Panel reaches bipartisan budget deal

Posted: June 05, 2015 | Appropriations and Financial Affairs, Senator Valentino

Bipartisan budget deal will boost Maine economy; grow good jobs and strong wages

(Augusta) – A bipartisan budget deal reached by Maine lawmakers on Friday night will boost Maine’s economy and help grow good jobs and strong wages at a time when the state lags behind the nation.

Sen. Linda Valentino of Saco

Sen. Linda Valentino of Saco

“Our bipartisan plan prioritizes property tax relief for everyday Mainers and invests in our students, workers and our economy,”  said Rep. Peggy Rotundo, D-Lewiston, the House Chair of the Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee. “It rejects failed trickle-down economics, and instead focuses on growing the economy from the middle out.”

 

The $6.6 billion budget rejects Governor LePage’s tax cuts for the wealthiest Mainers, while increasing property tax relief for all Maine families and bolsters investment in public schools, higher education and workforce training.

The bipartisan budget plan would:

 

  • Bolster direct property tax relief by $27 million. Increases the Homestead property tax exemption from $10,000 to $15,000 for all Maine families.

  • Fund local police, fire and public works. Rejects the elimination of funding for revenue sharing to cities and towns. Keeps current funding levels.

  • Increase investment in Maine students, schools, and teachers through K-12 public education by $50 million.

  • Make college more affordable: Invests $10 million for scholarships to help Maine students and workers pay for college through the Maine State Grant program.

  • Invest in job training: Increases funding for the Community College System by $10 million and provides $1 million for job training for workers.

  • Protect seniors and public health: The committee rejected the Governor’s $48 million cut to the Drugs for the Elderly and Medicare Savings Programs, which helps low-income seniors pay for prescription drugs as well cuts to public health dollars in the Fund For Healthy Maine. It also boosts funding for direct care workers by $4 million.

  • Support veterans: Military retirees will get an additional pension exemption of up to $25,000.

  • Bolster drug enforcement:  Funds four new agents for the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency and allows $200,000 in federal grant money to be used by the MDEA’s discretion to hire additional staff or invest in anti-drug efforts.

 

“Even in a challenging political climate, Senate Republicans and House and Senate Democrats stepped up to agree on a budget that invests in creating a strong economic future for our state while taking care of our financial responsibilities today,”  said Democratic State Senator Linda Valentino of Saco, who serves on the state’s Appropriations Committee. “It also addresses one of the biggest challenges facing most Mainers–rising property taxes. We know that in order for our state to compete, we have to invest in our students, workers, and communities.”

Democrats and Senate Republicans also agreed to conform the state’s estate tax exemptions to the federal level of $5.5 million and to send a Constitutional Amendment to voters requiring a two-thirds vote of the Legislature to increase the income tax rates. The tax cuts in the bipartisan plan are funded by keeping the current meals and lodging tax at eight percent.

 

The budget now heads to the House and Senate, where it will need to earn two-thirds of the vote to pass and sustain a veto from Gov. LePage.

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