Taxes and Budget Improved Child Tax Credit long overdue for Maine families Maine families will get a significant boost from the Biden Administration’s expansion and improvement of the Child Tax Credit (CTC). Starting in July, the families of 229,000 […] MECEP Posted July 1, 2021 Tags Child Tax Credit, Children, Economic Security, Federal, Tax Breaks, Tax Fairness
Jobs and Income Maine’s Worker shortage has deep roots As the COVID-19 pandemic recedes in Maine, business-owners have begun to raise a new economic concern as they report difficulty hiring workers to fill vacancies. These concerns […] James Myall Posted June 10, 2021 Tags Coronavirus, Employment, Job Quality, Jobs, Unemployment
Health Care Maine lawmakers must fix the ACA for 34,000 Mainers in the family glitch All Mainers deserve access to affordable health care. The Affordable Care Act was intended to make this a reality, but tens of thousands of Mainers are excluded […] MECEP Posted May 26, 2021 Tags Affordable Care Act, Health Care
Taxes and Budget Wealth tax bill addresses defects in our tax code and would increase funding for local services and affordable housing Ensuring fair taxation of wealth should always be a priority, and the pandemic has revealed just how important it is. Mostly low-wage workers on the frontlines of […] Sarah Austin Posted May 24, 2021 Tags Housing, Inequality, Tax Breaks, Tax Fairness, Taxes
Education Protections for private student loan borrowers protect seniors and people with disabilities In 2019, Maine led the nation by passing the Student Loan Bill of Rights (SLBOR) to address the predatory loan servicing practices that are exacerbating Maine’s student […] MECEP Posted May 18, 2021 Tags Consumer Protection, Education, Higher Education, Student Debt
Taxes and Budget Repealing tax cuts for the wealthiest estates would reduce inequality, fund investments in communities Our communities and are state are stronger when all Mainers and Maine families have equal opportunities to thrive. But growing inequality is a barrier to opportunity for […] Sarah Austin Posted May 13, 2021 Tags Estate Tax, Revenue, Tax Breaks, Tax Fairness, Taxes
Jobs and Income Lawmakers must reject plan to give corporations free pass to put workers and customer at risk The Legislature today is considering a bill — LD 1403, “An Act to Protect Maine Businesses, Nonprofits, Educational Institutions and Municipalities during the COVID-19 Pandemic” — that […] James Myall Posted May 13, 2021 Tags Coronavirus, Health Care, Jobs
Jobs and Income, Taxes and Budget Speaker Fecteau’s bill would use 3-cent tax on top 1 percent to fund hazard payments for frontline workers Maine’s pandemic experience has looked very different depending on where you stand in today’s economy. Essential frontline workers, many of whom were underpaid and experienced poor working […] Sarah Austin Posted May 12, 2021 Tags Coronavirus, Tax Breaks, Tax Fairness, Taxes, Wages
Taxes and Budget Bills to raise taxes on high incomes would fund long-term investments in people and communities The wealthiest households in Maine have benefitted greatly from recent state and federal tax cuts. The top 1 percent receive over $50,000 a year in tax cuts […] Sarah Austin Posted May 6, 2021 Tags Budget, Income Tax, Revenue, Tax Breaks, Tax Fairness, Taxes
Jobs and Income Bill to update definition of “tipped worker” would prevent low-wage trap for service workers Public laws regarding tipped workers are designed to ensure that workers who receive a substantial portion of their income through tips are given the same worker protections […] James Myall Posted May 4, 2021 Tags Job Quality, Jobs, Minimum Wage, Wages