AUGUSTA — A bipartisan group of legislative leaders on Wednesday unveiled a $4.8 million plan to fight Maine’s drug crisis on all fronts: Law enforcement, treatment, recovery and education.
The proposal was offered Wednesday, a day before a deadline set by Gov. Paul LePage for legislative leaders to present a plan that creates at least 10 new agents for the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency. LePage has said absent an agreement by Dec. 10, he would call on the Maine National Guard to increase its involvement in fighting the drug epidemic.
LePage on Wednesday issued a financial order to support the immediate hiring of 10 new agents with $781,000 from funds allocated to the Gambling Control Board and MDEA.
“The hiring and training process can take months,” said LePage in a letter to Senate President Mike Thibodeau, R-Winterport. “We need these agents to hit the streets as soon as possible.”
Thibodeau and House Speaker Mark Eves, D-North Berwick, said during a news conference Wednesday afternoon at the State House that they were unaware of LePage’s financial order but support it.
“If the governor can act on that before we return for session, he should,” said Eves.
“I assume he’s taking us at our word to fund these positions,” said Thibodeau. “That we can get this bill to his desk some time in early January is my hope. Hopefully we can get it signed and enacted quickly.”
Thibodeau and Eves said they have not yet identified a funding source for the package but were confident that legislative policy committees could find it.
“That’s the lowest hurdle that we have,” said Eves. “First is the agreement that we have a comprehensive approach.”
The package presented Wednesday includes $2.4 million for the new agents as well as a statewide coordinator to connect law enforcement agencies to treatment providers.
The package, which still requires legislative approval and LePage’s signature, also would invest $2.4 million in treatment efforts, including a new 10-bed detox unit in Bangor and increased access to treatment options for uninsured Mainers. It also would double the number of peer-to-peer support recovery centers.
The package would fund the launch of programs at five police departments in Maine modeled after Operation HOPE in Scarborough and the Law Enforcement Addiction Advocacy Program in Portland. Those programs train police officers to provide resources to addicts and their families, including the option for those who ask for help with addiction to receive one-on-one assistance with detoxification and recovery programs.
“This plan is a first step toward a healthier Maine,” said Eves in a written statement. “For too long, families and communities have continued to fight addiction alone. After working hard to come together, we’ve crafted a targeted, comprehensive plan that addresses the reality of drug addiction in Maine.”
Here are the core elements of the plan:
— Increase the number of Maine Drug Enforcement Agency officers by 10 at a cost of $2.4 million.
— Assist local law enforcement efforts to help people pursuing treatment or recovery by creating Project HOPE-like programs at police departments, at a cost of about $10,000.
— Fund 10 new detoxification beds in Bangor at a cost of $1 million.
— Increase access to residential and outpatient treatment for the uninsured at a combined cost of $800,000.
— Double the number of peer support recovery centers in Maine to help recovering addicts avoid relapse, at a cost of $600,000.
— Encourage effective prevention and education programming in schools, with the cost to be absorbed within existing public school resources.
Portland resident Julie Lawson, who is a recovering drug addict and an “Angel” in Scarborough’s Operation HOPE, spoke at Wednesday’s event.
“It’s not that we’re bad people,” she said. “It’s just that we’re controlled by a substance. … Politics aside, these are lives we’re talking about. We’re not junkies, and we’re not drug addicts. We’re people with substance abuse disorders who need to learn how to live our lives all over again.”
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