“We need to build an education system around what each student needs,” LePage said. “Each student learns in different ways; we need to provide multiple pathways, and CTE plays a significant role in that.”

Sen. Justin Alfond, D-Portland, said the latter proposal has promise. However, he said, he was disappointed that the governor’s education roll-out focused mostly on controversial proposals and little on initiatives outlined in a recently developed strategic plan designed to provide guidelines to improve Maine education.

Alfond said LePage’s proposal “crushes the momentum” of the plan, Education Evolving, because it alienates and divides the stakeholders who drafted it.

“Overall, the governor and the commissioner have taken the most divisive parts of the strategic plan and said these are the most important objectives for the state of Maine,” Alfond said. “Some of these objectives have been rejected by this Legislature two or three times, including using public funding for private schools.”

He added, “I’m disappointed and shocked that he and the commissioner have decided to take this route.”

Click here to read more from the Sun Journal.

Welcome and thank you for coming.

Democrats are here today – the day before the state of the state – to issue a challenge
to the governor and ask for him to put aside ideology and extremism, and work with us
to overcome the challenges our state faces.

Too much time has been spent on distractions, on needless fighting, on baseless
attacks, and on extreme policies that don’t create jobs, that don’t help working families
and don’t strengthen our economy.

Maine people demand that we work together – Democrats, Republicans and
Independents — to solve problems and move our state forward.

Democrats came together last year to call on the governor and Republicans to prioritize
job creation and the economy.

Instead, we’ve had a year of distractions, blame and extreme ideology. Too much time
has passed where day after day Republicans have ignored the real problems Maine
people face.

The governor and the Republicans in charge have made it harder for working families in Maine, especially if you are living pay check to pay check, are older, or live and work in rural Maine.

In the last year, our state has lost 4,400 jobs. While the governor and and his allies in
the Legislature campaigned on job growth, they’ve yet to deliver.

They have been diverted from that common goal by a national agenda that has nothing
to do with economic success in Maine and by special interests looking to line their own
pockets at the public’s expense.

When our economy needed a shot in the arm, the governor and Republicans in the majority held public investment hostage; stalled our work on proven energy efficiency
programs; tried to limit voting rights; made health care more expensive for many
Mainers; and ignored critical workforce training initiatives that would help get more
Maine people back to work.

The governor has proposed irresponsible, dangerous and short-sighted budget cuts that
will hurt Maine people and our economy. The governor’s cuts will harm our elderly, the
disabled, our children and at risk youth and result in thousands of more job losses.
Every community – every family – in Maine would feel the effects of this budget.
We’ve even heard the governor threaten to close schools, when what we need most
is a plan [to] increase access to higher education. Today’s students are tomorrow’s
workforce.

Rather than putting more money in the pockets of working families, the governor has
focused on a checklist for corporate special interests.

The governor and his allies routinely degrade our state rather than celebrate our
successes.

Maine people need leaders who have a daily focus on the economy and a positive
vision for long-term economic development.

Democrats challenge the governor to come to the table in good faith, stop the negativity, and propose real solutions to improve our economy.

Sen. Barry Hobbins

If we want to put Maine people back to work and build a stronger economic future, we
must work together to lower energy costs and invest in our roads and bridges, research
and development, and our classrooms.

In looking ahead to Maine’s future, we know that lowering energy costs is a top priority
for businesses as well as Maine households. The best and least expensive way to do
this is through energy efficiency and investment in renewable energy.

Maine is a leader in this field. We’ve created 12,200 jobs all across our state. And we
know that if businesses save money on energy costs, more jobs will follow.

Initiatives and programs that put more money in the pockets of Maine people and
business should not be threatened, instead we should help them thrive.

By making Maine more energy independent, we will save real dollars for Maine people
and in the process create jobs.

In the past, Democrats and Republicans have worked together – building consensus
and broad support – for our state’s energy policies. In fact, I can attest as Senate Chair
of the Energy and Utilities Committee, during the 124th legissature that Republicans
and Democrats alike unanimously supported nearly 50 pieces of cutting edge,
innovative energy policies. These major initiatives have helped to keep Mainers warm,
attract new energy investment and create jobs, have passed with unanimous support.
But things have changed. Instead of pragmatic solutions, the governor has shown
that he’d rather fight for radical and extreme policies that would put our state at a
disadvantage.

Democrats challenge the governor to put ideology aside and deliver an energy proposal
that builds on the success of our energy efficiency and conservation programs.

Rep. Terry Hayes
Mainers expect the governor to get serious about job creation. We challenge him to
better market our state — to attract businesses, investors, and young talent.
The chief executive must be a promoter in chief.

Mainers have a lot to be proud of. And we have tremendous opportunity for growth and
success.

We have some of the hardest working people and the most committed business
owners.

We also have a state rich in resources, and an economy that is diversifying.
The targeted tax credits we’ve passed for small businesses and our efforts to expand
broadband have gotten us top rankings from the US Chamber of Commerce and a
leading investment firm.

Yet, instead the governor and his allies take every opportunity to degrade our state and
the people who live here.

Their words have consequences. Their negativity scares people away from our state
and causes top banking firms to question our credibility. They don’t create excitement
for entrepreneurs. They don’t generate interest in people going to our colleges and
universities.

Maine is a great place to live, work and raise a family. We have challenges to
overcome, but we can’t get there if we don’t recognize our own strengths and use them
to our advantage.

Our water and air are clean; we are leaders in the creation of clean energy jobs; we are
blessed with abundant sources for alternative power; and our workers have a reputation
for integrity and quality.

We need to develop our strengths and building upon our assets. Talking our state down
with angry words and name-calling is not productive.

Maine needs our governor to promote our state.

Democrats challenge Governor LePage to change his tone.

Sen. Justin Alfond
The governor has yet to put forth an economic agenda that will put people back to work
and move our economy forward.

Day after day, we have seen the governor and Republicans miss opportunities to create
more jobs, attract new business, and strengthen the skills and training for our workforce.

This year alone, 4,400 Mainers lost their jobs. And instead of focusing on the very
things businesses say they need, the governor has employed tax-cut gimmicks that
have done nothing to get Maine people back to work.

Business leaders have told us that in order to grow and hire more people, they must
have a skilled and trained workforce, and lower health care and energy costs. Maine
needs a leader who will explore all options that can support our businesses and lead to
job creation.

Day after day, we have seen the governor distort the facts to fit his own extreme
ideological agenda. Maine needs a leader who will face the facts and speak the truth
because that is the right thing to do.

We hope the governor will stop the scapegoating and blaming; stop pitting people
against each other by picking winners and losers and instead, recognize our state’s
assets, resources, and achievements.

Democrats are calling for an end to the distractions. Let’s get Mainers back to work and
move our economy forward. Every day that we come to work in Augusta, that must be
our top priority. We cannot let another missed opportunity pass us by.

Democrats in the Legislature support investment as the backbone of our economy – the
roads, bridges, ports and rail that move our people and can propel growth.

We support incentives to increase competition in our energy markets to drive down
costs and promote renewable sources of power.

We want to put people to work making homes warmer, building schools for our children, and taking innovative ideas from the laboratory to commercial development.
We believe in a Maine that takes care of the most vulnerable, invests in job training and
treats people fairly and with respect.

We believe in a Maine where the government is a partner in progress, making smart
investments, and a government that isn’t just smaller but is better, more effective and
more efficient.

We ask the governor to put aside the rhetoric and the attacks and work with us toward
the practical solutions that will put people to work.

We can wait no longer. We all want action on a strong economic plan for today and
vision for Maine’s future.

Please send your responses to Justin@JustinAlfond.com. Thank you in advance for your help!

1) Your name
2) Name of Business
3) What’s happened with your insurance premium in the last year? Did it go up or down?  By how much?
4) When did you get your most recent insurance quote?
5) Was the quote for the same number of employees as last year? If not, do you have more or fewer employees?  How many?
6) Have the ages of your employees changed significantly in the last year?  Are they older or younger?
7) When you received your most recent quote, did you change the
way you handle health insurance at your business?

“I am thrilled that my resolve has become the foundation of today’s unanimous vote,” Senator Alfond said. “Business leaders and educational allies have been working since 1994 to build a system where students, teachers and parents all clearly know what the standards are. This is a great day for education in Maine.”

“This bill will turn our schools into true centers of student learning,” Alfond added.  “Maine students by 2017 will have to demonstrate proficiency against clearly stated standards in a variety of ways including projects, portfolios and standardized tests.”

Senator Alfond was a co-sponsor of the original version of LD 1422, which was amended to reflect the results of a study performed over the last few months.  The study was performed in accordance with Senator Alfond’s earlier bill LD 949, “An Act To Update Maine’s High School Graduation Requirements.”

Former Commissioner of the Maine Department of Education Duke Albanese, now a Senior Policy Advisor for the Great School Partnership, was also pleased with the result. “Senator Alfond helped lead the bi-partisan support of this legislation,” Albanese stated. “Standard Based Education will move Maine schools in the right direction.”

Alfond felt that “today’s vote clearly shows that the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee understand the urgency of acting. Building a K-12 system where students can graduate prepared to move into a certificate program, higher education or career is critical to our future workforce.”

The looming DHHS shortfall, estimated at $120 million through June 30, is still no reason to threaten closing schools, argued state Democrats.

“To use schoolchildren as some sort of weapon in negotiations is just shocking to me,” Sen. Justin Alfond, D-Portland, said Friday. “It’s just unconscionable.”

Even Sen. Kevin Raye, R-Perry, the Senate president, referred to the idea of cutting state funding to education and closing schools May 1 as a “doomsday scenario.”

…

Click here to read more from the Bangor Daily News.

Augusta—A letter from the nonpartisan Office of Fiscal and Program Review (OFPR) to Senate Democratic leadership confirms Democrats’ ongoing concerns that Governor LePage’s Department of Health and Human Services budget is not based on substantiated facts or data.

Highlights of the one and half page letter by Grant Pennoyer, Director of OFPR, include:

• OFPR is “still unable to adequately estimate the shortfall amount”;
• OFPR has “not yet confirmed the one-time elements even within the first half of the current fiscal year to adequately predict the 2nd half of FY 2012, let alone FY 2013 or structural shortfall”;
• OFPR does “not have access to the claims data underlying the accounting data”;
• OFPR “cannot independently confirm DHHS estimates of the shortfall”;

DHHS based the shortfall on “incremental approach with multiple explanations for the causes of the shortfall but failed to explain some of the elements in the program that may be less than anticipated.”

“It is crystal clear that the Governor’s budget doesn’t add up,” said Senate Democratic Leader Barry Hobbins of Saco. “It is frustrating that Democrats are ready to work on solving our state’s budget issues but we cannot talk about a solution if we don’t yet understand the problem. Rushing in to policy changes or program cuts without real numbers would be irresponsible.”

In reaction to Governor LePage’s assertion that OFPR confirmed the DHHS budget analysis, Democratic Leader, Senator Barry Hobbins, and Assistant Democratic Leader, Senator Justin Alfond, wrote to the OFPR seeking clarification of its analysis of the DHHS budget.

“There is a clear pattern of the Governor choosing to only tell part of the story to Maine people,” said Sen. Alfond of Portland. “Beyond misleading, the Governor has gone out of his way to interrupt and interfere with the bipartisan efforts of the Appropriations Committee. It is time for the blame game, distractions and rhetoric to end.”

Senator Dawn Hill, who serves on the Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee, has sought accountability and explanation from DHHS Commissioner and staff since the budget was first presented to the committee back in December.

“We continue to have more questions than answers. And unfortunately, the questions that remain hit to the heart of the credibility of this budget,” said Sen. Hill of York. “How can we be expected to make decisions about the real impact to real people’s lives when we can’t even substantiate the shortfall and the numbers supposedly creating it.”

The Appropriations Committee is expected to meet for the remainder of this week to sort out details of the proposed DHHS budget.

Letter from Senate Democratic leadership to the Office of Fiscal and Program Review (PDF)

Response from the Office of Fiscal and Program Review (PDF)

“The governor must stop spreading misinformation to the public and disrupting the Appropriations Committee,” said Rep. Emily Cain, D-Orono, the House Democratic leader. “It is irresponsible and it will undermine our efforts to address budget problems together. Solutions must be driven by facts and working across the aisle, not inflammatory distractions.”

“Democrats are calling to an end of the governor’s blame game,” said Senator Justin Alfond, D-Portland, the assistant Senate Democratic leader. “He’s been in office for a year now. It is the responsibility of this Administration to come up with an honest and fair plan based on facts not based on rhetoric or ideology. It’s clear now more than ever that the governor’s priority is to pick winners and losers in this state by rolling back anti-poverty programs and leaving our most vulnerable neighbors with nothing.”

Please note the governor’s statement on the DHHS shortfall released today included the following myths.

• MYTH: The Office of Fiscal and Program Review verified the LePage Administration’s shortfall analysis.
• FACT: Grant Pennoyer, director of the office, told the Appropriations and Health and Human Services Committees that “We are closer, but we are still a ways off from having a good enough understanding to provide independent confirmation of the shortfall,” as reported by the Bangor Daily News. The Legislature’s non-partisan fiscal office told the committees that the Department was on track to spend the $120 million over budget in fiscal year 2012, but they were unable to independently verify the costs for 2013 or to fully agree on the cost drivers for either year.

• MYTH: The shortfall was caused by a growth in enrollment over the past decade.
• FACT: According to the DHHS analysis of the shortfall of the $220 million shortfall, the total costs of increased enrollment in MaineCare is 6.5 million in 2012 and a projected $7.9 million in 2013. The shortfall has been caused by his administration’s miscalculations in building the budget, a transition from claims processing from one computer system to another and a change in how we make payments to providers. These are program administrative issues not program growth issues.

• MYTH: MaineCare is welfare.
• FACT: MaineCare provides health insurance and prescription drug coverage for the elderly, disabled, mentally ill and the poor.  Twenty-five percent of MaineCare enrollees work, 42 percent are children and 28 percent of enrollees are disabled individuals and seniors. Deprived of their insurance, their health will no doubt decline, unattended problems will become more severe and costs will be kicked down the road, not avoided. MaineCare has helped  Maine score eighth in the U.S. in overall health rankings. This high rate of insurance also means fewer uninsured patients turn up at emergency rooms for expensive care that is not reimbursable. When that happens hospitals must eat those costs, which results in costs that must then be passed on to the rest of us.

Closing

It’s great to be back in Augusta. As always, your responses to my emails are insightful – please keep contacting me with issues.