Elections 2002 Midcoast Districts

by Emmet Meara

With the budget deficit ballooning over $200 million, Republican leaders say the 2002 elections should be a perfect referendum on the traditional party platform of lower taxes and lower spending. Party officials say that taking control of the Senate is a possibility, along with closing the party gap in the House, which now sits at 86 Democrats, 62 Republicans and one Independent, with two vacancies.

To meet the fiscal crisis and budget shortfall, Earle would support a broader sales tax, expanded to cover lodging and meals and more goods 

Republican opponent Gene W. Boothby, 65, a retired engineer and real estate business owner, thinks his superior experience as Bremen selectman and assessor, plus his familiarity with the area and "traditional Republican issues" will make him the winner in November to replace Rep. Hall.

Boothby would reduce spending by creating an independent agency to review all state programs to cut waste. With a wife employed by the DHS, Boothby is convinced that there are "too many state employees. There are too many not doing their jobs and there isn’t enough valuation of measure of performance." But he rejected a 10 percent staff cut as "irresponsible." He would expand the economy by offering more incentives for business to locate and stay in Maine and gradually eliminate the personal property tax.

Windsor and Alna, Somerville, Whitefield and Wiscasset
plus Hibberts Gore

Rines supported tax reform legislation which failed during the last session, as an antidote to the up-again, down-again economy of Maine. "We have to do long-term tax reform to eliminate the highs and lows. One way is to reduce the exemptions that have been approved. Another is lowering the tax rate, which will save money for people on the lower end and give the people on the higher end more money to invest," he said. He also joined the Democratic plan to expand the sales tax to goods and services now exempt from taxation, including doctors and lawyers. 

The race will also include a third party, Independent David Brown, who emphatically rejected a request for a telephone interview. Repeated calls to Republican candidate Karl F. Tarbox went unanswered.

Bonpasse lost to Honey in 2000 by 2,600 votes. Honey is a career bureaucrat, serving first in the federal then state (DMR) government. He has his sights set on the bureaucracy. "There are simply too many people working for state government. I would vote for whatever it takes to balance the budget," including large scale job cuts, Honey said. "You cut a million here and a million there and pretty soon it adds up to some serious money," Honey said. The last thing Honey would do is raise taxes. 

Bonpasse 54, runs a temporary staffing company in Augusta. "My name is not Don Quixote, but I will run a limited campaign, doing little and spending no money. I won’t have to make a spending report. There will be no advertising, no signs. I know Honey. He is a good man and voted right toextend sex education during the last Legislature. Just because he is a Republican doesn’t mean he’s all bad," Bonpasse said.

When Trahan returns to Augusta he will seek support for his scheme to form a team of professional evaluators, to review all existing state programs, with an eye towards trimming the annual budget and eliminating the annual deficit.

The key to the annual inflated budget is the "pummeling of the Legislature by people and groups that want financial support. My own school board is asking me to support $5 billion in proposals including a universal health care system," he said. Despite the current crisis there is absolutely no need to raise any taxes, the Republican candidate said.

O’Haverty, who ran unsuccessfully against Christine Savage in 1998, said that Sukeforth will play the part of H. Ross Perot in the race, taking enough Republican votes to place him in the State House.

An admitted C-Span junkie, O’Haverty would reject any "gimmicks" like tax caps or employee layoffs, in favor of increased taxes. He said adding a penny to the sales tax would result in an additional $132 million and another cent on the lodging tax would return another $25 million.  That would take a pretty good hunk out of the deficit," he said.  Maine has one of the lowest, narrowest sales taxes in the country, he said.

In a period of chronic deficits, Jones said the Republican Party "has a better answer in keeping the rate of spending under the rate of the per capita income." Jones rejected any across-the-board cuts in programs or personnel without serious study. Jones is one of two (with Sukeforth) candidates in the race with a degree in agricultural economy. "That has to be a first," he laughed.

Owls Head, St. George, Thomaston, South Thomaston, Criehaven and Matinicus

Rector decided to run after getting an up-close-and-personal look at state government while serving on the Thomaston Comprehensive Planning Committee on the $3 million issue of razing the abandoned Maine State Prison. Skoglund wanted to postpone the project to save money. "I thought that if the project was delayed, it would be another decade before it was taken down," Rector said.

To meet the budget shortfall, Skoglund would consider reimposing the snack tax and a hike in the sales tax. "I would do that before I cut funding for nursing homes or schools," he said. It kills Skoglund to see the lights from the new $70 million prison, which he fought every step of the way. That money could have been put to better use in schools, he argued.

McNeil, 54, is a floral designer who earned an 83.5 rating from MERI. She also would stay away from any large scale "dangerous" cut of state employees to meet economic problems, favoring instead a careful program of tax reform with a broader sales tax implementation and a review of all existing exemptions. She would stay away from any cuts in the education subsidy which is already too low, she said.

Challenger Kim H. Fletcher believes excessive tax cuts during surplus periods were imprudent, directly affecting the deficit now. "When I have a windfall in my home budget," she said, "I save. Why can’t the government?" She would not support cuts to programs that support citizens and working Mainers during times of economic challenge; instead prefers to focus on the lack of accountability she sees as rampant. "Through teaching, I’m involved with some social programs and I’m nonplussed about lack of accountability and follow through and can see where money is wasted," she said. Fletcher contends that programs with designated long-term benefits need to be maintained, and can actually equal bucks in the bank. "Research, development, education (especially higher ed/technical/vocational), 

Many Republicans have pinned their hopes in District 63 on Stephen Bowen, a teacher and political newcomer, to upset one-term incumbent Susan Dorr of Camden. Bowen is an articulate champion of a tax cap program and has penned editorials that have appeared in a variety of area and statewide newspapers. He charges that Dorr is part of the "virulent anti-business" wing of the Legislature as a result of her vote on a Worker’s Compensation bill. He supports a Taxpayers’ Bill of Rights similar to that adopted in Colorado, in which spending is tied to revenues. 

Incumbent Dorr said she got into politics to protect people and supports the traditional Democratic principles of protecting the environment and people who need assistance in mental or physical health. Dorr called for the formation of a committee to study the costs of universal health care.

Ash, who operates East side Auto, won his first term easily, but expects more serious opposition by the well-known Savitz. Ash also serves as Belfast City Councilor and ran because "I have always been interested in helping people. I think it is our civic duty. I enjoy the work and I enjoy making a difference."

"I hear that I am crazy to run. Maybe I am naive but I was brought up to believe that I owe my prosperity to the city and state and I am obligated to give something back in return. I enjoy problems and I am intrigued to understand the legislative process."

Savitz would challenge state commissioners to create a better, more productive climate. "Most people want to be productive," he said. While rejecting a single payer health system, Savitz said some clear thinking has to be done to make improvements in the health care delivery and funding system. Savitz faced heavy premiums for health insurance for restaurant employees. He dropped premiums by creating a policy with $1,000 deductible, then agreed to fund the deductible. He is saving so much money that he may move to a $2,000 deductible next year. "We need a little ingenuity," he said. 

Pakulski, 43, of Rockland will be making his initial effort for state office, "because I think the midcoast area needs strong leadership who will bring a lot of energy to the work across a variety of issues. We need a fresh perspective," he said.

The developer would break the deficit issues down to short-term and long-term solutions. In the short term, he would reject more taxes but find the "fat" which he said exists in every budget. "Everything will be on the table and nothing will be off limits," he said. Even some important projects could be postponed until the budget mess clears up. In the long term, he would reject large scale job cuts in favor of a broad review of the state tax system.

She guessed that the Republicans could take the Senate but feared for the House and the governor’s office. If Democrats control both the Senate and House, plus the governor’s chair, "small business will be in trouble," Savage said.

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