I’m appalled at the behavior of Sen. Lisa Keim, R-Senate District 18, during the Judiciary Committee work sessions on a bill intended to provide clean drinking water to the Passamaquoddy reservation at Sipayik.

Clean drinking water is a human right. For more than 40 years, the Passamaquoddy at Sipayik, in Washington County, have been living with a toxic water supply. The Judiciary Committee recently voted on LD 906, legislation that would bring safe water to the reservation.

Keim voted “no” on advancing the bill, and her reasoning was shockingly dismissive of the Passamaquoddy tribe’s need for safe water.

Instead, she made the claim that this bill would “take away the rightful property” and funds from nearby municipalities, and that those municipalities have “never been asked to work collaboratively on this issue.” She claimed that “we step over them, we take their money, we take their land.”

To be clear, plenty of collaboration and conversation has happened around the Sipayik water crisis with all parties involved; all of which was explained during her committee’s work.

Keim professes to be concerned about the town of Perry possibly losing tax revenues on less than 100 acres the tribe already owns. The audacity of being offended at this prospect, when considering an issue directly relating to the health and well-being of the Passamaquoddy — whose rightful land was stolen and who have been “stepped over” and rarely asked to “work collaboratively” — is absolutely staggering.

Allison Long, Buckfield

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