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AUGUSTA – In an attempt to change two characters of a document, University of Maine student Derek Mitchell is looking to make an even bigger change in the state of Maine.
The junior, with double majors in journalism and political science, traveled to Augusta on Friday to testify in front of the Joint Standing Committee on State and Local Government on a bill he presented to lower the minimum age to become eligible to run for a seat in the Maine House of Representatives from 21 to 18.
“A 2004 study found that 1,197 more students are leaving the state than are entering to attend college,” said Mitchell in his testimony. “About 39 percent of Maine high school grads who go to college leave here to do it.
“With a seat at the table, maybe young people can find the answers why.”
In addition to Mitchell’s attempt at getting younger people involved with government, Student Government President Brigham McNaughton also went to Augusta to speak on a bill that would expand government internships to the county and local level.
The two spoke on their respective bills after they were presented by Rep. Emily Cain, D-Orono, who sat down with them to create the legislation.
The ideas came about because both students were looking to get more youth involved with government on a local and national level.
“The good news is both bills initiated from concerns that Derek and Brigham both had,” Cain said. “The over-arching theme is the engaging of young people in government in Maine.”
The first bill presented was LD 1880, which would promote youth involvement in county and local government.
The idea for the bill came when McNaughton noticed there was little youth involvement in government on a county and local level.
After sitting down with Cain to discuss the idea, they spoke with Charlie Morris of the Margaret Chase Smith Center for Public Policy to see if it could collaborate with the state government internship program.
After Cain presented the bill, McNaughton testified on what made him take an interest in local government.
“This state, which spends a substantial amount of money on higher education, has an interest in retaining the students they educate in their home state,” McNaughton said.
“Extending the network of state internships will create more diverse opportunities for the youth of Maine to be connected to their state and exposed to potential employment opportunities for post graduation.”
The committee also received input from three others at the hearing in addition to McNaughton.
One of them was Kate Dufour from the Maine Municipal Association, an organization with a voluntary membership of 492 of the state’s 493 cities, organized townships, plantations and towns.
Dufour said that the MMA was behind the bill because she felt it was wonderful that this promoted government, and if it does pass, it would be voluntary for the county and local governments.
The bill was met with no resistance from anyone who was eligible to testify.
About 45 minutes later, the committee reviewed LD 1912, an act to lower the age requirement to serve in the House.
Before the committee heard from Mitchell, Cain introduced the bill and pointed out that 17 states, including every state in New England, had lowered the age requirement to 18.
“Eighteen-year-olds can vote, they can pay taxes, they can be sent to war,” Mitchell said. “They are considered to be adults in many ways but are still denied the ability to run for office.”
After Mitchell testified, students from the University of Southern Maine and high school students from the Saco area spoke about why the age requirements needs to be lowered.
Similar to McNaughton’s idea, Mitchell also received organizational support from the American Civil Liberties Union, who favored the age change.
If the bill were to pass through the committee stage, it would take a two-thirds vote from the House and Senate for it to appear on a referendum, where the Maine voters would determine its final outcome.
“I think it is excellent to have a youthful perspective on any issue, and I think it is very helpful to see young people participate in something like government by doing more than just voting, but testifying,” Sen. Elizabeth Schneider, D-Orono, chairman of the committee.
“It’s taking ownership of government instead of letting other people take it over,” she said.
“It’s something I encourage every student to do.”
