AUGUSTA, Maine — The Maine House of Representatives failed to pass Wednesday an addition to the $11.3 billion state budget that included an increase to the state’s cigarette tax and funding to fill a Medicaid deficit.
Democrats who control the Legislature looked set to once again pass without Republican votes a spending plan that adds roughly $320.6 million through 2027, with a fiscal note describing savings resulting in a net cost of $118.1 million. But numerous Democrats joined with Republicans to defeat the budget addition Wednesday in a 77-71 vote.
The surprising outcome means the measure now goes to the Senate, where Democrats have a 20-15 advantage, before the bill could return to the House.
Party-line votes looked likely after the minority party refused to back a short-term deal in March to plug a $118 million MaineCare shortfall due to Republicans demanding work requirements and other limits for the state’s version of the federal health care insurance program serving roughly 400,000 low-income Mainers.
Gov. Janet Mills must ultimately sign off on any budget addition. Lawmakers were racing to adjourn by the end of Wednesday, but they will need an additional day in Augusta to handle any vetoes from the governor.
The Legislature’s budget committee had gone against several of the Democratic governor’s preferences for the two-year spending plan, such as by raising the cigarette tax from $2 to $3.50 per pack instead of the $1 increase Mills sought.
Rep. Michele Meyer, D-Eliot, noted the state’s new cigarette tax will still be lower than rates in three other New England states. But Rep. Nina Milliken, D-Blue Hill, rose Wednesday to blast the higher cigarette tax as hurting poorer residents, fighting back tears as she called it “unethical and dangerous.”
Appropriators also voted against Mills’ proposals to cut child care worker stipends by $30 million and add new ambulance and pharmacy taxes to balance the budget, and they recommended winding down Maine’s free community college initiative after this year’s class of graduating high school students, among other policy disagreements.
The higher cigarette tax was expected to raise $111 million through 2027. Lawmakers had about $130 million in projected unspent revenue along with needing $120 million for the MaineCare deficit that was driven by growing enrollment, costs and use since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Other highlights in the budget proposal include $6.5 million for nursing home rate reforms that unlock $12.2 million in federal funding, $3 million to continue to fund reproductive health care services, $6 million for crime victim services and $42 million for a 4 percent funding bump for Maine’s public universities, among various investments.
Rep. Drew Gattine, D-Westbrook, who co-chairs the Legislature’s budget committee, said Wednesday it is the “right budget” for Maine and its people. Republicans panned the new taxes on cigarettes and real estate transfers, with Rep. Amy Arata, R-New Gloucester, saying the budget addition is “built on a house of cards” and will help the “rich get richer.”
“We don’t know what is to come from the federal government, which is why this is not a flashy budget,” Sen. Peggy Rotundo, D-Lewiston, the budget panel co-chair, said after lawmakers advanced the spending plan early Saturday. “It is steady during a time of external chaos.”
A ream of bills that both chambers have passed also await funding before the Legislature adjourns. Many proposals routinely fail after never receiving funding or the governor’s signature.
