All posts tagged "Opinion"
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Liberal lawmakers propose creating new commission to propose ‘fair’ and ‘equitable’ tax increases
Members of the Maine Legislature’s taxation committee will hold a public hearing Tuesday...
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Are Maine’s clean energy policies working?
The Big Picture Since 2005 Maine’s carbon dioxide emissions have fallen 41 percent,...
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Pay attention to looming gas tax increase
Progressive lawmakers are in pursuit of an ever-expanding state government in Augusta. Their...
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Governors, elected officials across New England lining up to oppose the TCI
The Transportation and Climate Initiative, a regional coalition of 12 states and Washington...
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Maine professor suing faculty union appeals his case to the Supreme Court
Jonathan Reisman, an associate professor of economics and public policy at the University...
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Minimum wage and overtime changes come with unintended consequences
On January 1, the state’s minimum wage and overtime exemption thresholds increased by...
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The new year brings changes to state and local laws
In addition to resolutions, 2020 brings new changes to state and local laws....
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Gas tax coming, and it won’t be used to repair highways
Gasoline taxes may rise 17 cents a gallon and go up from there...
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Age to purchase tobacco products rises from 18 to 21 nationwide
In December, President Trump signed a $1.4 trillion spending package that included a...
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Understanding Governor Mills’ 10-year economic plan
Governor Janet Mills earlier this month released her 10-Year Economic Development Strategy for the state,...
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TCI would raise gas prices by up to 17 cents per gallon, do little to curb emissions
The Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI), a regional collaboration of 12 Northeast and...
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TCI policy design would punish Mainers with new gas tax
The Transportation and Climate Initiative on Tuesday released a draft Memorandum of Understanding...
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Plan for universal health care in Maine calls for massive tax increases
The 129th Maine Legislature’s Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services Committee met Monday...
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Like others that preceded it, Governor Mills’ economic plan will be a bust
Governor Mills on Wednesday released her 10-year economic development plan for Maine, the...
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Leg Council rejects crucial workforce development bill, denies public employees their First Amendment rights
The majority members of Maine’s Legislative Council voted Friday to kill along party...
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Public unions want more special favors from Maine lawmakers
On October 23, Maine’s Legislative Council voted to advance LR 3100, a legislative...
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How to fix Maine’s transportation funding shortfall
In June, Gov. Janet Mills signed LD 945, a resolve that created the Blue...
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A local option sales tax would not help the average Maine town or taxpayer
The Maine Heritage Policy Center on Monday released a new policy brief, “A...
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Is it feasible to provide a universal basic income in Maine?
Earlier this year the legislature passed LD 1324, a bill that creates an 11-person...
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Video: Understanding the Transportation & Climate Initiative
Governor Janet Mills is considering entering Maine into the Transportation & Climate Initiative,...
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Ratepayers will suffer if state government forcibly consumes the assets of CMP and Emera Maine
During the First Session of the 129th Legislature, Rep. Seth Berry introduced LD 1646,...
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Maine should end the practice of home equity theft
In Maine and 12 other states, local governments have the ability to steal...
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Briefs submitted in Maine school choice lawsuit
The Maine Heritage Policy Center and EdChoice recently filed an amicus brief in Carson...
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Maine doled out more than $31 million in tax abatements in 2018
In 2015, the Government Accounting Standards Board (GASB) released Statement Number 77, advising...
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Public workers are working hard to protect their rights after the Janus decision
In 2018, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that requiring public-sector workers to...
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RCV triggered in Portland mayoral election while NYC voters approve the flawed system
On Tuesday, Portland residents went to the polls to cast their ballots to...
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Gas and diesel tax outlined in TCI framework would hurt Maine’s most vulnerable
The following letter was submitted by The Maine Heritage Policy Center to the...
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What’s wrong with ranked-choice voting: Let us count the problems
The following piece highlights The Maine Heritage Policy Center’s recent report “A False...
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Leg Council rejects universal recognition, undermines public employees’ First Amendment rights
The Legislative Council on Wednesday met to vote on nearly 400 bills submitted...
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Legislative Council approves dozens of non-emergencies
The Legislative Council convened Wednesday to consider roughly 400 bill requests submitted by...
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New clean energy initiative could increase gas and diesel prices for Maine consumers
In June 2010, under Governor John Baldacci, eleven states and the District of...
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Here are some of the ’emergencies’ lawmakers want to debate in the Second Session
It is everyone’s favorite time of the legislative cycle – preparing for the...
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Alaska state employees union wants the courts to suppress its members’ First Amendment rights
This summer, Alaska Attorney General Kevin Clarkson released a formal opinion that said...
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Maine’s largely symbolic renewable mandates are hurting ratepayers
In an attempt to curb the effects of climate change, state governments across...
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Maine lawmakers are moving in the wrong direction on vaping
Following a national trend, Maine lawmakers decided in June to raise taxes on...
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It’s time for Maine to recognize occupational licenses issued by other states
Maine is currently the oldest state in the nation and is experiencing a...
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Lawmakers submit nearly 400 bills for consideration in Second Session
They’re at it again. On September 27th, lawmakers were required to submit all...
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Passenger rail authority fleeces taxpayers to the tune of $10 million
In April last year, the Press Herald ran my Maine Voices submission; it...
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Overregulation threatens efforts in Maine to expand broadband
The internet in Maine is getting faster and easier to use than ever...
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Complaints about signature gathering practices are nothing new in Maine
News outlets across the state last week reported that some signers of the...
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Governor Mills’ empty promise to the United Nations
When she addressed the United Nations earlier this week, Governor Janet Mills announced...
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The Maine Wire is migrating to a new email delivery service
On October 31, 2019, The Maine Wire will transition to a new email...
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Should ballot questions be reserved for general elections?
When the legislature adjourns from session, all non-emergency legislation that was passed becomes...
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Maine needs more broadband investment, not more government regulation
It’s hard to imagine a time when we didn’t have the internet. From...
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Unaccommodating regulation threatens the future of tiny homes in Maine
Tiny houses are a relatively new phenomenon and are becoming a modern lifestyle...
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Childless, able-bodied adults are driving cost and enrollment under Medicaid expansion
Governor Mills’ first move in office was to sign an executive order expanding...
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After years of resistance, Maine is rolling out new rules for autocycles
Hundreds of new Maine laws will take effect later this week. Among them...
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New hands-free driving law takes effect on Thursday
On September 19th, many bills passed during the First Regular Session of the...
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Alaska AG moves to protect public employees’ First Amendment rights
Last month, Alaska Attorney General Kevin Clarkson released a formal opinion that said...
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Unity charter school approved to fill 10th and final spot available in Maine
Hundreds of bills failed to become law in the First Regular Session of...
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Congress must reject the federal internet power grab
One of the issues Congress will be considering when they return from August...
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Governor Mills lets RCV for presidential elections become law without her signature
Maine Governor Janet Mills decided Friday to let LD 1083, “An Act To...
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Friday is the deadline for Governor Mills’ decision on LD 1083
Governor Janet Mills has until the end of the day Friday to decide...
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MECEP praise for labor unions misses the mark
This week, in honor of Labor Day, the Maine Center for Economic Policy’s...
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What does a state-based health insurance exchange mean for Maine?
Last week, Governor Janet Mills announced that Maine will pursue a state-based health...
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Activists failed to secure enough signatures to expand ranked-choice voting in Maine’s most liberal city
This week, Portland city officials notified Fair Elections Portland, a pro-ranked-choice voting group,...
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Will Governor Mills sign or veto bill that expands RCV to presidential elections?
The Maine Legislature reconvened on Monday to consider four bond proposals that failed...
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Lawmakers reject 3 of 4 bonds, approve RCV for presidential elections during special session
Lawmakers returned to Augusta on Monday to debate several bonds proposed by Governor...
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On energy, Maine’s politicians keep making a bad situation even worse
Politicians everywhere should have to take a version of the Hippocratic Oath, swearing...
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Maine Legislature reconvenes next week to consider governor’s bond proposals
Governor Janet Mills issued a proclamation Monday calling the legislature back to the...
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Does ranked-choice voting live up to its promises?
The Maine Heritage Policy Center today released its newest report, “A False Majority:...
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Government dependency will grow as Maine reverses course on welfare to work
Laura Catevenis, a resident of Lewiston, was close to rock bottom. She was...
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The minimum wage myth that persists
Advocates of a higher minimum wage rarely appeal to scholarly research to bolster...
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Maine’s burdensome death tax should be repealed, not expanded
When it comes down to it, Maine is an amazing place to live...
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Allowing public employees to strike would disrupt our schools and communities
The state of Maine currently prevents employees who work in the public-sector from...
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Right-to-Work would bolster Maine’s manufacturing sector
The decline of Maine’s manufacturing sector, whose workforce has shrunk by nearly half...
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Proposed overtime rules will result in lost wages and benefits
The Maine Legislature next session will consider another bill that would be harmful...
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The affordable housing paradox
Governments spend a good deal of time and money attempting to solve problems...
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What Maine could learn from New Hampshire about fiscal responsibility
Last month, New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu vetoed a two-year state budget because...
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Does Maine spend too much on school administration?
There has been quite a bit of debate in recent years about whether...
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Net neutrality stifles investment and innovation
Lawmakers and special interests always seem to title their bills with buzzwords that...
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Lawmakers will consider more than $2.1 billion in bonds next session
The Maine Legislature is slated to debate more than $2.1 billion in bonds...
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How unworkable government rules separate man from his bacon
Farmer Randy Canarr of Souder Station Farm has been farming and raising livestock...
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The inconvenient truth about Maine’s tax code
Every two years, the Maine Office of Tax Policy releases a lengthy report...
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CBO report shows $15 federal minimum wage would hurt US economy
A $15 federal minimum wage would wipe out 1.3 million low-income jobs and...
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Maine should follow Kentucky’s lead on right to work, labor reforms
Last week, Governor Matt Bevin gave the keynote address at The Maine Heritage...
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REAL ID is a privacy-eroding overreach by the federal government
In 2005, the United States Congress passed the REAL ID Act, with the...
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Governor Mills found her veto pen and used it against government unions
After the First Regular Session of the 129th Maine Legislature came to a...
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Lawsuit challenging exclusion of religious schools from town tuitioning program headed to higher court
On Wednesday, June 26, United States District Court Judge D. Brock Hornby issued...
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Government workers remain in the dark one year after Janus decision
Today marks the one-year anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling on Janus...
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Net neutrality is bad policy for Maine and the nation
In our modern day and age, roughly nine out of 10 American adults...
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Maine now has automatic voter registration. How will the new system impact our elections?
In a utopian society where there is no ill will or mistakes made...
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More victories for ballot initiative transparency
Governor Janet Mills on Thursday, June 20 signed into law LD 534, sponsored...
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Maine’s estate tax should be repealed, not expanded
The effort to expand Maine’s estate tax, more aptly known as the “death...
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Local option sales tax bill still alive in Maine Legislature
On Tuesday, June 11, the Maine House of Representatives voted 73-70 in favor...
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Maine House rejects bid to give 2nd District greater voice in ballot initiatives
Two days after the Maine Senate voted 24-11 in favor of passing LD...
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Don’t cap Maine’s charter schools
As we approach the ten-year anniversary of Maine’s historic public charter school system,...
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Despite new internet privacy law, your private data can still be sold and shared without consent
Governor Janet Mills last week signed into law LD 946 “An Act To...
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Maine House votes to gut bill providing free speech protections to college students
The Maine House of Representatives on Monday, June 3 voted 87-51 along party...
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Bill to adopt national popular vote compact fails in Maine House
The Maine House voted to reject a bill Thursday that would bind the...
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Misguided policy drives high energy costs for Maine manufacturers
There is a legislative agenda to “make Maine green again” that could make...
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Governor Mills signs bill to increase transparency in ballot initiative process
Governor Janet Mills yesterday signed LD 1209, “An Act To Require Legislative Hearings...
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Maine House passes bill to make wording of ballot questions ‘as simple as is possible’
The Maine House on Tuesday voted to approve a bill that would simplify...
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Debt-free college bill ignores troubling realities of higher education in Maine
The Committee on Innovation, Development, Economic Advancement and Business heard several bills last...
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Governor Mills’ revised budget grows spending but sends $20 million to rainy day fund
Since Governor Janet Mills released her biennial budget proposal in February, the fiscal...
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Speaker Gideon’s paid leave plan illustrates lawmakers’ propensity to tax and spend
The First Session of the 129th Maine Legislature has been filled with proposals...
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Stop unconstitutional initiatives from appearing on the ballot
Lawmakers are considering a flurry of ballot initiative reforms this session, from requiring...
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CMS finalizes rule to end dues skimming of in-home caregivers
Last week, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized a rule...
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Maine cannot afford ‘debt-free’ college
This session, lawmakers in the Maine Legislature are considering a pair of bills...
