7 years ago Taking conservation land off tax rolls increases the burden on homeowners Too many Maine families are facing skyrocketing property taxes that strain household budgets. Our elderly on fixed incomes are particularly vulnerable to these increases. School budgets are often blamed for annual increases in property taxes. But there’s another reason. A tremendous amount of land and property value has been taken off the tax rolls, leaving homeowners to pick up the tab.
7 years ago Enhancing opportunities for women to continue to achieve success in aviation Despite these historic accomplishments during more than a century of powered flight, today women remain significantly underrepresented in the aviation industry. Although women make up more than 50 percent of our nation’s workforce, they represent just two percent of airline mechanics, four percent of flight engineers, five percent of repairmen, six percent of pilots, 18 percent of flight dispatchers and 26 percent of air traffic controllers.
7 years ago Senior Matters — Piscataquis aging-in-community projects transition The Piscataquis Thriving in Place Collaborative (TiP) came to life through generous funding from the Maine Health Access Foundation (MeHAF). TiP is an aging-in-place resource and referral network coordinated by the Charlotte White Center (CWC) that has grown to over 60 partners over the last four years.
7 years ago Foster parenting can help carry out resolutions of hope In those extreme situations where children cannot safely remain in their parents’ care, youth are placed in foster care with adults who are willing to care for them while parental and child treatment needs are being assessed and issues of permanency are being resolved. The reality of this situation is that the need for safe, caring and healing homes surpasses the present capacity of licensed homes.
7 years ago Maine politicians consider new ways to block direct democracy About 59,000 working Mainers got a raise this week when the minimum wage increased from $9 an hour to $10 an hour. For someone working 40 hours a week, the dollar will increase pay by about $2,000 a year before payroll taxes. The yearly wage for a full-time worker making the new minimum was just more than $20,000.
7 years ago In 2018, I wish you bad luck A short time after Christmas, Wall Street Journal writer Bob Greene caught up with US Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, and asked him about a commencement speech he gave in June to his son's ninth-grade graduation ceremony at a boarding school in New Hampshire.
7 years ago LePage can’t deter Medicaid expansion Medicaid expansion is the law. Voters made sure of that. But when the Maine Legislature reconvenes next week, the fight over health insurance coverage for more than 70,000 Mainers will begin anew.
7 years ago The 2017 Conifer Awards Traditions are wonderful, which is why I am proud to give you my bold predictions each year. That's why in 2014 I also started handing out the Conifer Awards ---- political superlatives for the year that was.
7 years ago Relieving student debt would attract young people to Maine As we look forward to the new year, one of the big challenges facing our state is growing our workforce and keeping our economy on a roll.
7 years ago Red County Caucus praises signing of tax reform legislation The President has signed a historic tax reform into law. While Democrats claim the power of the seer akin to Nostradamus portending wild-eyed apocalyptic doom as a result of wage earners and wage payers keeping more of the fruits of their labors, in the real world of the real truth this new tax structure affords real tax relief to virtually every wage bracket in the U.S. Contrary to the liberal narrative, it is not theft for Americans to keep more of their wages.
7 years ago Tax scam will pale compared to what comes next Never has giving away more than $1 trillion been so difficult. Republicans in Washington have passed a massive overhaul of the US tax code. With a package that’s heavily tilted toward wealthy individuals and large, multinational corporations, the tax plan will further exacerbate income inequality. As if that wasn’t enough, the tax bill does a lot more.
7 years ago 18 bold predictions for 2018 Ladies and gentlemen, it is that time of year again, the time of year you all look forward to with ever-growing excitement. I’m speaking, of course, of my annual bold predictions, where I give you, dear reader, a foretelling of the coming year.
7 years ago A Christmas message from Gov. LePage At this time of year, we gather with loved ones to celebrate Christmas, count our blessings, remember the past year and look forward to next year.
7 years ago Wishing you a happy and healthy holiday season There’s really nothing like the holidays in Maine. They bring a certain spirit, one that’s as magical as the first snow. But it’s not the beautiful winter landscapes or the crackling fire that makes this such a wonderful time to be in Maine. No, the joy comes from the opportunity to spend these days surrounded by those we love, in a state we love to call home.
7 years ago States seek new concoctions to hide the barbarism of the death penalty It’s time for the death penalty to be retired once and for all.
7 years ago It is time to pass tax reform I suppose it should be no surprise, but the federal tax reform package -- officially dubbed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act -- continues to generate the most insane, outlandish reactions possible.
7 years ago Funding Medicaid expansion requires tough choices to avoid the pitfalls of the past I have laid out four basic principles to guide the Legislature’s decision on how to pay for Medicaid expansion.
7 years ago Harassment never acceptable As a baby boomer, I remember parents saying that proper social discourse should not include topics of sex, religion or politics. So much for that in today's news coverage invading our homes daily.