Darryl Brown, Testifying on His Behalf in Late January, Augusta.

By Carol McCracken  (Post # 764)

“The Attorney General has performed an important role in determining that, based on the information available to him, Darryl Brown does not meet the legal requirements to serve as Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection.  It is unfortunate that the Administration failed to identify this problem earlier, but the important task now is to move on,” said a press release just issued by Peter Didisheim, advocacy director for the National Resources Council of Maine.

Several months ago, Darryl Brown was easily confirmed as the Commissioner of the Department despite heavy opposition to his appointment by the controversial Tea Party supported Governor Paul LePage.  In late January testimony was taken on Brown’s testimony.  State Senator Justin Alfond (D) from the Hill testified against his nomination for this position.

“The DEP has an incredibly importan and challenging job to do.  The Department helps protect our clean air and clean water, conserve our natural resources and wildlife habitat, and protect the health of Maine people from hazardous waste and toxic pollutants.  These are critical functions to Maine’s economy, propsertiy and our quality of life,” the press release continued.

“We also hope that the appointment of Darryl Brown to serve as Director of the State Planning Office means that the Governor is reconsidering his proposal to eliminate the State Planning Office.  We believe that the State Planning Office serves a broad range of important functions, and we look forward to working with Mr. Brown to ensure that those programs receive continued support.”

For more background information, please see Post # 671, dated February 1 and prior to that Post # 694, dated January 26.