Author: Mike Quatrano

In case you haven’t heard, Question 1 on the November ballot will ask Maine voters if they want to implement Universal Home Care (UHC). If the initiative passes, it would be the largest tax increase in Maine history and hit Maine’s middle class with a marriage penalty. It would hurt small business, slow the growth of the economy, shrink our population and be yet another financial disincentive to live in Maine. The problem with this question is that it is primarily funded by out of state special interests. Last week, the communications director for the Maine People’s Alliance (MPA), a proponent for this…

I have a hunch. This late summer or fall, after Labor Day but before Election Day, progressives in Maine will submit paperwork to the Secretary of State to circulate petitions for a 2019 ballot question. They will do this while we are all distracted by (and sick of) the final throes of political season leading up to this year’s election. Once the progressive powers that be get approval from the Secretary of State to circulate their petitions in time for Election Day, they will dispatch all of their “volunteers” to every polling place in the State of Maine to gather a…

During last year’s general election cycle, the people of Maine saw a record number of citizens’ initiatives up for a vote.  After the dust settled, many voters were left wondering what the consequences would be of sweeping legislation enacted through the ballot box. Thankfully, the legislature acted and fully repealed Question 2, the 3 percent surtax on incomes earned over $200,000, in the biennial budget deal. The legislature also altered the minimum wage initiative, Question 4, by reinstating the tip credit for workers in Maine’s food service industry. However, conservatives had to battle tooth and nail through a government shutdown…

Are you tired of being forced to have your car inspected every year? Are you skeptical that the only ones who benefit from Maine’s inspection program are car mechanics and government bureaucrats? Very soon, the Maine House will be voting on LD 623, a bill that would change mandatory vehicle inspections to every two years, instead of annually. Owning a car opens doors of opportunity that are often beyond the reach of those reliant on public transit, especially in rural areas of Maine where poverty is most acute. While concern for public safety should always be on legislators’ minds, reducing…

On February 17th, The Maine Heritage Policy Center testified in favor of LD 300 “An Act To Preserve Funding for the Maine Clean Election Act by Removing Gubernatorial Candidates from Eligibility” sponsored by Representative Paula Sutton. This bill would exclude candidates for governor from receiving taxpayer funds to run their campaigns. Proponents of publicly-financed gubernatorial races claim that the clean elections program limits the influence of special interest groups and constitutes a prudent use of taxpayer dollars. Both are false. The Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee will be voting on this bill this Friday, March 3rd. Please contact them through the…

Under Maine Clean Elections Act, outside money continues to pour into the system through indirect independent expenditures. This is unacceptable. Contact members on the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee TODAY and urge them to support LD 126. Although it is no secret that MHPC is not a supporter of the Maine Clean Elections Act (MCEA), or taxpayer funded political campaigns, we acknowledge that the Maine people spoke through the ballot initiative process to create this program. We believe passage of LD 126 bill will save the taxpayers of Maine a considerable amount of their hard earned money, especially after the…