New rules for Maine’s adult-use cannabis program went into effect on September 8. Included in the rules are new requirements…
Browsing: regulations
High energy costs are making Maine increasingly unaffordable for people of average means. Misguided state energy policies are contributing to…
Last October, public interest journalism outfit The Maine Monitor broke the story of a newly-discovered large—and extremely valuable—lithium ore deposit…
Maine’s laws regulating metallic mineral mining mean a Newry couple cannot extract an estimated $1.5 billion worth of lithium from…
Lobster fishing gear is once more banned from a roughly 1,000 square mile area of federal water off the coast…
As the popularity of harvesting and eating seaweed grows in America, a new Maine Public Radio investigation, along with other recent…
According to the American Legislative Exchange Council Center for State Fiscal Reform, Maine is currently ranked 44th in the nation in…
Throughout the pandemic, few things incited more discord than the mandated use of facemasks as a preventative measure to reduce…
Days after announcing the results of a lottery for a new pilot program that would allow only 10 food trucks…
Now that LD 2003, the housing bill sponsored by Speaker of the House Ryan Fecteau (D-Biddeford) has been signed into…
If you’ve ever been to the state of Oregon – home of the “other” Portland – you only need to…
Maine’s Department of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry (DACF) would write new rules to bring the state’s hemp program into line…
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is moving fast to close off what seems to be the last remaining legal…
A law related to pay for vacation time at the end of employment that was enacted in April has the…
Though a new rule from the National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration affecting the gear lobster fisherman can use has gone…
Mandatory motor vehicle inspections already cost Mainers $14 million and countless hours of wasted time every single year, but just…
Both the House of Representatives and the Senate met on March 29 for the ninth legislative day of the 130th…
As a physician – one who has dedicated his career to treating lung diseases – it has become clear to…
Early in the coronavirus pandemic, I asked a simple question. Could Sweden’s laissez-faire approach to the coronavirus actually work? Unlike…
Both chambers of the Maine Legislature convened on March 22 for the first of two scheduled sessions this week. The…
The Maine Legislature’s Committee on Innovation, Development, Economic Advancement and Business convened on February 22 to hold a public hearing…
Billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban recently announced his latest, ground-breaking innovation, and it’s one that should catch the attention of Americans.…
The Maine Legislature’s Committee on Marine Resources (MAR) met on February 8 to discuss two bills intended to help the…
We’re into year three of the COVID-19 pandemic. From mask mandates to vaccine passports, government restrictions on our liberties remain…
On December 30 Gov. Janet Mills’ administration announced Maine’s Department of Marine Resources (DMR) has been granted intervenor status in…
The Commission to Increase Housing Opportunities in Maine by Studying Zoning and Land Use Restrictions recently submitted its final report…
On November 9, the Portland City Council’s Safety Committee voted to approve a sweeping ban on the sale of all…
In a blow to Maine’s lobster fishermen, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit reinstated a seasonal closure…
The Portland City Council voted unanimously on October 18 to change the city fee structure for licenses of amusement devices.…
On October 16, a U.S. District Court judge blocked the implementation of a seasonal ban on lobster fishing in Maine…
Arcadia National Bar, an arcade-themed bar in Portland, has been closed since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The bar’s…
Occupational licensing has already been called out for hobbling opportunity, impeding mobility, protecting established practitioners from competition, and for raising…
On September 14, the Maine Legislature’s Committee on Marine Resources met and discussed the impact new rules recently released by…
Approximately 25 percent of jobs in the United States require some kind of occupational license. A condition on which many…
The number of state legislators who have signed a letter calling for President Biden to reverse a recent decision that…
Maine’s lobstermen and women are under attack by the Biden Administration after a recent set of rule changes restricting seasonal lobster fishing in 950 square miles of…
New federal regulations created to protect the endangered right whale will close off a nearly 1,000 square mile strip in…
The future of the Shawmut Dam remains in question. Following a draft ruling that announced the Maine Department of Environmental…
Clearly, the vast majority of people taking advantage of IRAs are everyday Americans who have a modest amount saved for their retirement. Congress was the one to create this avenue for saving, and now they are trying to backpedal.
In recent months, we’ve heard a lot about child care in the news and from pundits. Whether it’s the so-called…
Facial recognition tech cannot be used as a tool by the government for mass surveillance. Thankfully, the Legislature has put a stop to such a situation becoming a reality in Maine.
A recent study by Dr. Calvin Lakhan of York University has found that under LD 1541, average monthly grocery costs for a family of four in Maine will increase by at least nearly $32, or as much as almost $60, depending on the kinds of costs incurred on producers.
A prominent refrain in the pandemic recession-recovery story has been the persistent labor shortage seen across the United States. Coupled…
Now that the dust has settled on the Health and Human Services Committee hearing for LD 1550, a bill that…
Over the past year, there have been numerous instances of top-down solutions being offered — by lawmakers in Washington, D.C.…
In recent years, a number of economic studies have concluded that small to moderate increases in the minimum wage do…
The basic problem with even a little bit of socialism is that, in order for socialist policy to work, it…
A number of iconic Maine businesses have closed this year due to the economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic…
Gov. Janet Mills announced on Thursday new, last-minute restrictions on businesses to limit the spread of COVID-19 in Maine. Starting…
Governor Janet Mills’ latest batch of doomsday rhetoric is an admission that her coronavirus narrative is falling apart. In describing…
When Gov. Janet Mills updated her mask mandate last week to require Mainers to wear face coverings in public no…
Perhaps the only thing worse than being subjected to seemingly arbitrary and intrusive rules imposed to fight a pandemic is…
Parts of the western United States look like scenes from an apocalyptic movie—a red-orange tinge across everything, literally blotting out…
Aquaboggan in Saco was forced to close in late August after receiving a cease-and-desist order from the Saco Police. The…
Four businesses in Portland––Novare Res, Sagamore Hill Lounge, Tomaso’s Canteen, and Rising Tide Brewing––have acquired restaurant licenses that will allow…
As policymakers and public health officials at the local, state and federal levels prepare and execute a response strategy to…
Lawmakers on Maine’s Health and Human Services Committee held a public hearing Wednesday on LD 2052, “An Act To Enact…
Lawmakers on Maine’s Transportation Committee will hold a public hearing Thursday on LD 1981, “An Act Regarding the Regulation of…
Maine’s Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry held a public hearing Thursday on a bill that would eliminate needless bureaucracy…
Governor Janet Mills earlier this month released her 10-Year Economic Development Strategy for the state, the first undertaking since 1993. While well-intentioned,…
This piece was first published in the Sun Journal. “We will develop a world-class workforce. Fewer than half of Maine…
Governor Mills on Wednesday released her 10-year economic development plan for Maine, the first such undertaking in our state since…
It’s no secret that the fees and requirements necessary to obtain an occupational license are barriers to entry that bar…
Over the last few months, the debate regarding the future of Auburn’s Agriculture and Resource Protection Zone (Ag Zone), which…
One of the issues Congress will be considering when they return from August recess is so-called “net neutrality” — how…
A powerful committee in the U.S. Senate is considering legislation that could have significant negative effects on Mainers seeking treatment…
Politicians everywhere should have to take a version of the Hippocratic Oath, swearing the laws they enact to solve problems…
When Portland City Councilors approved the city’s budget in May, it included a new manufacturing license for breweries, wineries and…
The Maine Legislature next session will consider another bill that would be harmful to Maine’s small business community and employers…
Farmer Randy Canarr of Souder Station Farm has been farming and raising livestock in Winterport for almost 10 years, providing…
In a fiery letter sent Thursday, July 11, Governor Janet Mills announced her opposition to new federal regulations that aim…
Last week, Governor Matt Bevin gave the keynote address at The Maine Heritage Policy Center’s 2019 Freedom and Opportunity Luncheon.…
To become a hairdresser in the State of Maine, you must be at least 17 years old, complete a 1,500-hour…
Occupational licensing exists to protect public health and safety in professions that pose measurable risk to consumers. However, as we’ve…
This piece first appeared in the Portland Press Herald. During her recent inaugural address, Gov. Mills warned Maine residents that a recession…
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 economists on both sides of the aisle agreeing that occupational licensing laws hurt workers and consumers by stifling economic…
Maine’s Joint Standing Committee on Health and Human Services recently held public hearing for a flurry of child care bills…
The word came down just days ago. Uber is going to lose its licenses to operate in London. The official…
If you work hard enough and create sufficient value for your fellow man, you can succeed in the United States.…
Over the weekend, the Bangor Daily News published an article titled: What stands out about LePage’s approach to the economy:…
Yesterday, The Maine Heritage Policy Center released a new report, “Top 10 Things Keeping Mainers Poor.” Poverty is an issue…
“Without question, these new regulations will hurt Maine workers more than help.” In 2014, President Obama issued an executive order…
For many families with young children, especially single-parent households, child care is critical to being able work and earn a…
Your barber has to get government permission to cut hair, or risk jail time. In Maine, barbers must be at…
Perhaps as early as Wednesday, the Maine House of Representatives has a chance to pass meaningful legislation that would help one…
On Monday, Madison Paper Industries announced its decision to close, laying off 214 workers by May 2016. “Demand for supercalendered…
For several years in a row, Maine’s business climate has ranked among the worst in America, with our regulatory environment…
Maine’s harsh regulatory climate continues to hinder our state’s economic growth, especially for an Amish man in the small town…
Among the many deeply flawed and harmful regulations and rules passed by Maine lawmakers or created by bureaucrats, none may…
Over the past few months, I’ve spoken with dozens of business owners about regulatory reform. The specific issues they highlight…
Our Great State of Maine is known for many unique industries and trades, such as our famous lobster harvesting, our…
According to the Small Business Administration, the annual cost of federal regulations on business in the United States exceeds $2…
Want your voice to be heard in Augusta? The Maine Heritage Policy Center is currently preparing a report on harmful…
Maine is home to the most skilled paper makers in the world. Our hard-working men and women manufacture paper products…
I love Maine. I was born there. I spent 18 years of my life there. My entire family lives there. Trading…
“No lesson seems to be so deeply inculcated by the experience of life as that you should never trust experts.…
On Monday, Governor LePage vetoed LD 122, An Act to Standardize Pints of Beer Sold in Maine, proposed by Sen.…
“As the body of rules grows, the legal landscape becomes more thickly populated and harder to traverse. Concealed declivities, sudden…
By Paul Blair — New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has friends in Portland, Maine. They’ve taken his call to impose government…