All posts tagged "Opinion"
-
Medicare for All requires dismantling your private insurance
Health care itself is complicated and so is our health care system, yet...
-
Governor Mills’ budget sets up Maine for fiscal ruin
The Maine Heritage Policy Center (MHPC) on Monday released a new analysis of...
-
Numerous bills put in jeopardy the health of our small business economy
As a small business owner, I know firsthand that what is good for...
-
Efforts to broaden the ‘death tax’ in Maine will backfire
The estate tax, often referred to as the “death tax,” is assessed by...
-
Maine Open Checkbook should be more transparent
In 2013, former Maine Gov. Paul LePage established the Maine Open Checkbook website...
-
All Mainers should have a say in what issues make it on the statewide ballot
Lawmakers on the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee Monday held a public hearing...
-
Vehicle inspections do not make our roads safer
Lawmakers on the Transportation Committee today will hold a public hearing on LD...
-
How lawmakers can add much-needed transparency to the ballot initiative process
Lawmakers on the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee will hold a public hearing...
-
It shouldn’t be so hard to earn a living in Maine
Occupational licensing exists as a mechanism for government to promote public health and...
-
Medicaid expansion will cost our state dearly
Liberals in Augusta are likely elated with the latest communication from Maine’s Department...
-
Home sharing should never be a crime in Maine
Maine’s Joint Standing Committee on State and Local Government today is holding a...
-
Maine should end tax increases at the ballot box
This week, lawmakers on the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee will hold a...
-
Gov. Mills’ budget grows Maine government to unsustainable levels
Maine Gov. Janet Mills is trying to pass off her budget proposal, released...
-
Don’t close the book on virtual charter schools
State Representative Michael Brennan of Portland recently introduced a pair of bills concerning...
-
Ballot initiatives should reflect the ambitions of Mainers in both congressional districts
Citizens Initiatives should be reserved for Maine citizens.
-
Mandatory snow tire bill has been withdrawn
Approximately 96 hours after this publication questioned the merits of a bill to...
-
Legislators can take steps to prevent Maine’s coming regulatory storm
This piece first appeared in the Portland Press Herald. During her recent inaugural...
-
Police checkpoints for snow tires?
As previously highlighted in this publication, there are a number of strange, ridiculous...
-
Minimum wage law hurting small business and Maine’s most vulnerable
They say elections have consequences, and in the case of the minimum wage...
-
It didn’t take long for tax increases to be proposed in Augusta
It was only a matter of time, right? In a piece that read...
-
New analysis shows there are 113,862 regulatory restrictions on the books in Maine
The 2018 Code of Maine Rules is home to 113,862 restrictions and 8.1...
-
Maine taxpayers cannot afford the costs of universal health care
Among the many harebrained schemes that will be considered in the Maine Legislature...
-
Medicaid expansion is here. Now what?
For the second time in 17 years, Maine has expanded Medicaid. Governor Mills...
-
Is the three percent surtax back from the dead?
During the biennial budget battle in 2017 that led to Maine’s first government...
-
The costs of universal pre-K are not worth the benefits
It is no secret that the Mills administration and legislative Democrats are planning...
-
Lawsuit seeks to undo exclusion of religious schools from Maine’s school choice program
Maine’s town tuitioning program, first adopted in 1873, is the second oldest school choice...
-
Medicaid expansion must be funded responsibly
When I took office, MaineCare was running biennial budget deficits of more than...
-
‘The Will of the People’ and the home care hypocrisy
If you’ve followed Maine politics in the last two years, you know that...
-
Our revenue surplus should be returned to the people through tax cuts
Over the next three years, the State is projected to collect more than...
-
-
Education in Maine is worse than you think
It’s no secret that Maine’s public K-12 education system needs work. Bloated bureaucracies...
-
Jared Golden Did Not Win 50 Percent of the Vote
Jared Golden did not receive more than 50 percent of the vote after...
-
Investigating the left’s latest scam
While Maine voters were out rejecting a plan for “Universal Home Care” on...
-
Maine law forces me to accept union misrepresentation
This piece was first published in the Portland Press Herald. I am an...
-
Maine voters reject Question 1
After a yearlong campaign of misinformation waged by the supporters of Question 1,...
-
Whoever wins, Maine’s next governor needs to address these challenges
After the sounds of boisterous campaign rallies fade and the realities of the...
-
Question 1 a scheme to achieve fully socialized medicine
More and more we are seeing direct democracy take hold in our elected...
-
Question 1 is a shell game
Question 1 plays on voters’ emotions to pass policies that will hurt the...
-
Progressives try to debunk tax flight by ignoring the data
The Maine Center for Economic Policy (MECEP) recently released an analysis of interstate...
-
Reductions in child poverty not a result of minimum wage increases
Last month, the Maine Center for Economic Policy (MECEP) published a study on the...
-
Question 1 on November’s ballot is bad policy
There are so many bad policies rolled into Question 1 on November’s ballot...
-
The numbers tell the real story on education funding
It’s the political season and a lot of misinformation is flying around. I...
-
The abandonment of reason
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” It’s said...
-
MPA’s Question 1 talking points now refuted by one of their own
The Maine People’s Alliance (MPA) is pushing a ballot initiative – Question 1...
-
Ask your doctor if Referendax is right for you
Matt Gagnon did a superb job of “fisking” Edgar Allen Beem‘s recent Forecaster...
-
One last veto: Gov. LePage blocks bill to fund ranked-choice voting for November elections
Dear Honorable Members of the 128th Legislature: Under the authority vested in me...
-
Question 1’s new surtax would be detrimental to Maine’s economy
This commentary was originally published in the Bangor Daily News. The state economist recently...
-
Open markets for internet providers can bridge the digital divide
Many would agree that consistent access to the internet is an important part...
-
Inefficient Maine Immunization Program creates barriers to vaccines for children
The Maine Immunization Program (MIP) is publicly funded and provides necessary vaccines to...
-
The Fisking of Edgar Allen Beem
Oh, Edgar. There’s something almost comical about reading a piece of writing that...
-
The Disproportionality of Bloodlust
I remember instances in high school or junior high when something bad happened...
-
Let’s keep our economy on the right path by attracting more workers
The Maine Department of Labor recently released its projections for job growth for...
-
We are a teenage nation
The more I try to parent teenagers, the more I recognize similar patterns...
-
Question 1 would devastate Maine’s economy
1,700 fewer Maine residents. 1,800 fewer workers in our labor force. 3,800 fewer...
-
Portland City Council chasing opportunity into oblivion
Recently, the Housing Committee of Portland’s City Council met to discuss the possibility...
-
The belligerent ignorance of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Oh, Alexandria. Ever since she won a stunning upset victory over her democrat...
-
Question 1 is bought and paid for by outside interests
In case you haven’t heard, Question 1 on the November ballot will ask...
-
Why are ‘experts’ so determined to mislead the public on Universal Home Care taxes?
When Maine Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap was accepting public comment on the...
-
FCC chairman Ajit Pai coming to Maine
On Friday, Sept. 14, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman Ajit Pai will make...
-
The ‘universal home care’ referendum will be disastrous for Maine’s economy
Ballot Question 1 is another benign-sounding, feel-good referendum. In reality, it’s one more...
-
Maine’s ballot initiative process serves outside interests, not Maine people.
Today the Maine Heritage Policy Center released its newest report, “The Will of...
-
What’s next for progressives after Universal Home Care?
I have a hunch. This late summer or fall, after Labor Day but...
-
MPA continues to mislead the public on Universal Home Care
The latest in a long list of misrepresentations from the Maine People’s Alliance...
-
Licensing reform can help attract talent to Maine
Policymakers are always asking: ‘What can we do to attract young, talented people...
-
DPFR serves as the Legislature’s collective slush fund
Occupational licensing is supposed to protect the public from unqualified professionals whose goods...
-
LePage and House Republicans spare Mainers big tax hike
Earlier this week, Maine House Republicans sustained Governor LePage’s veto of a bill to...
-
Supporters of Universal Home Care initiative wage war of misinformation
Since the upcoming Universal Home Care (UHC) initiative sponsored by the Maine People’s...
-
Why do lawmakers choose licensing?
Despite economists on both sides of the aisle agreeing that occupational licensing laws...
-
Medicaid expansion and paying home-care workers must be done in a fiscally responsible manner
Medicaid expansion is the law, and I am committed to implement it. But...
-
The earned income tax credit is Maine’s best anti-poverty program; let’s expand it
The biggest flaw in most social assistance programs — including TANF, SNAP, Medicaid,...
-
Medicaid expansion activists will hurt people who need help just to prove a point
Medicaid-expansion advocates plan to bring busloads of able-bodied adults to DHHS offices on July...
-
Corporate welfare cost Maine taxpayers $42.5 million in 2017
Economists have long criticized politicians’ penchant for creating narrow legal carveouts and targeted...
-
Maine Policy Discussion: Ken Fredette
The Maine Heritage Policy Center is sitting down for detailed policy discussions with...
-
Maine Policy Discussion: Shawn Moody
The Maine Heritage Policy Center is sitting down for detailed policy discussions with...
-
Maine Policy Discussion: Garrett Mason
The Maine Heritage Policy Center is sitting down for detailed policy discussions with...
-
Maine Policy Discussion: Donna Dion
The Maine Heritage Policy Center is sitting down for detailed policy discussions with...
-
Where is all the civility we were promised?
The days are winding down until the June 12th primary elections take place,...
-
Maine Policy Discussion: Mary Mayhew
The Maine Heritage Policy Center is sitting down for detailed policy discussions with...
-
Lack of decorum in the Legislature thwarted progress in the Second Session
In addition to the ill feelings I shared yesterday regarding the reprehensible partisan...
-
Thanks to ranked-choice voting, expect a spike in spoiled ballots
Advocates of ranked-choice voting (RCV) commonly claim that their preferred method of deciding...
-
Forget the minimum wage – licensing reform will help lift Mainers out of poverty
Despite its relatively minimal impact on Maine workers, the labor issue presently garnering...
-
MECEP’s shoddy defense of the minimum wage ignores basic research methods
Earlier this year, the Maine Center for Economic Policy, a left-wing think tank,...
-
Democrats’ failure now means big hassles on tax day next year
Americans paid their 2017 federal and state income taxes this week. Filing taxes...
-
Gun confiscation orders will make Maine less safe
Ever since Cain slew Abel with a rock, human society has struggled with...
-
Maine lawmakers must enact ballot initiative reform
Maine still has a chance to fix its broken ballot initiative process this...
-
It’s time to repeal proficiency-based diplomas
On Monday, April 9, at 1:30 p.m., Maine’s Joint Standing Committee on Education...
-
Maine has a ranked-choice disaster on its hands
Yesterday, Maine Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap announced that “ranked-choice voting can’t occur...
-
Conforming to the federal tax code is the right policy for Maine
The federal tax cuts will provide about $1 billion in tax relief this...
-
MPA seeks to increase taxes on hardworking Mainers by $310 million
A lot of ink has been spilled detailing the catastrophic consequences of crafting...
-
Universal Home Care will create more wait lists
Here we go again. There’s another referendum on the ballot this fall that...
-
BDN child care editorial misses the mark
The Editorial team at the Bangor Daily News (BDN) held onto my recently...
-
Proficiency-based education is failing Maine students
Maine’s experimental education model, proficiency-based learning, has received strong pushback in recent weeks...
-
Let’s ensure Maine’s minimum wage law does no harm
We need to make sure that employees in Maine do not see the...
-
Maine should resist taxing the ‘sharing economy’
The sharing economy, including platforms like Lyft, Uber and Airbnb, present new and...
-
Tell the Legislature to put their Medicaid Expansion funding plan in writing
It’s been 100 days since voters passed the referendum to expand Medicaid. So...
-
Maine’s minimum-wage law needs adjustment
This article was originally published in the Sun Journal. Nearly two years ago...
-
What makes child care so expensive? Overregulation.
Maine’s Joint Standing Committee on Health and Human Services recently held public hearing...
-
Maine’s minimum wage is unworkable for small, rural employers
Maine employers have been struggling to meet the demands of Question 4 since...
-
Boxers, dietitians and interior designers; Maine’s licensing regimes go too far
Occupational licensing is intended to safeguard the public from unqualified, incompetent charlatans whose...
-
Taking conservation land off tax rolls increases the burden on homeowners
Too many Maine families are facing skyrocketing property taxes that strain household budgets....
