Candidates Tackle Rising Costs, Affordable Housing at Final Forum

Nearly 60 audience members listened as four candidates for state office discussed topics ranging from health care concerns to suggested improvements to education in the final forum co-hosted by The Lincoln County News and the Boothbay Register on Thursday, Oct. 10.

The forum, which was held in the cafeteria of Great Salt Bay Community School in Damariscotta, featured candidates from Senate District 13 and House District 46.

Sen. Cameron Reny, D-Bristol, and Dale Harmon, R-East Boothbay, are the candidates for Senate District 13, which represents all of Lincoln County except Dresden, as well as Washington and Windsor. Reny is seeking reelection for a second term.

Rep. Lydia Crafts, D-Newcastle, and Mary Lou Daxland, R-Newcastle, are the candidates for House District 46, which consists of Bristol, Damariscotta, Monhegan, Newcastle, and Nobleboro. Crafts is seeking reelection for a third term.

Following their introductions to the audience, each candidate shared concerns constituents have brought to them throughout their campaigns, which included rising costs, affordable housing, education, and health care.

Harmon and Daxland noted that rising energy costs are playing a role in the increased cost of living that Mainers are experiencing, and that lowering energy costs is a primary task to address if they are elected.

Daxland said wind and solar power are not providing the amount of electricity Mainers need at a fair price, and that the Legislature should consider hydropower.

Reny said she would like to see Maine be “as energy independent as possible,” and that discounting renewable energy sources is not the way to do that.

“We need to be diversifying, we need as many options for energy as we can get so we can use the cheapest – and wind is the cheapest – and supplement what we need to supplement while still moving away from greenhouse gasses,” she said.

In regard to increased property taxes, Daxland said she believes repealing L.D. 290, “An Act to Stabilize Property Taxes for Individuals 65 Years of Age or Older Who Own a Homestead for at Least 10 Years,” was a mistake and has added to the burden Mainers are feeling. The bill was enacted in August 2022, but was  repealed  by the Legislature in July 2023.

“Our seniors are suffering … I believe that we have to take care of our seniors first, because we have so many in this county,” she said.

Crafts said while L.D. 290 was “a great idea,” one concern amongst legislators was that it did not have an income requirement.

“When legislators are given the task and the responsibility of spending taxpayer dollars, it means a lot to decide how you put those dollars out into our communities, and I don’t know how people feel about this, but high income earners, I don’t believe, should be the target of property tax relief,” she said.

The establishment of Maine’s State Property Tax Deferral Program addressed the lack of an income requirement in L.D. 290, according to Crafts. The program, which was established in January 2022, is a loan program that covers the annual property tax bills of eligible Mainers who are ages 65 and older or are permanently disabled and who cannot afford to pay them on their own.

While it can be costly, continuing to fund programs that will help vulnerable community members is crucial, Crafts said.into trades. I think if you have a whole pile of people out there building houses, the cost of houses comes down,” he said.

Harmon said he believes the state should be committed to expanding upon educational programs such as boatbuilding, welding, and apprenticeships for builders and plumbers.

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Daxland said the state needs to focus on subjects such as reading, writing, social studies, and civics, as emphasis on basic academics will help improve testing scores across the state.access that we do.”

Reny noted that as well as a lack of health care providers, the cost of prescription drugs is an issue Mainers are facing.

To address this, Reny sponsored L.D. 1829, “An Act to Reduce Prescription Drug Costs by Requiring Reference-based Pricing.” The bill was passed to be enacted in the House in April, but the Senate placed the bill on the Special Appropriations Table, a special process for deferring action on bills that could affect general fund appropriations or revenue, according to maine.gov.

“I came so close and I want to see it through,” she said. “Prescription drugs are one of those things that you have to have.”

The state of emergency services in Maine was also discussed by candidates, including a proposed emergency response rule from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. According to Lincoln County fire department officials, the proposed regulations would increase financial burdens on emergency services by requiring the implementation of additional safety measures, which could possibly result in reduced manpower and limited resources.

Harmon said that at the state level, he hopes Maine will fight back “tooth and nail” on the proposed rule.

“I don’t even know how some small systems are going to be able to survive at all,” he said.

Reny said the proposed regulations “would put us out of commission.”

Crafts said state politics in Maine is different from national politics partly because Maine legislators are not “career politicians.”

“Most of us have other jobs or other things we return home to,” she said. “We may disagree on how we reach the goals, but most of us have very similar goals for what we want to see the state of Maine look like.”

The Lincoln County News and the Boothbay Register co-hosted five forums, which are available to watch on The Lincoln County News Facebook page.

The first forum, held in Wiscasset on Sept. 26, featured candidates from House District 47, which consists of Alna, Jefferson, Whitefield, and Wiscasset; House District 49, which includes Arrowsic, Georgetown, Phippsburg, West Bath, and Woolwich; and House District 53, which consists of Chelsea, Dresden, Pittston, and Randolph.

The second forum, held in Dresden on Sept. 30, featured candidates from Senate District 24, which represents Dresden and all of Sagadahoc County, and House District 53.

The third forum, held in Boothbay on Oct. 3, featured candidates from Senate District 13 and House District 48, which consists of Boothbay, Boothbay Harbor, Edgecomb, South Bristol, Southport, and Westport Island.

The fourth forum, held in Waldoboro on Oct. 7, featured candidates from House District 45, which includes Bremen, Louds Island, and Waldoboro in Lincoln County, as well as Washington and Friendship; and House District 62, which consists of Hibberts Gore and Somerville in Lincoln County, as well as China, Palermo, and Windsor.

The general election is Tuesday, Nov. 5.