Taxes and Budget Proposed cigarette tax increase draws praise and concern James Myall, an economic policy analyst at the Maine Center for Economic Policy, said Monday that an increase to the cigarette tax wasn’t the center’s first suggestion […] Portland Press Herald Posted January 14, 2025 Tags Revenue, Tax Fairness, Taxes
Jobs and Income, Taxes and Budget Speaker of Maine House unveils bill to ease health care workforce shortage A June 2024 analysis by the Maine Center for Economic Policy think tank said that Maine needs to hire an additional 2,300 full-time direct care workers — there are […] Portland Press Herald Posted January 13, 2025 Tags Budget, Direct Care Work, Job Quality, Jobs
Taxes and Budget Janet Mills may get Democratic pushback on proposed cigarette tax hike The liberal Maine Center for Economic Policy criticized the cuts or lack of additional investments in various health care and child care programs that Mills said would […] Bangor Daily News Posted January 13, 2025 Tags Budget, Revenue, Tax Fairness, Taxes
Taxes and Budget Mills proposes $1 per pack cigarette tax increase, social service cuts to balance Maine budget Another left-leaning group, the Maine Center for Economic Policy, slammed the budget, saying it “comes up short for workers and families.” They vowed to work with legislators […] Spectrum News Posted January 10, 2025 Tags Budget, Revenue, Tax Fairness, Taxes
Health Care Mainers among millions benefiting from new federal rule on medical debt “This new rule will help more than 100,000 Mainers who hold medical debt, which in most cases was incurred simply for trying to take care of their basic health […] Beacon Posted January 7, 2025 Tags Economic Security, Federal, Health Care
Maine’s Economy Maine's Economic Outlook The state faces a predicted revenue shortfall. Incoming President Trump is threatening to place tariffs on Canadian and Chinese goods. Maine’s labor shortage is expected to persist […] Maine Public Posted January 6, 2025 Tags Budget, Economic Security, Economy, Revenue
Taxes and Budget Increasing tobacco tax, AI protections among 2025 Maine health priorities Jess Maurer, executive director of the Maine Council on Aging, and Arthur Phillips, the economic policy analyst with the Maine Center for Economic Policy, both said they […] Maine Morning Star Posted January 2, 2025 Tags Budget, Direct Care Work, Job Quality, Jobs
Jobs and Income Maine’s minimum wage will get a boost Jan. 1 According to the Maine Center for Economic Policy, there are about 37,000 hourly workers in the state earning less than $14.65 hourly and an additional 50,000 employees […] Portland Press Herald Posted December 30, 2024 Tags Job Quality, Jobs, Minimum Wage, Wages
Jobs and Income, Taxes and Budget The new paid leave tax hitting Mainers in 2025, explained The new program will apply to 90 percent of Maine’s workforce, according to the liberal Maine Center for Economic Policy. Self-employed people and tribal governments can opt into […] Bangor Daily News Posted December 30, 2024 Tags Budget, Paid Family and Medical Leave, Revenue, Taxes
Taxes and Budget Maine can’t afford Trump’s dangerous plans to gut Medicaid If the election taught us anything, it’s that the cost of living is way too high. So why are we hearing about cuts that would make health […] Bangor Daily News Posted December 20, 2024 Tags Budget, Medicaid, Tax Breaks, Tax Fairness, Taxes