Testimony: Stopping Municipalities from Banning Legal Products (LD 620)

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Testimony in Support of LD 620, “An Act to Promote Free Trade by Preventing Municipalities
from Prohibiting the Sale of Legal Goods”

Senator Nangle, Representative Stover, and the distinguished members of the Committee on State and Local Government, my name is Nick Murray and I serve as director of policy for Maine Policy Institute. We are a free market think tank, a nonpartisan, non-profit organization that advocates for individual liberty and economic freedom in Maine. Thank you for the opportunity to testify on LD 620.

While this bill should not be necessary today, it is. Entities funded by the State of California advocate in communities all across the state to ban flavored tobacco at the local and state level. Advocates push these misguided policies, ignoring the disastrous consequences that it had on Massachusetts business, as well as state coffers. 

Business owners should not be subject to the whims of their local officials as to the products they are allowed to sell to willing customers, as long as they are not prohibited by state law from doing so. Maine lawmakers should step in to protect business owners and consumers alike. 

Please deem LD 620 “Ought To Pass” and ensure municipalities do not overstep their role to overregulate and prohibit state-legal commerce. Thank you for your time and consideration.