Author: Joel Griffith

Maine voters – by a margin of less than 1 percent – approved a 3 percent income tax “surcharge” on incomes greater than $200,000 for the purported purpose of funding public education. The Maine Office of Fiscal and Program Review estimated the measure would raise $142 million in the first year. Voters also approved (with an 11 point margin) an increase in the minimum wage to $12 per hour from $7.50 by 2020, adjusted for inflation each year following.  For tipped workers, the minimum wage jumps from $3.25 per hour to $5 this year—and by $1 per year until equal…