The effort to expand Maine’s estate tax, more aptly known as the “death tax,” was dealt a blow this week,…
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Both the Maine House and Senate voted Friday, June 14 in favor of approving a new biennial budget that Governor…
On Tuesday, June 11, the Maine House of Representatives voted 73-70 in favor of passing a heavily-amended version of LD…
Two days after the Maine Senate voted 24-11 in favor of passing LD 255, “Resolution, Proposing an Amendment to the…
Governor Janet Mills last week signed into law LD 946 “An Act To Protect the Privacy of Online Customer Information”.…
To advocates of a limited public sector, there’s a lot to dislike about the scope of Maine state government. Billions…
In the early ‘90s, times were very different than they are today. Maine’s economy was in a tailspin, state revenues…
The Maine House of Representatives on Wednesday considered LD 1282, “An Act to Establish a Green New Deal for Maine”,…
On May 14th, the Maine Senate took the first step to allocate Maine’s four Electoral College votes to the presidential candidate…
Just last week, an amazing thing happened in the Maine House. Twenty-one Democrats joined all Republicans to defeat an attempt…
The Maine House voted to reject a bill Thursday that would bind the state’s Electoral College votes to the winner…
There is a legislative agenda to “make Maine green again” that could make Maine’s manufacturing sector disappear. Whether it is…
Governor Janet Mills yesterday signed LD 1209, “An Act To Require Legislative Hearings on Citizen-initiated Legislation” into Maine law. The…
Maine is one of twenty-two states that currently require occupational licensing for sign language interpreters. Though this measure may seem…
The Maine House on Tuesday voted to approve a bill that would simplify the wording of ballot questions to make…
This week, lawmakers on Maine’s Energy, Utilities and Technology Committee will hold a public hearing on LD 1742, a bill…
Since Governor Janet Mills released her biennial budget proposal in February, the fiscal landscape in Maine has changed significantly. The…
The First Session of the 129th Maine Legislature has been filled with proposals that would harm the financial well-being of…
Lawmakers are considering a flurry of ballot initiative reforms this session, from requiring signatures to be collected in both congressional…
Last week, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized a rule to no longer allow states to make…
It’s no secret that our state is inhospitable – to put it mildly – to business. Our citizens face one…
I have always contended that it was a mistake to refer to our form of government as a democracy. The…
Without a doubt, the digital age has brought innumerable advantages to modern life. More than ever before, individuals have access…
Three employees of Kent State University on Monday, April 29 filed suit against the University’s Board of Trustees and the…
Expanding access to affordable child care is of pressing concern to many Maine families. As we’ve noted in the past,…
To become a hairdresser in the State of Maine, you must be at least 17 years old, complete a 1,500-hour…
Lawmakers on Maine’s Education and Cultural Affairs Committee on Monday held a public hearing on LD 665, sponsored by Rep.…
Lawmakers on Maine’s Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee today will consider a bill that would amend the Maine Constitution to…
Are you a public employee? Public sector labor unions in Maine want access to your personal information, regardless of whether…
Background The Legislature has developed a new automated tool for submitting electronic testimony. Citizens may still send written testimony via…
Maine is one of a small handful of states that still impose so-called “blue laws,” or prohibitions on certain activities…
It’s true – citizens have been so active this session that the Maine Legislature is revising its process for submitting…
There has been plenty of legislation proposed this session that would increase taxes on Maine citizens, including new taxes on…
Lawmakers on Maine’s Taxation Committee on Thursday, April 11 held public hearings on two bills that would increase so-called sin…
Occupational licensing exists to protect public health and safety in professions that pose measurable risk to consumers. However, as we’ve…
This week, the Maine Legislature’s Committee on Energy, Utilities and Technology held a public hearing on LD 1364, a bill…
This morning, lawmakers on the Labor and Housing Committee held a public hearing on LD 1345, a bill that would…
Lawmakers on Maine’s Labor and Housing Committee today will hold a public hearing on LD 1345, a bill that would…
In 1994, Maine rolled out the United States Emissions Test, a program that failed so significantly that the New York…
Roads across Maine are in rough shape this time of year, and a lot of attention has been paid to…
Medicaid expansion enrollment under Governor Janet Mills is taking off – almost 16,800 individuals have enrolled to receive Medicaid benefits…
Lawmakers in Augusta have proposed a spate of bills this session in an attempt to mitigate the negative effects of…
A few weeks ago, my radio address focused on the unsustainability of the biennial budget proposed by Governor Mills. Since…
Lawmakers on the Health and Human Services Committee yesterday held a public hearing on a bill, sponsored by Rep. Beth…
Governor Mills has proposed an $8.04 billion dollar General Fund budget. That is an 11 percent increase over the current…
Lawmakers on the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee on Wednesday considered a bill that would allow political parties in Maine…
Health care itself is complicated and so is our health care system, yet it remains the envy of the world. People…
The Maine Heritage Policy Center (MHPC) on Monday released a new analysis of Gov. Janet Mills’ biennial budget proposal during…
As a small business owner, I know firsthand that what is good for the goose is good for the gander.…
Politics may be rough and tumble, but that is no excuse for outright lawlessness in the pursuit of power. In…
Lawmakers frequently pursue legislation under the guise of improving Maine’s economy and attracting people to our state, but rarely is…
The estate tax, often referred to as the “death tax,” is assessed by the government when property exchanges ownership after…
Any Mainer interested in amplifying the state’s role in electing a president, and empowering disenfranchised voters, should get behind the…
Our founders established a system of checks and balances designed to protect everyone, especially minorities, from the tyranny of the…
In 2013, former Maine Gov. Paul LePage established the Maine Open Checkbook website to give Mainers a more transparent view…
Have you ever wondered where the poverty figures you read in the paper or see on the news come from?…
Lawmakers on the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee Monday held a public hearing on LDs 255 and 374, two bills…
There is no doubt that our Founding Fathers feared tyranny of the majority, which is why they took intentional steps…
Lawmakers on the Energy, Utilities and Technology committee on Thursday, Feb. 28 will hold a public hearing on LD 434,…
Lawmakers on the Transportation Committee today will hold a public hearing on LD 270, sponsored by Sen. David Miramant, a…
Lawmakers on the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee will hold a public hearing today on LD 294, sponsored by Rep.…
Occupational licensing exists as a mechanism for government to promote public health and safety by requiring workers to meet specific…
Liberals in Augusta are likely elated with the latest communication from Maine’s Department of Health and Human Services. The department’s…
Maine’s Joint Standing Committee on State and Local Government today is holding a public hearing on LD 209, a bill…
This week, lawmakers on the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee will hold a public hearing on LD 252, sponsored by…
When I first started serving in Augusta, in 2005, there was a long standing joke. Why are there no stone…
Maine Gov. Janet Mills is trying to pass off her budget proposal, released last Friday, as a reasonable approach to…
Chief Robert MacKenzie runs a police department in Kennebunk, Maine, a town of just over 11,000 citizens. It is a…
Governor Mills is preparing to unveil her budget proposal for the next biennium and we’re about to learn if she…
Today’s world is in many ways at a crossroads, especially as technology and innovation continually reshape the economy, specifically models…
Citizens Initiatives should be reserved for Maine citizens.
Approximately 96 hours after this publication questioned the merits of a bill to require all Maine drivers to equip their…
It’s hard not to draw parallels between what’s going on in Augusta and what we’re seeing in other areas of…
As previously highlighted in this publication, there are a number of strange, ridiculous and funny-sounding bills being proposed in the…
They say elections have consequences, and in the case of the minimum wage law that passed by referendum in 2016,…
It was only a matter of time, right? In a piece that read more like political advocacy than real journalism,…
The tiny house movement is not a panacea for all our housing woes. But these homes do appeal to many millennials looking for financial stability and a simplified life. Arbitrary rules should not stand in their way.
The 2018 Code of Maine Rules is home to 113,862 restrictions and 8.1 million words. It would take an individual about 449 hours – or more than 11 weeks – to read the entire CMR, assuming the reader spends 40 hours per week reading at a rate of 300 words per minute.
Despite widespread opposition throughout the state among all levels of restaurant staff, big labor continues its attempt to strip Maine service workers of their ability to earn a living by eliminating the tip credit.
Vehicles are far safer and more reliable than they were nearly a century ago when Maine’s vehicle inspection program was first implemented.
Much has been made — for good reason — of the federal government’s fiscal imbalance. High and rising debt (fast…
In an article published Thursday on the Maine Beacon – the online opinion service of the Maine People’s Alliance –…
At the start every new legislature, Maine’s Office of the Revisor of Statutes publishes a list of preliminary working titles…
During the biennial budget battle in 2017 that led to Maine’s first government shutdown since 1991, lawmakers agreed to spend…
It is a “new day” in Augusta according to Janet Mills, who became the first woman to serve as the…
As we approach the winter holidays, we often look back and assess what we have accomplished and set goals for…
With Janet Mills poised to take control of the Blaine House in just a few weeks and strong Democratic majorities…
Caracas is burning. The socialist policies of Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro have taken a once wealthy nation and reduced…
It was with great sadness that Ann and I learned about the passing of George H.W. Bush last week. He…
If you’ve followed Maine politics in the last two years, you know that contention surrounding the ballot initiative process has…
Over the next three years, the State is projected to collect more than $362 million than budgeted. Maine can–and should–return…
Last week I sent Governor-elect Janet Mills my administration’s recommended budget proposal. I called her attention to key measures I…
When struggling to make ends meet, conventional wisdom tells us we have few options: limit unnecessary expenditures, find ways to…
Jared Golden did not receive more than 50 percent of the vote after the ranked choice vote tabulation. To say…
While Maine voters were out rejecting a plan for “Universal Home Care” on Election Day last week, the left-wing activist…
I recently officiated my younger brother’s wedding. It was a Southern Maine outdoor venue, and everything went perfectly. The ceremony solemnized…
This year, Veterans Day marks the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I, which ended on the “eleventh…
This piece was first published in the Portland Press Herald. I am an associate professor at the University of Maine…
Maybe you’ve seen The Full Monty, or at least heard of it. It’s a bit dated in this age of…
After a yearlong campaign of misinformation waged by the supporters of Question 1, Maine voters on Tuesday rejected Maine’s most…