Future of Offshore Wind - and Good Union Jobs - in Governor’s Hands with Ports Legislation

PHOTO: Operating Engineers Local 4 apprentice Jayme Skelton speaking in support of strong labor standards on offshore wind development in Maine.

Legislation intended to spark the creation of a new offshore wind industry in Maine is on its way to Gov. Janet Mills desk. The bill, LD 1847, is an amended version of Legislation proposed by the governor, and includes requirements that any port facilities in Maine that are built to support offshore wind energy include strong labor, community benefit and environmental standards.

“A broad coalition of working people and environmental advocates have come together to support the creation of a new industry in Maine that can help us combat climate change, create good jobs and support coastal communities,” said Francis Eanes of the Maine Labor Climate Council. “Together with other legislation, this legislation ensures that Maine people benefit from the development of offshore wind. We are grateful for the strong support we’ve seen in the Legislature, and we are hopeful that Gov. Mills will support this groundbreaking step forward on one of her most high-profile priorities.”

The legislation has three major components: It requires offshore wind developers using state port facilities to create high quality jobs and maximize federal port funding opportunities by adopting strong labor standards; requires developers to invest in local workforce development and prioritize the hiring of Maine workers, especially those from impoverished rural communities; and prioritizes worker safety and the environment by requiring port facilities to seek federal funding for zero-emission equipment, which reduces noise and pollution for workers and nearby communities.

The bill does not address where port facilities should be located, an issue that’s being considered by the Maine Department of Transportation and other important local stakeholders. The legislation would also put Maine in the strongest position to attract federal funding for port construction.

Poll Finds Maine Overwhelmingly Support Offshore Wing with Strong Labor Standards

Maine voters overwhelmingly support building offshore wind energy in the state with strong labor standards, according to a new poll released by Impact Research. The poll found that Maine voters believe offshore wind energy will improve the economy and support requiring developers to provide living wages and workplace safety protections for the jobs offshore wind will create.

Poll findings include:

By a 40-point margin, nearly two-thirds of Maine voters support building offshore wind energy with strong labor standards (63% support / 23% oppose / 14% don’t know). This includes solid net support across all demographic subgroups, including non-college voters (+42) and even across party lines: Democrats (+78), Independents (+28), and Republicans (+11). Overall support in Maine is in line with the 66% of voters who support it across the nine states we surveyed.

Maine voters see workplace safety and living wages as paramount for any jobs created by the offshore wind industry in the state.

Maine voters overwhelmingly view workplace safety protections (92%) and living wages and good benefits (84%) as very important requirements for jobs created by the offshore wind industry.

Maine voters believe offshore wind will be good for the economy and jobs— two of their top priorities for lawmakers. By a 16-point margin, they believe building offshore wind energy will be good for the economy (37% good / 21% bad); and by 32 points, they believe it will create jobs (43% create jobs / 11% cost jobs).

Supporting offshore wind with strong labor standards is politically beneficial. By a 27-point margin, voters say they are more likely to vote for candidates who support it (43% more / 16% less), including Independents by a 20-point margin (33% more / 13% less).About the poll: Impact Research conducted an online and text-to-web survey conducted April 14th to 20th, 2023 among N=3300 registered voters in target offshore wind development states, including N=200 interviews in Maine. The margin of error for the overall results is ±1.7% and ±6.9% for results in Maine at the 95% level of confidence.