I would like to express my support of L.D. 1004, An Act to Reduce Costs and Emissions by Increasing Telecommuting at State Agencies.

For 10 years my partner and I both worked in the private sector and had on average a two-hour daily roundtrip commute each, either from Auburn south to Portland or Auburn north to Augusta. If you do the math, that’s 80 hours per month spent in our cars. It cost our family a lot of money and also took a heavy toll on our overall quality of life. I am not complaining because it was ultimately our choice and I can say that now that it’s over. I’m sure others out there can relate.

Fast forward to today, I now work for the state, and in our children’s new school district of School Administrative District 75, all of the elementary schools have a unique school schedule where the day starts promptly at later than usual each Wednesday. As you can imagine this puts a heavy burden on working families.

This schedule begs for flexibility in the workforce (and life in general). I have heard that studies show it greatly improves a child’s ability to learn, so perhaps more towns and cities across Maine will adopt this schedule and L.D. 1004 may allow Maine to ease the transition.

I believe telecommuting as an option in the workforce would be beneficial for Maine families. It will not work for everyone, but L.D. 1004 would provide a foundation to support and foster this type of environment for when and where it can work.

I believe Maine could shine as a place that fosters a productive workforce while at the same time promoting a great quality of life for all.

Jill Instasi

Bowdoinham