Author: Steve Robinson

by Pem Schaeffer Mitt Romney has been taking a furious wire brushing for his years of leadership at venture firm Bain Capital, not only from the usual suspects on the Democrat left, but also from churlish challengers in the Republican primary competition.  As some have observed, the latter have sounded more like occupier movement class warriors than free market capitalists, if not egoists beyond even political norms. The critical reality is that venture statism is a far bigger threat to America’s future than venture capitalism could ever be. Venture statism, the specialty of Obama Capitol, is the surest threat this…

by Terrilyn Simpson It was hijinks and raucous theater — from the feigned insecurity of the security detail to Dale’s Great Wall of Boxes. The orchestration unfolded before the press — with McCormick in the lead role, as star, director and producer. It was the January board of commissioners meeting at the Maine State Housing Authority — and MSHA Director Dale McCormick had set the stage. To start with, she’d addressed the eighth item on the agenda to intimidate and control just as visitors got feet through the door. There had been complaints previously that visitors were not being allowed…

by David Crocker Where would we be without the mainstream media? You know, the folks who claim “multiple layers of checks and balances” and the right to determine what is or is not a “news organization”. One would expect that when the editors of a major newspaper opine, they do so based on fact because an editorial is, after all, the august pronouncement of the newspaper itself, bearing the imprimatur of authority. But if you assume that, you would be mistaken. Take the editors of the Lewiston Sun-Journal, for instance. In their editorial from last Sunday, “Founders Began the First…

Maine Housing Director Dale McCormick spent $15,000 in public funds on a theater group for prison inmates.

This week, Maine State Housing Authority Director Dale McCormick confirmed what many had suspected– that she was using her position as a government official to funnel money to preferred political organizations, that she spent public funds in an irresponsible way, and that she was willing to bend the truth to cover her actions. All of this was made clear in her shameful performance at the Housing Authority board meeting on Friday. McCormick attempted to brush aside in a number of different ways revelations about her agency’s spending. She labeled donations to political groups ‘outreach’. She called hundreds of trips to…

Maine Housing Director Dale McCormick gave donations to a progressive political group called Maine Initiatives, run by a cadre of Democrat operatives including Chellie and Hannah Pingree, along with Democrat State Senator Justin Alfond.

by Terrilyn Simpson Legislative protocol went out the window on one front in Augusta on Thursday but managed to firmly step back in through a side door as the debate over Maine State Housing Authority accountability rumbles on. First, the spirit of bi-partisanship surrounding the bill sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Jon Courtney intended to make the MSHA director accountable to the MSHA board of commissioners, dissipated when the two Democratic co-sponsors quit, without explanation and without the personal notification that customarily typifies legislative etiquette. On the formal list of co-sponsor signatures, handwritten scrawls simply appeared beside the names of…

*Update* According to Paul Violette’s attorney, the former MTA Director has pleaded guilty to a felony theft charge under a plea agreement with the AG’s office. _________________ Former Maine Turnpike Authority Director Paul Violette has been charged with felony theft according to the Attorney General’s office. The felony charge stems from Violette’s illegal use of Turnpike funds for travel, meals and other expenses. Violette was the long-time head of the MTA, having controlled the quasi-governmental agency for 23 years before his resignation last year. The Turnpike and it’s leader came under fire after an Office of Program and Fiscal Accountability…

by Terrilyn Simpson George and Ric were on the air. And so was the husband of someone who worked for the Section 8 housing division of a Maine community action program — known as a CAP Agency. It was Monday morning at the George Hale/Ric Tyler talk show on WVOM Radio in Bangor. And a man called in, in response to a discussion about the proposed legislative bill mandating accountability for the director of the Maine State Housing Authority. The caller said his wife, who works for a CAP agency, had received a telephone call the previous Friday night, after…

A story in today’s Portland Press Herald by Susan Cover quotes Maine Housing spokesperson Deborah Turcotte responding to yesterday’s story in The Maine Wire about troubling expenditures by the quasi-state agency. Housing authority spokeswoman Deborah Turcotte said the agency’s officials go to many conferences every year, often getting discounted or corporate rates at hotels. Some of the other items, such as massage services and the rental of a dance club in Augusta, are related to staff training and wellness days. The authority also hired a disc jockey for a Christmas party, paid partly with housing authority funds and partly by…

by Pem Schaeffer “Thou shalt not steal” is the eighth of the ten commandments God handed down to Moses. This would lead you to think the last place you’d discover stealing is among Church officials. Well, think again. Do you attend a Swedenborgian Church, an Episcopal Church, a United Church of Christ, or a United Methodist Church? How about an ELCA Lutheran Church, or a Quaker Church, or a Unitarian Universalist Church? Or you might attend a Presbyterian or Roman Catholic Church. If you do, then I have news for you. Your identity, in the political sense at least, has…

by Sam Adolphsen What do social justice groups, professional DJs, massage therapists and luxury hotels have to do with affordable housing? That question is one of many which remain unanswered as the Maine State Housing Authority continues to delay the release of key expenditure details more than six months after a Freedom of Access Act request — for vendor records — was filed by the Maine Heritage Policy Center. Even minus the details, the skeletal vendor list obtained by MHPC reveals a pattern of questionable expenditures that will likely increase pressure on the quasi-state agency to open its books to…

Chellie Pingree was Maine Senate Majority Leader when the Maine Clean Elections Act (MCEA) became law. Pingree has made a career out of this law – parlaying her role in its inception into a position as head of the advocacy group Common Cause, and ultimately using it as rhetorical cover for her own significant campaign finance abuses. Besides offering the Congresswoman an opportunity to engage in hypocrisy of the highest magnitude, Maine’s Clean Election Act has failed to offer the slightest positive impact. The original intent of the law was fairly simple – to reduce the impact of money on…

Maine’s had its fill of the clueless detachment and hypocrisy of newspaper editorial pages. That may be why this piece from The Daily Show seems like such a work of art. The Daily ShowGet More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

by Terrilyn Simpson The legislative bill aimed at holding the director of the Maine State Housing Authority accountable to the MSHA board, in keeping with other quasi-governmental agencies in the state, has been propelled into the bipartisan political arena with co-sponsorship support from two well respected Democratic legislators. Democrat support of the accountability bill comes on the heels of news of the imminent resignation of long-time McCormick deputy Adam Krea. Krea is currently Deputy Director at MaineHousing, and previously served under McCormick as senior staff accountant at the Maine Office of the Treasurer. The author of the Director Accountability bill…

DEVELOPING: According to minutes from the Maine State Housing Authority’s board of commissioners meetings,the agency gave $1,000 non-performance-based bonuses to all employees between August and September 2010. UPDATE: MSHA Director Dale McCormick on WVOM radio this morning confirms and discusses the raises. [audio:https://www.themainewire.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/dale3.mp3|titles=Dale McCormick on WVOM] At the suggestion of MSHA board member Donald Gean, bonuses were apparently given to all Maine Housing workers employed on December 31, 2009. Data from MaineOpenGov.org show 144 employees on staff in 2009, and 147 in 2010. This puts the approximate total of arbitrary bonuses paid by MaineHousing at between $144,000 and $147,000. From…

by Terrilyn Simpson The Maine State Housing Authority issued a report late Friday afternoon purported to be a straightforward, independent investigation of the low-income housing inspection problems attached to MSHA — authored by a MSHA auditor. The Norway Section 8 apartment debacle was acknowledged by MSHA and Avesta Housing, charged with inspecting the units, only after a series of investigative articles in the Norway, Maine based newspaper, the Advertiser Democrat. Pressure on MSHA and Avesta was further exacerbated when town officials — including the local fire chief — complained to the office of US Senator Susan Collins, about the deplorable…

by Pem Schaeffer If you find the title perplexing, be patient; I will explain. It’s often said that ‘luck is what happens when opportunity meets preparation.’ Likewise, one could say that reform in governance is what happens when fiscal calamity meets determined leadership. Globally and nationally, government fiscal crisis is endemic. In many, if not most cases, leadership is lacking, and conditions are approaching meltdown. Greece, Spain, Portugal, Illinois, Michigan, and California come immediately to mind. Cities and counties across the land face the same disasters. But there is cause for optimism. Here in Maine, the new administration and legislative…

Governor LePage’s proposed MaineCare cuts have the social services community in an uproar. And this makes sense – no one wants the least fortunate among us to be left out in the cold. As legislators dig in to find a solution to the DHHS budget shortfall, everyone is focused on how to solve the problem without eliminating critical services. Unfortunately, over-the-top rhetoric and unsubstantiated claims are blocking the road to real solutions. One of the most deceptive of these claims is that, if 60,000 Mainers are cut from MaineCare, they will drive costs up for everyone by over-utilizing emergency rooms.…

by Lance Dutson The hallmark of Portland Press Herald columnist Bill Nemitz, for years, has been what used to be referred to as ‘sob sister’ journalism. Primarily practiced by female writers in the early 20th century, ‘sob sisters’ were writers who tugged on the heartstrings of readers with over-the-top emotional appeals, often pertaining to illness or affliction, in order to make a point to further an advocacy angle. Nemitz found a cozy home at the PPH with this kind of writing. His pieces traditionally sought to shine light on the underprivileged, with a strong undercurrent of liberal politics running through…

Maine State Representative Ryan Harmon (R- Palermo) joins host MD Harmon to discuss the legislature.

The Maine State Housing Authority released their report on the Avesta/Norway Section 8 inspection debacle late Friday. The big question everyone has been asking is – when did MSHA and Avesta learn about the inspection problem? This excerpt from the report sheds some new light: “MaineHousing re-inspects the work of the Section 8 housing inspectors throughout Maine once per year as required by HUD. During July 2010, MaineHousing’s Quality Control Inspector failed 11 of the 25 (44 percent) randomly selected Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher units passed by the Avesta Section 8 Housing Inspector within the previous three months. On…

by Terrilyn Simpson Maine Senate President Kevin Raye (R-Perry) has kicked off the new year with a resolution to capture the 2nd District Congressional seat currently held by Mike Michaud. Raye announced his bid and filed the required paperwork on January 5. The 50-year-old Raye grew up in Eastport, one of eight sons of an electrician father who was a World War II veteran, and a schoolteacher mother. With his wife Karen, Raye still owns and operates Raye’s Mustard Mill in Eastport, touted as the nation’s last remaining traditional stone-ground mustard mill. The business has been run by members of…

Tuesday afternoon, it came to our attention that our state house reporter, Leif Parsell, had, prior to working with us, made a series of comments on websites that dealt with racial integration issues. Upon review of the comments, it became apparent that the perspective expressed was not in keeping with the mission of The Maine Wire or the values of The Maine Heritage Policy Center. Several hours after learning of these comments,I made the decision to immediately end our employment agreement with Mr. Parsell. We issued a statement later that evening, which I have copied below. This incident is a…

What do prison theater classes have to do with affordable housing? As the state scrambles to replace millions in reduced heating oil assistance funding, and as a shortage in available affordable housing units relegates an estimate 6,500 families to a waiting list, the management of scarce government funding has become a prime topic in Augusta. The zero-sum nature of state and federal financial support has caused many to question why the Maine State Housing Authority (MSHA) spent tens of thousands on programs that seem unrelated to their mission – including $15,000 on a program to promote theater classes in Maine…

by Terrilyn Simpson A bill to make the director of the Maine State Housing Authority accountable to the MSHA board of commissioners is being sponsored by Senator Jonathan Courtney, a Republican from York County who is also the Senate Majority Leader. The MSHA director is currently not accountable to the MSHA board, nor is the holder of that position routinely answerable to any other authority. And a 1987 state statute is somewhat vague about a removal process, indicating only that the Housing Authority director can be removed by the governor “for inefficiency, neglect of duty or misconduct in office….” The…

by J Dwight Special to The Maine Wire It’s been a difficult time lately for the global-warming-believers at the Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM). Over 69% of respondents to a Rasmussen poll taken last August say it is likely that scientists have falsified global warming research. Email dumps revealed that the data behind the famous global warming ‘hockey stick’ was, at best, skewed, and at worst, falsified. The Rasmussen poll shows the public has turned against global warming scientists. Will the ‘science’ of global warming (or ‘climate change’) be similarly distrusted? This doubt must be feared by the people…

This is one of a series of profiles of political activists, businesses, and civic organizations in Maine. Gerald Weinand has been involved in politics since he was sixteen, when he stuffed envelopes for the city council election of a friend’s father. Weinand moved to Maine in 1989, intending to stay only two years, but, “fell in love with the state,” and has made his home along the coast ever since. An architect by training, today Weinand operates an influential progressive blog, Dirigoblue.com, from his home in Rockland, and provides commentary on both national and Maine politics. Weinand says that he…

by Scott Moody, Chief Economist, The Maine Heritage Policy Center Maine’s tax system is so complicated and onerous, it can be almost impossible to know where to begin reforming it. The bottom line, however, is that there are simply too many types of taxes in Maine. First and foremost, Maine needs to start pruning the tax tree. The one tax that is the most damaging to Maine’s overall economy is the retail sales tax. There are several reasons why the sales tax is especially troublesome: First, the general assumption that broadening the sales tax base is a good idea is…

State Representative Rich Cebra (R-Naples) joins host MD Harmon to discuss the coming legislative session.

In July, the Bangor Daily News ran an editorial titled “Where was Maine Turnpike Authority oversight?”. The editors of the BDN were outraged by the MTA board’s lack of probity when it came to the financial practices of the now-disgraced director, Paul Violette. The BDN said the director’s lack of supervision, allowing a series of corrupt expenditures, meant the MTA board was not ‘fulfilling its duty to the public’. The entire MTA saga showed that board oversight of quasi-state agencies needed to be taken to a new level. So why does the BDN, and others in the traditional press, now…

In 2010, traffic fatalities among drivers between the ages of 16 and 24 averaged nearly one a week in Maine. Starting in early 2012, Maine Secretary of State Charles Summers hopes to curtail this figure by hosting a series of forums on youth driving in Maine. Summers’ “Conversations with the Communities” will run from January 5th to January 19th throughout the state, and are meant to engage citizens in discussions about updating Maine’s drivers education programs. Maine statute requires that any proposed changes to laws governing standards for drivers pass through a Technical Review Panel (TRP), and Summers recently convened…

By Leif Parsell This is the first in a series of profiles of Maine businesses, civic organizations, and grassroots political activists. Gordon Colby, a lifetime Mainer who works as a manager for Allen’s Blueberries at a regional distribution center in Union, has been involved in politics for less than two years. On a Christmas vacation in Idaho with his family in 2009, he recalls sitting on the porch with his son-in-law talking politics and, “about the situation that the county is in (…) and I remember just saying to (him) that I couldn’t just talk about this anymore and I…

WCSH political reporter Don Carrigan has an interesting interview with the infamous S. Donald Sussman, husband and benefactor of Maine Congresswoman Chellie Pingree. Sussman makes some dubious claims about Koch brothers donations, and takes a shot at GOP donor Ed Bosarge. No mention of Virgin Islands tax shelters though, or the Securities and Exchange Commission’s investigation of his financial activities. Click below to watch: Pingree has never revealed the details of Sussman’s financial activities, even though she claimed a family exemption when answering House Ethics charges about her use of Sussman’s $25 million private jet last fall. Sussman’s finances will…

Analysis by Amanda Clark, The Maine Heritage Policy Center Between school consolidation and decreased funding, Maine’s educational system has been in a state of flux for the past few years. The passage in June of LD 1553, An Act To Create a Public Charter School Program in Maine, guarantees that things will remain interesting. Within the next 10 years, LD 1553 allows for the formation of up to ten charter schools approved by the State Charter School Commission and the establishment of an unlimited number of charter schools approved by local school boards. With the formation of charter schools comes…

State Representative Heather Sirocki (R-Scarborough) joins host MD Harmon for a discussion of the upcoming legislative session.

By Leif Parsell In an opinion piece published on the progressive blog “dirigoblue.com,” State Representative Timothy Driscol (D-Westbrook), compared Governor LePage’s proposed DHHS budget to government-run euthanasia. His comments have provoked contrasting responses from Democrat and Republican leadership in Augusta. “Rep. Tim Driscoll was not working off talking points developed by the House Democratic Office, but he was expressing what tens of thousands of Mainers are feeling in response to the governor’s harmful proposals,” said Jodi Quintero, the communications director for the Maine House Democrats.  “As an emergency room nurse, Rep. Driscoll has a frontline view of the lifesaving impact…

The Maine Wire has obtained a copy of a letter sent today by  U.S. Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine)  to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, asking for an investigation into the recently-reported failures of a Section 8 inspection program at an affordable housing complex in Norway. MSHA contracted Portland-based Avesta Housing for more than $600,000 to administer the program in four counties. Avesta is run by former MSHA deputy director Dana Totman. From the letter: “I am writing to request your assistance in investigating the property inspection and fire code enforcement practices for federally subsidized properties in Oxford…

by Leif Parsell Maine State Housing Authority staffers continue to offer few answers to questions surrounding the handling of the Norway Apartment debacle that has dogged the agency in recent months. Those questions arose at the recent December MSHA board meeting and included an observation by board chair Peter Anastos that the deplorable conditions and the terrorizing of tenants in the subsidized housing units had come to light only because of the hardhitting coverage of a local newspaper. What also seems clear from the discussion is that even then, it was the actions of local officials — and not MSHA…

by Scott Moody, Chief Economist, The Maine Heritage Policy Center Today, the U.S. Census Bureau released their first post-census population estimates by state. The goods news is that Maine avoided a third consecutive year of population decline, but barely. The bad news is that Maine’s population grew by only 809 people, which was the 47th slowest in the country. More ominously, the net natural increase (births minus deaths) accounted for only 180 people with 12,868 births versus 12,688 deaths. Maine keeps moving closer to the day when net natural increase moves into negative territory–a very bad sign for long-term…

By Leif Parsell Facing structural shortfalls in the budget of the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Governor Paul LePage is seeking to cut $4 million from state funding to Head Start, a program that provides early childhood education and parental advice.  While primarily a Federal program, Maine is one of only sixteen states that provides supplementary funds to Head Start. Facing a two-year, $220 million shortfall in the DHHS budget, LePage has decided that the department must prioritize. With nearly 90% of Head Start funding ensured, and several studies challenging the effectiveness of the program, the necessity of…

Not surprisingly, the Maine press this week rushed to deliver the news of a supposed 4,400 jobs that would be lost if Governor LePage’s DHHS budget cuts are approved. The jobs number comes from a cornerstone member of the left-wing political activism group Maine Can Do Better, run by Democrat operatives David Farmer and Ben Dudley. That the press would accept these numbers from a partisan organization without independent verification is problematic enough, but even worse is their inability to apply some basic common sense to the report. Here’s the key question: if cutting $120 million from the DHHS budget…

State Rep. Mark Eves (D- North Berwick) and MHPC CEO Lance Dutson appeared this week on MPBN’s MaineWatch to discuss the DHHS supplemental budget. Watch MaineCare Hearings on PBS. See more from Maine Watch with Jennifer Rooks.

by Frank Heller Dam removal advocates always make the assumption that sea run fish will once again return to the water way, replacing the aquatic habitat lost when the dam pond is lost. Unfortunately, they don’t document their assumption to the satisfaction of skeptics who have seen dams removed and little if any sea-run fish return. Whether fishing groups in Connecticut, marine biologists at Orono, or a recently closed fishing tackle shop on the shores of the Kennebec in Bath, there are serious doubts being expressed. Sure some may come back, but not enough to justify taking down the dam.…

By Leif Parsell This week Maine legislative leaders Representatives Andre Cushing (R-Hampden) and Emily Cain (D-Orono) both declared their candidacy for Maine state senate seats. Cushing, the current House majority whip, will run in the Republican primary for Senate district 33, which includes the towns in Penobscot County of Hampden, Newburgh, Dixmont, Carmel, Etna, Plymouth, Glenburn, Kenduskeag, Levant, Stetson, Newport, Corinth, Exeter, Corinna, Charleston, Garland, and Dexter.  He has served in Augusta since 2009 and will be opposed by former representative Brian Duprey of Hampden in the primary.  Debra Plowman, R-Hampden, who defeated Democrat Sherman Leighton in 2010 69% to…

By Leif Parsell Rallies in Augusta this week organized by an alliance of Progressive organizations and so-called Patient Advocacy Groups (PAGS) to push back against the Governor’s supplemental Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) budget have raised the specter of a serious conflict of interest.  Some in Maine have begun to raise the question: do organizations who receive state money, some of whom are even instrumentalities of the state, have a conflict of interest in lobbying against funding cuts? A consortium of non-profit liberal advocacy groups, under the banner of the organization Maine Can Do Better (MCDB), has mobilized…

Rallied by a variety of Patient Advocacy Groups, hundreds of protestors converged on the capital building in Augusta on Wednesday, December 14th to express their dissatisfaction with the Governor’s proposed Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) supplemental budget.  The budget, which was proposed last week, aims to cut $220 million dollars over two years from state health insurance and care spending, in order to address long-standing structural deficits in the department. Speaking before the Appropriations and Financial Services committee (AFS) on December 13th, DHHS Commissioner Mary Mayhew and her staff explained in detail the nature of the shortfalls, and the…

by Leif Parsell To begin a contentious week of hearings on the shortfall and proposed fixes in the budget of the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Office of Fiscal and Program Review (OFPR) analyst Christopher Nolan and DHHS Commissioner Mary Mayhew and her staff gave more than six hours of testimony on Tuesday, December 13th concerning the departments’ structural deficits.  Facing tough questions regarding the shortfall from the representatives of the Appropriations and Financial Services Committee, Mayhew defended the in-depth analysis that her staff, in conjunction with Deloitte Consulting and OFPR, has been doing for the past few months.…

Maine House Assistant Majority Leader Andre Cushing (R-Hampden) announced yesterday that he will seek election to the state senate for District 33, which will be vacated next year by Senate Assistant Majority Leader Debra Plowman (R-Hampden), who is term-limited out. Cushing sent the following release yesterday: ANDRE CUSHING ANNOUNCES HIS CANDIDACY FOR STATE SENATE Assistant Majority Leader to run for open District 33 State Senate seat HAMPDEN- Representative Andre Cushing announces his candidacy for the Republican nomination to the Maine State Senate in District 33, to represent the 16 Penobscot County towns of; Carmel, Charleston, Corinth, Corrina, Dexter, Dixmont, Etna,…

State Representative Kathy Chase (R- Wells) joins host MD Harmon to discuss her views on the state legislature’s accomplishments

State Representative and U.S. Senate candidate Jon Hinck (D- Portland) joins host MD Harmon to discuss his take on the current legislature, and his motivation for public service.

Maine State Housing Authority Director Dale McCormick recently appeared in this promotional video, funded by three natural gas corporations from Pennsylvania,and claimed that a decrease in federal fuel and weatherization subsidies will cause Maine people to die.

by Leif Parsell The election for Maine’s 138th House District may begin earlier than expected, as speculation swirls around the fate of current Representative David Burns (R-Alfred), found guilty by the Ethics Commission last week of campaign finance violations. Burns also finds himself as Exhibit A in the debate over Maine’s publicly-funded campaign system. Burns, serving his first term as a state representative, faces re-election in November 2012, but the ethics violations and a possible criminal investigation have led to speculation that he may be forced to resign. Though further publicity over the matter is likely the last thing Republicans…

The Second Session of Maine’s 125th Legislature convenes in January, and we’ve got a rundown of the bills on tap for consideration. Bills Carried Over from First Session: Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry LD: 362 – Resolve, Directing the Department of Conservation To Acquire    an Easement To Provide Access to the Dead River.  McCabe LD: 1109 – Resolve, To Target Job Creation in the Agricultural Sector To  Improve the Stability and Economic Strength of Rural Maine. McCabe LD: 1120 – An Act To Move the Land for Maine’s Future Program to the  Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Resources. Moulton Appropriations…

Dale McCormick resorted to quoting Bob Dylan.

Though it may not have provided the answer sought, it did provide a curious and somewhat entertaining moment in one of McCormickʼs first official interactions with new state officials attempting to untangle the bureaucratic quagmire at the Maine State Housing Authority, of which McCormick is director.

And it may have set the tone for interactions between McCormick and MSHA board members newly appointed by newly elected Governor Paul LePage.

The Maine Heritage Policy Center, the parent organization of this website, released the following information regarding Maine State Housing Authority payroll trends: Data shows 30% increase in total payroll cost in just five years Today, MaineOpenGov.org has been updated and expanded to show five years of salary and benefits data for employees of the Maine State Housing Authority (MSHA). The data from Maine Housing was provided in response to a Freedom of Access Act request made by The Maine Heritage Policy Center (MHPC). The data shows that in the past five calendar years (2005 – 2010) total payroll and benefits…