Maine Governor Mills To Tap Heather Sanborn of Portland as Next Public Advocate

On December 5, 2024, Governor Janet Mills announced her intent to nominate former state senator and representative Heather Sanborn to serve as the next Public Advocate of the State of Maine.

Sanborn, of Portland, is the co-founder and director of Business Operations at Rising Tide Brewing in Portland, which brewery is slated to be acquired by Oxbow Brewing of Newcastle, Maine. Sanborn served in the Maine House of Representatives and State Senate between 2016 and 2022, including a term of service on the Maine Legislature’s Joint Standing Committee on Energy, Utilities, and Technology. Sanborn grew up in Portland, is a graduate of Middlebury College, and received her J.D. from the University of Maine School of Law. During her legal career, Sanborn practiced at Ropes & Gray in Boston and Brann & Isaacson in Lewiston, Maine.

If confirmed, Sanborn will be responsible for representing the interests of Maine utility customers before the Maine Public Utilities Commission, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and the Federal Communications Commission.

“My experience as a small business owner and a legislator [has] made me acutely aware of the burden of high energy prices on Mainers,” Sanborn said in a statement issued by the Mills Administration. “I am excited about the opportunity to return to Augusta and work on behalf of the people of Maine.”

The Legislature’s Energy, Utilities, and Technology Committee and the State Senate will consider Sanborn’s nomination, most likely in January of 2025. If confirmed, Sanborn will replace former Verrill attorney Bill Harwood as Public Advocate when he retires in January. A confirmation hearing has not been scheduled.