Critics target school mergers

Portland Press Herald, September 23, 2007

(excerpt) Lawrence "Skip" Greenlaw Jr. of Stonington, who serves on the regional school board there, is behind the most sweeping opposition plan, which calls for repeal. His Maine Coalition to Save Schools wants to force a public vote on the issue unless the Legislature agrees to abandon consolidation.

"I've got people from more than 100 towns willing to take these petitions door to door," he said last week.

Greenlaw said "forced consolidation" of school districts would raise costs in some communities and may close some schools. That, he said, would require students to endure overly long bus rides and effectively kill some small communities by robbing them of their schools.

Organizers of the repeal effort would have to collect 55,087 voters' signatures to force the Legislature to either repeal the law or send it to voters. Unless they collect those signatures by January 2008, the proposal will not go to the Legislature -- and potentially to voters -- until 2009.

Greenlaw said he is optimistic he and his allies can collect more than 55,087 signatures -- his target is 100,000 -- by January, which would force votes next year.