CARIBOU, MAINE — The Caribou Secession Committee is making another attempt at the Maine Legislature with help from Senator Troy Jackson who introduced a bill last week to separate the rural portion of Caribou into a new town called Lyndon. To do this, their bill needs approval from the lawmakers, at which point Caribou would hold a local referendum.
The committee stayed the course when the legislature rejected their bill last year, and members of the committee have said they will continue until the people of Caribou are able to vote on the matter.
Senator Troy Jackson introduced the bill, LD 830 “An Act To Authorize Portions of the City of Caribou to Secede and Form the Town of Lyndon,” to the legislature on March 7, and a public hearing will occur on March 27 at 1:00 p.m. in Room 214 of the Cross Building in Augusta.
The state has a full version of the bill available online, and the text includes extensive details of the territory, and the steps that will take place after referendum. If the matter goes to a local vote, Sec. A-3. of the bill states that the town of Lyndon will officially separate from Caribou on July 1, 2018.
If Lyndon incorporates as a town, it will have a town form of government in which all residents have a say in the actions of their municipal government. The Secession Committee, which includes Chairman Paul Camping, Doug Morrell, Maynard St. Peter, Freeman Cote, and Milo Haney, have expressed frustration with Caribou’s city council form of government and said they believe Lyndon would create a more equitable environment for its citizens.
Find a full version of LD 830 here.
