In response to the letter from Ellen Field on “retroactive laws” in the Sun Journal on Oct. 16, she’s just wrong on the facts, as are the advertisements from “Mainers for Fair Laws” that have been filling our mailboxes and air waves.
Title 1, Chapter 11, Section 302 of the Maine Revised Statutes has long given elected officials the right to pass retroactive laws — there are no new powers being put into place here.
There are at least three cases, State v. LVI Group, Kittery Retail Ventures LLC v. Town of Kittery, and City of Portland v. Fisherman’s Wharf Associates II, in which the law court upheld retroactive laws. (Thanks to Attorney Adam Cote (no relation) of Drummond Woodsum for pointing this out in a letter addressed to Maine television stations; the letter can be viewed at the Vote Yes on 1 website.)
So if a voter is “horrified” at this concept, as she puts it, the time to act was quite some time ago.
The retroactivity “bogeyman” that’s being promulgated by supporters of the New England Clean Energy Connect corridor is also nicely demolished in Bill Nemitz’s column in the Portland Press Herald on Sept. 16.
CMP has spent millions of dollars to prevent the voters of Maine from having their say on the corridor. But it hasn’t succeeded yet. I ask people to join me in voting yes on Question 1, a referendum supported by thousands of Democrats, Republicans and independents.
Renee Cote, Auburn
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