AUGUSTA (AP) – A Virginia-based senior citizens group is urging Maine legislators to dump a proposed milk-handling fee the group claims will hurt seniors on fixed incomes.
The proposed legislation would assess a fee on Maine vendors of about 12 cents per gallon of milk when the price paid to farmers drops below a predetermined level. Supporters say the bill would provide Maine farmers with a safety net and help sustain the dairy industry.
But a group known as RetireSafe, which is based in Oakton, Va., and has 1,600 members in Maine, is taking a stand against the fee.
RetireSafe spokeswoman Michelle Plasari said its members are on fixed incomes, and that any price increase would hurt them. She said that older Americans need more calcium to protect against osteoporosis, and that raising the price of milk increases their risk.
On Monday, RetireSafe wrote a letter to each Maine legislator saying that the milk fee bill must be stopped.
“It will raise milk prices, discourage milk consumption and severely harm Maine seniors and families,” the letter stated.
Rep. John Piotti, D-Unity, said the bill is being fine-tuned before it goes to the House and Senate for votes. Piotti is co-chairman of the Legislature’s Agriculture Committee, which unanimously supported the bill.
Piotti said that the bill provides Maine farmers with a safety net against fluctuating milk prices and will help maintain the state’s dairy industry. He said he had no indication from processors, wholesalers or retailers that the fee would cause prices to rise.
“It is a bill that Maine’s dairy farmers desperately need and actively support,” he said. “When the milk handling fee existed before, it had no negative impact on Maine consumers. We do not expect negative benefits now.”
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