Hannah Pingree

Representative Hannah Pingree was sworn in as the 99th Speaker of the Maine House of Representatives on December 3, 2008. Elected unanimously, Speaker Pingree is responsible for presiding over all of the actions of the House.

As Speaker of the House, Pingree is committed to fostering an inclusive environment that will encourage bipartisan efforts to build Maine's economy by investing in renewable energy resources and Maine based businesses.

Pingree is a leader on issues relating to renewable energy, the environment and health care and has guided several new laws through the legislature on these issues.

In 2008, she successfully introduced and passed a new law that will eliminate dangerous toxic chemicals from household products that children are exposed to. In previous years, she sponsored new laws that banned other dangerous chemicals from Maine households, boosted rural broadband internet access, and ensured reliable records for electronic voting machines.

She also has a strong record of drafting new state laws to reduce energy costs and encourage clean energy. Pingree has sponsored bills that help island communities to develop wind energy projects, worked closely on negotiating the terms that incorporated Maine into the Northeast Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and provide incentives to Maine schools to improve energy efficiency.

As Majority Leader, Pingree was the political spokesperson for the House Democratic caucus, which held the Majority in the House of Representatives with 90 members from 2006- 2008 and was instrumental in building the Democratic Majority of 96 members in the current House.

Pingree is serving her fourth term in the Maine House of Representatives and her first as Speaker of the House. Rep. Pingree previously served as the House Majority Leader during the 123rd Legislature and was the House Chair of the Health and Human Services Committee during the 122nd Legislature. In her first term she was a member of the Legislature's budget-writing Appropriations Committee.

Prior to serving in the Maine Legislature, she was a fundraiser for the U.S. Senate campaign of Chellie Pingree, her mother. She also worked for two years in New York City as the political director and "Election 2000" producer for iVillage.com, the largest political internet site for women. In addition to serving in the Legislature, professionally, Hannah runs a capital campaign to build a new public school facility on North Haven.

Hannah is an honors graduate of North Haven Community School, Brown University and was a 1998-99 Fellow for Leadership in Public Affairs for the Coro Foundation in New York City. In the Legislature she represents 11 islands and coastal towns. She grew up on the island of North Haven.