Maine lawmakers attend White House meeting on gun violence prevention

Eight Maine lawmakers were among nearly 100 Democratic state legislators from around the country who participated in a White House meeting Wednesday to launch a new initiative to help states boost gun violence prevention efforts.

House Speaker Rachel Talbot Ross, D-Portland; Sen. Anne Carney, D-Cape Elizabeth; Sen. Peggy Rotundo, D-Lewiston; Sen. Joe Rafferty, D-Kennebunk; Rep. Mo Terry, D-Gorham; Rep. Kristen Cloutier, D-Lewiston; Rep. Vicki Doudera, D-Camden; and Rep. Margaret Craven, D-Lewiston, all attended the event, according to a list provided by Talbot Ross’ spokesperson.

Vice President Kamala Harris speaks Wednesday at the White House. Evan Vucci/Associated Press

The meeting was hosted by the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention and Vice President Kamala Harris.

The effort to work more closely with states comes after the office was formed in September and as Maine’s Legislature prepares for the upcoming legislative session, which is expected to focus on a range of gun safety bills introduced after the mass shooting in Lewiston in October.

“We’ve been meeting with state legislators ever since the start of our office and one thing we hear all the time is that they want to do more to reduce gun violence,” Stefanie Feldman, director of the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, said in a conference call with reporters Tuesday. “Their question is what should we do, and how?”

“The agenda the vice president is announcing (at the meeting) will detail exactly what actions we have identified as strategies to reduce gun violence and save lives,” Feldman said.

GUIDANCE FOR STATES RELEASED

The White House used the meeting to unveil what is being called the Safer States Initiative. Its goal is to provide states with additional tools and support to reduce gun violence and save lives by making reforms at the state level.

A Safer States Agenda outlines action steps states can take, including establishing their own offices of gun violence prevention, strengthening background checks, and banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.

“We are going to be working hand-in-hand with the states to advance all these agenda items,” Feldman said. “(The meeting) is the first step in outlining what exactly the agenda items are.”

Doudera, who co-chairs the Legislature’s gun safety caucus, said the five-hour meeting was productive for the Maine lawmakers. “Not only did we get some great suggestions from the Office of Gun Violence Prevention, but all the other states who were there, we heard the progress some of them have made and the stumbling blocks they have run into,” she said.

Doudera said the recommendations of the Safer States Agenda include many things that already are being discussed in Maine.

“We haven’t talked about having an office of gun violence prevention,” she said. “We’ll have to talk as a Legislature and see if that makes sense, but I know there are other tried and true things that we need to do in Maine like close the background check loophole, take a look at what kinds of magazine capacities we have, what kinds of weapons we allow.”

Carney, the other co-chair of the gun safety caucus, said the meeting was a “great opportunity to learn about the types of legislation lawmakers in other states are working on or have been able to enact into law.”

“I found everything we talked about to be really helpful,” Carney said. “A lot of the ideas are ideas that are being talked about in Maine and that we’re hearing about in Maine.”

Cloutier said lawmakers at the meeting also focused on how to increase support for survivors and victims of gun violence, something that she said is too often overlooked in the aftermath of tragedies. “Often, the effects of gun-related trauma aren’t fully felt until years after the tragedy takes place – and our actions and behavioral health investments as a state need to reflect that,” Cloutier said in a statement.

Gov. Janet Mills was not involved in Wednesday’s meeting, but a spokesperson said in an email that she “applauds Maine lawmakers for engaging with the White House.”

“She welcomes the White House’s recommendations as an important part of the serious and robust discussion about gun violence prevention and public safety that she believes Maine people deserve, and she looks forward to reviewing the recommendations,” spokesperson Ben Goodman said.

ONLY DEMOCRATS INVITED

The White House specifically invited state lawmakers who have expressed interest in working on gun safety legislation at the state level to the event, a spokesperson said Wednesday. That did not include any Republican lawmakers, the White House confirmed.

The total cost of the trip was unclear Wednesday, but several of the Maine lawmakers or their spokespeople said they paid for it themselves and will be able to seek reimbursement from the Legislature.

A spokesperson for the White House said the participation of the Maine lawmakers Wednesday also followed a meeting Dec. 11 between leadership of the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention and over 30 members of the Maine Legislature, including Talbot Ross, to provide an overview and answer questions regarding federal gun safety laws and to support the state following the Lewiston shootings.

Talbot Ross said the office provided a webinar on federal firearms laws on Dec. 11 that was open to all lawmakers in the Maine Legislature. She said the webinar was expected to be the first in a series for Maine lawmakers on firearms, gun safety reform and mental health.

“This work really requires us to do it together,” Talbot Ross said. “We are hoping it will be a bipartisan effort, so any webinars that are held will be offered to all four caucuses.”

Asked about Wednesday’s meeting at the White House, John Bott, a spokesperson for Maine House Republicans, said in an email that he was not aware of Maine House Republicans having any conversations with White House officials or officials from the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention about gun violence or gun safety.

“Our interest is in what happens in Maine,” Bott said. “Members look forward to reviewing the findings of the Governor’s Independent Commission to Investigate the Facts of the Tragedy in Lewiston. Specifically, why weren’t existing laws applied? What can be done about the mental health crisis in Maine?”

Bott said late Wednesday that he was looking into whether House Republicans knew about or attended the Dec. 11 event.

A spokesperson for Maine Senate Republicans did not respond to a request for comment on Wednesday’s meeting.

NEW LAWS BEING CONSIDERED

The meeting came as Maine lawmakers are preparing for the session that starts in January and will likely include historic debate on gun control and gun safety measures in the wake of the Lewiston shootings that killed 18 people on Oct. 25.

A list of after-deadline bill titles submitted as of mid-November included more than a half-dozen proposals related to the shootings, gun access and mental health.

The U.S. Justice Department unveiled model legislation Wednesday for states to consider on safe gun storage, and lost and stolen firearms reporting that could also be looked at by Maine lawmakers.

Talbot Ross has an after-deadline bill, An Act to Strengthen Public Safety, Health and Well-being, that a spokesperson said Wednesday has been accepted for consideration in the coming session.

Talbot Ross said she wasn’t yet able to share details of what will be in the bill.

“I will say that the framing of the bill is to understand that this is a public health crisis,” she said. “We cannot afford to think of this as only public safety and within the criminal justice system. We need to adopt a language and an approach that treats this as a public health crisis. That bill will use that lens to craft steps forward.”

Wednesday’s meeting was an opportunity for her to learn more and think about what might be included, she said. “There’s still a lot more to learn and certainly a lot more engagement that has to happen,” Talbot Ross said.