year! 
• LD 577 , which guaranteed School Meals for All, was signed into law by the Governor, a major victory for addressing child hunger in our state. Special thanks to  Full Plates Full Potential  for their leadership on this important work! 
• MCA helped usher into law  LD 1406 , which seeks to clarify that poverty is not the same thing as neglect. This is an important step towards ensuring children and families are not unnecessarily involved in the child welfare system when resources could otherwise be provided to mitigate safety concerns for children. 
• MCA helped protect funding for the Child Care Wage Supplement, the Child Care Employment Award, and Head Start, despite the Governor pushing for cuts to these programs. We are thrilled that the Legislature saw the importance of funding these programs, and is committed to addressing Maine’s child care crisis. 
• MCA worked with a broad, ad hoc coalition of partners to defend Maine’s current law, which was recently strengthened to ensure our youngest children were not being suspended or expelled from school, except for the most serious of safety issues. It is best practice - and best for kids - to receive support in school for behavioral challenges, instead of removing them from their learning environment.
• All eight of the  anti-trans bills were defeated. These debates were hard, and they were also inspiring. The results say loud and clear in Maine that trans rights are human rights, and that all kids deserve to play. We are grateful to all the legislators who voted against these measures and to the members of the LGBTQ+ Legislative Coalition, as well as the  Maine Women's Lobby , who championed the work to oppose these harmful proposals. 
• MCA was proud to support the work of  Mainers for Tax Fairness , which calls for un-rigging our tax code and making Maine’s wealthy residents pay their fair share. We remain hopeful as several of these proposals received support but instead of being funded, were carried over. These could represent important opportunities to fill gaps in federal funding in a future session. Check out our  social media feature  here! 
• MCA also supported other bills that unfortunately failed to pass or weren’t funded this year, including ones related to tribal sovereignty, expanding MaineCare coverage to include continuous eligibility for kids aged 0-6, doula services for parents, and more. This is not the end! We will continue to push for these bills in future legislative sessions.

Thank you so much for reading! 

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If you're interested in supporting our work at the Maine Children's Alliance, you can make a gift  here.