Sen. Libby receives perfect score on education record

Sen. Nate Libby, D-Lewiston earned a 100 percent rating from the Maine Education Association for his voting record on education issues during the second regular session of the 128th Legislature.

“Lewiston schools are the backbone of our city, and we made improvements this year in getting our educators the resources they need to ensure Lewiston kids are healthy and ready to learn when they’re at school,” said Sen. Libby. “But we still have work to do to ensure Maine’s young people’s futures aren’t hamstrung by unduly burdensome student debt when they try to pursue higher education.”

The Maine Education Association is an organization representing 24,000 Maine teachers and is dedicated to supporting policies and laws to improve public education.

This year, Sen. Libby supported two successful bills to protect the health and safety of school children. The first bill, LD 1710, restored state funding for school-based health centers, some of which are located in Lewiston schools, which the Department of Health and Human Services unexpectedly cut last summer. The second bill, LD 1858, makes technical changes to the School Revolving Renovation Fund to prioritize essential upgrades for school security systems. Both these bills provide Maine schools with the resources necessary to best meet the needs of their students from funding school safety upgrades to proper physical and mental health care.

Sen. Libby also fought to protect Maine students and their families from predatory student loan companies, who make it impossible to pay off student debt and get ahead. While LD 1507 initially passed both the House and the Senate, the governor unfortunately vetoed the bill. Another bill that failed to become law because of the governor’s veto was LD 40, to ensure drinking water in all Maine schools is safe from lead and other harmful elements.

Sen. Libby remains committed to fighting for Lewiston students and teachers in the Legislature.