Radio Address: Budget makes our government efficient, effective, and affordable

January 13, 2015

(MP3 Audio)

If we want to stem the loss of our population, to fuel economic growth and to move Mainers from poverty into prosperity, we must have efficient, effective, and affordable government.

Hello, this is Governor Paul LePage.

When job creators and families look at how states are ranked by tax burden, Maine has been very uncompetitive compared to other states.

Before my administration, the Tax Foundation ranked Maine 37th in terms of tax burden. That put us in the bottom third of states with the highest tax burden. That?s not competitive.

Business owners, young people and retirees use these rankings to compare Maine to other states.

A high ranking can convince young people to go elsewhere to work and raise their family. It can persuade our retirees to go to states where they can keep more of their hard-earned money.

Most importantly, this kind of rating can convince job creators that their businesses should go where they can get a better bang for their buck. Our corporate tax is one of the highest in the Nation.

Our goal is to make Maine a leader?not a follower?on rankings that determine the best states for job creation and places to live and work.

With our budget proposal, we have the opportunity to jump to 23rd place in the tax climate ranking. That makes Maine competitive.

Our budget will allow family businesses and the jobs they provide to stay here in Maine. It tells retirees they can stay in Maine and keep their retirement accounts here.

Our budget shows we appreciate military families and want to keep them here. Most importantly, it shows job creators that Maine is not only a great place to vacation, but it?s a great place to live and do business.

The Maine people want efficient, effective and affordable government. This budget is a start.

Let?s be clear. We are not adding to the tax burden for individuals and job creators. We are reducing it.

We are not expanding taxes in a shift. We are directly reducing the overall tax burden for Maine people.

At the same time, we are also making Maine more competitive with the nation.

We are not proposing any effort to increase local property taxes. That is typical liberal rhetoric. We are encouraging local communities to work together to be more efficient and cost-effective in delivering services.

My priority as governor has always been to tackle our long-term fundamental challenges so we can improve Maine?s future for our children and grandchildren. My long-term vision is a Maine without any income tax.

We have already reduced Maine?s income tax from 8.5% to 7.95%. This budget reduces it further to 5.75% and puts $300 million of tax relief into the pockets of Maine people.

This is a good first step, but we must keep working. I expect to get a lot of resistance to my budget. But I will keep making the tough decisions we need to move Mainers from poverty to prosperity.