AUGUSTA – Members of the Maine House on Thursday shot down 90-48 a proposed bill to extend term limits by four years.

Under Rep. Marilyn Canavan’s bill, which was carried over from last year’s legislative session, members of the House and Senate would have seen their current four, consecutive two-year terms extended to six terms to allow continuous service for up to 12 years. The proposal also would have required the approval of Maine voters during this year’s November balloting and would not have applied to any sitting member of the current Legislature.

Canavan, a Democrat from Waterville serving her third term in the House, asked her seatmates to ask themselves whether term limits had best served Maine citizens and whether the restrictions actually produced a better state Legislature. Citing last year’s research study by the University of Maine, Canavan said term limits have created a Legislature that lacks adequate experience and institutional memory.

“We all know the ability to be able to respond adequately to questions and concerns raised by constituents is a critical part of our work,” she said. “To respond effectively requires at least a basic knowledge of a broad range of public policy issues and the role of various agencies within state government. … Experience is key to providing good service, and it’s only with time that we become sufficiently adept at doing justice to this job.”

Rep. David Trahan, R-Waldoboro, who will not be returning to office because of term limits, said the current law had forced some competent lawmakers from office. But he opposed Canavan’s bill on the premise that the real question that remained unanswered by the measure was whether or not Mainers still wanted term limits.

“I personally believe the voters would leave term limits in place, but what you’d have is a great public debate about the impacts of term limits,” he said. “I personally would much rather see an end to term limits and have that public debate, but I can’t support extending it.”

The bill now proceeds to the Senate where it faces additional votes.

After the Legislature had adjourned for the day, House Speaker John Richardson, D-Brunswick, reflected on the vote which was similar to many that have been cast in the House since term limits were approved by voters by a wide margin at a citizen-initiated referendum in 1993. He said lawmakers generally fell into three categories: those who would like to repeal the law; those who feel Mainers would not support an outright repeal, but would consider adding two more terms to the limit; and then those who see an advantage to leaving term limits in place.

“For those reasons, whenever you see people split three ways, you’ll never see a majority or consensus emerge,” said Richardson, who also will be barred from seeking re-election this year because of term limits. “I was willing to vote on an extension of term limits that did not include me. It obviously will require a sea change in the institution to determine that eight years are insufficient. That day will come, but it wasn’t today.”

Maine is one of 15 states with legislative term limits. Maine’s law, like those of eight other states, allows lawmakers to return after a hiatus. In six states, there are lifetime limits on legislative service. Efforts to repeal the limits elsewhere in the country have been largely unsuccessful, but there have been exceptions in Idaho and Utah.