Carole Boothroyd

Democrat

Candidate’s Links:

Office Sought: Senator – District 4
Age: 64
Occupation: retired educator
Education: M.S.Ed.
Family: Married
Hometown: Dover-Foxcroft

Political experience

I am the elected Piscataquis County Democratic Committee Chair and served on the SAD 46 School Board in the 1990’s, but otherwise I am a newcomer to Maine politics as a candidate for office.

Why are you running for office?

I am running for office to bring a fresh perspective to Augusta and to promote and support progressive solutions to the problems we face in rural Maine.

• Income Tax: Gov. LePage would like to lower Maine’s income tax rate and eventually eliminate it, by increasing the state’s sales tax and expanding it across a broader range of goods and services. Do you support this proposal?
  • No

    Income tax is a more reliable and predictable revenue stream than sales tax.

• Background Checks: Do you support background checks for privately sold firearms in Maine?
  • Yes

    The key word in the above statement is sold. Background checks for the sale of all firearms closes a loophole that can be used by anonymous gun buyers to bypass a safety system that most people agree is necessary. I don’t support requiring background checks for lending firearms to family members.

• Minimum Wage:
  In light of the ballot question facing voters this fall, do you support raising the state’s minimum wage from $7.50 to $12 an hour by 2020?
  
  • Yes

    The current minimum wage is not sufficient to live on and can lead to taxpayers subsidizing low wages with food stamps and other social benefits. Employers need to include livable wages for employees in their business plans.

• Marijuana: Do you support legalization of marijuana for recreational use?
  • Yes

    Cannabis was legal in this country for a long time and then it was declared illegal. That experiment failed, just as prohibition of alcohol failed. The use of cannabis is nowhere near as destructive as alcohol to individuals and society, so there is no reason for it to be illegal.

• Addiction/Overdoses: Do you believe the state is doing enough in response to the rise in heroin/opiate addiction and overdoses? If not, what else should be done?
  • No. The state is busy shredding public health and mental health programs in Maine. In response to an epidemic of opiate addiction, the state is failing to provide needed rehabilitation facilities for many addicts and especially for addicted pregnant women and mothers.