AUGUSTA – Two groups hoping to secede from Gray took their cases Monday to the Legislature, which will ultimately have the final word on whether those efforts succeed or not.

Leaders from both the Gray Secession Committee and the smaller Mount Hunger Shore Road Secession Committee had time in front of the Joint Standing Committee on State and Local Government to explain why they want to leave Gray.

Gray officials and other local residents had the same chance to weigh in on the proposed secessions, and at least a dozen members of the Gray community traveled to Augusta to do just that – both in support of and opposition to the efforts.

“Our fire, rescue and public safety is best served by Raymond because it is quicker and better for our citizens. We want to contribute our tax dollars to the town that provides these important necessities,” said Jennifer White, the chairwoman and spokesperson of the Gray Secession Committee, which wants to join the town of Raymond.

“Until you live in an area separated from the town center by a geographical feature, such as a lake, you do not understand the challenges you will face,” said Daniel Bouchard, a member of the Mount Hunger Shore Secession Committee, which wants to join the town of Windham.

The hearing was on two legislative resolves, LD 618 and LD 619, introduced by Rep. Sue Austin, R-Gray, which would allow the secession groups to move forward with local votes within the secession territories to demonstrate whether there is community support, or lack-thereof, in the areas. Town officials would also have a chance to hold a townwide referendum if it chooses.

These two resolves, if passed by the Legislature, would allow for the process to proceed based on Maine statute, and would not constitute final approval from the Legislature. If final approval were to be granted, it would come further down the road after the referenda and a mediation process.

As she did during last week’s town council meeting, Austin stressed that she felt she has a responsibility to allow her constituents to explore a process provided to them by state statute. Though not on the State and Local Government Committee, Austin provided initial testimony and stayed for the entirety of the secession hearing to follow the discussion.

The two Gray secession groups and their supporters cite similar reasons for wanting to secede, including a feeling of geographic disconnection from the center of Gray, concerns about access to public safety services, and bus travel times for schoolchildren.

Current and former town officials, along with several other local residents, expressed their opposition to the secession movements, with the bulk of the debate playing out in testimony relating to the much larger proposed Gray Secession Territory, which could take about 10 percent of the town’s property tax base if it splits off and joins Raymond.

“Short of moving the town lines which have been in place since the early 1700s or solving the subjective identity crisis outlined in the secession committee proposal, the town of Gray believes most, if not all, of issues raised by the secession group can be resolved,” said Gray Town Council Acting Chairwoman Lynn Gallagher about the larger secession group. “In the secession report, you’ll notice the secession group fails to outline any proposed solutions or resolutions other than secession.”

Gallagher emphasized that the statute requires the parties to explore potential solutions other than secession, and outlined several examples where she felt the town was already trying to work towards solutions.

Former Gray Town Council Chairman and current town resident Matthew Sturgis was slightly less diplomatic in his remarks, arguing that the larger secession effort is motivated in part by a desire to pay less in taxes.

“Let me be very clear with you, that besides the discussion regarding public safety, identity issues and geographic challenges, this effort is very much related to property taxes,” Sturgis said.

Sturgis, who has worked as a tax assessor in the past and is now the Cape Elizabeth town manager, went on to provide his estimate that property owners in the proposed Gray Secession Territory would see an average tax reduction of $1,296 per property if they left Gray and went to Raymond.

“With the discussion of the pursuit of happiness being a primary desire of the secession effort, I think we now have an understanding what the price of happiness is: it’s $1,296 per property,” Sturgis said.

Now that both sides of the secession debate have been heard by the committee, the next step in the process is a work session where, according to the committee clerk, the group of 13 legislators will discuss the issue and take a vote.  As of print time, that committee work session was planned for Monday, April 3, but not yet definitively scheduled. Work sessions are generally open to the public but without another chance for public comment.

This week’s hearing gave the committee members plenty to think about, as it stretched more than 2½ hours.

“We have been bombarded by information,” said the committee’s Senate Chairman Senator Paul Davis, R-Sangerville.

Maine Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap, who was in the room because of separate issues that the committee was set to tackle later, said in an interview that he had experience with past secession discussions and emphasized that they can be “very emotional stuff.”

“You have to really think it through,” Dunlap said.

Matt Junker can be reached at 781-3661 ext. 123 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @MattJunker.

Jennifer White, the chairwoman and spokesperson for the Gray Secession Committee, explains why her group wants to leave Gray and join Raymond before the Committee on State and Local Government in Augusta.