Save the Date:

Friday April 27th 10:00AM

Public Hearing on

LD1810, The Informed Growth Act

MFTC is working hard to pass LD 1810, The Informed Growth Act. This exciting legislation will highlight the true costs of big box development and provide communities with the tools and information to create and sustain vibrant, just, and sustainable local economies.

We need your support to pass this bill. We have a public hearing coming up on April 27th and we need as many people as possible to attend. Please RSVP to me if you can make it. The public hearing is scheduled for:

Friday April 27th 10:00
Committee on State and Local Government Hearing Room
Room 216 Cross State Office Building, Augusta

This legislation is the first of its kind in the nation and WE NEED YOUR HELP TO PASS IT! We need to send a strong message that the people of Maine support LD 1810. Please mark your calendars and attend. Let me know if you'll be there.
The bill can be found and tracked at:
http://janus.state.me.us/legis/LawMakerWeb/summary.asp?ID=280024788
A more detailed account of the bill is featured in this month's Hometown Adv:
http://www.newrules.org/retail/news_slug.php?slugid=357
We look forward to seeing you on the 27th!

Best,DAPHNE
Organizer, Maine Fair Trade Campaign
(207) 777-6387 cell:(207)266-5895
daphne@mainefairtrade.org

WHAT LD 1810 WOULD DO:

The Informed Growth Act would trigger economic and community impact assessments for proposed large-scale retail "Big Box" stores 75,000 square feet and greater. These stores come with a host of hidden costs and it's important that local decision makers have the information they need to make informed decisions about growth. The studies would look at the impacts on existing businesses, jobs, wages, town services, the vitality of downtowns and would consider the generalized environmental impacts. Right now, most towns can't even consider factors such as economic and fiscal impacts when reviewing permit applications. The Informed Growth Act would ensure that these impacts are part of the review criteria.