Truckers coalition widens its scope Group hopes to gain more political clout

LINCOLN – A membership drive and a seat on a new governor’s task force tackling the state’s energy problems were the biggest topics at the latest Coalition to Lower Fuel Prices meeting Saturday.

Coalition leaders said increased membership will create more political clout to maintain the viability of the group, which represents independent truckers and other motorists in its quest to battle energy costs. That could lead to a seat on the task force.

“It will all depend on growth,” said coalition organizer Jim Bacon, an independent trucker from Mercer, after the almost four-hour organizational meeting at Mattanawcook Academy, which about 30 people attended.

“If we can get the average homeowner to become part of the coalition, given the way home heating prices are going, we can really accomplish a great deal,” he added.

Since its inception in December, the coalition consisting largely of truckers has scored impressive gains, including a string of meetings around the state that demonstrated that truckers, particularly forest products industry independents, are being crushed by high fuel prices.

Those meetings occasionally drew more than 200 people, another sign of the group’s clout. Saturday’s meeting was for organizers.

Close work with Gov. John Baldacci and several legislators, including state Sen. Elizabeth Schneider, D-Orono, helped produce some new laws, including a forest products industry sales tax exemption for repair and maintenance parts, which expires Oct. 1.

The group also helped push for low-interest loan programs that were announced Thursday and are designed to help truckers buy fuel-saving energy equipment for trucks – impressive victories considering that the group’s founders, Al and Belinda Raymond of Kingman, were political neophytes reacting to diesel prices increasing by more than $2 a gallon over the past year.

Membership on Baldacci’s Pre-Emergency Task Force will help the coalition advise the governor on how to address the problem with the New England and National Governors’ associations, members said.

But now the group needs membership cards and dues to solidify itself and cover expenses, and a mission statement that clarifies what it is. Members would like to see another 200-member meeting, too.

The group, they said, also needs to link up with national organizations and get potential members to its Web site, coalitiontolo

werfuelprices.cfsites.org.

“They are making a lot of progress and it’s really necessary,” Schneider said. “They are doing a fine job and they have accomplished a lot in a very short period of time. Now they have to continue to build upon what they have started.”

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