Although we’re not residents of House District 96, my wife and I have been following the work of Rep. S. Paige Zeigler. We’re impressed — and not merely because we’re blessed to be friends of his.

• In 2018, he was instrumental in passing a law to let Maine pharmacists dispense Narcan to without a prescription, and then in overriding Gov. LePage’s veto. The measure caused an immediate decline in opioid overdose deaths and now saves hundreds of Maine lives each year.

• Markets for recycled materials dried up when China stopped accepting most plastics, so Zeigler co-sponsored a bill that would shift much of the cost of recycling to the companies that produce the packaging, relieving taxpayers of that burden and incentivizing companies to use easily recyclable materials.

• He leads the Maine contingent among members of the National Council of Environmental Legislators, a nonprofit information exchange that helps lawmakers make smart laws with regional and national cooperation.

• As a member of the Environment and Natural Resources Committee, Zeigler works on all Maine ecology legislation, and a Democratic majority in both houses has enabled progress on issues like air pollution and toxic waste. The committee is now working on ways to reduce levels of polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Major ingredients of many plastics, PFAS enter the food chain from soil or water and in sufficient amounts damage the liver, the thyroid gland, and the immune and reproductive systems.

One representative can’t do it alone, of course, but the more people there are like Paige in the Legislature, the sooner all of us can move beyond the politics of discord toward a sustainable future. We love our land, and we need someone in Augusta working to protect it. We think voters should reelect Zeigler.

 

Gary Stimeling

Freedom