I’m afraid the billboards in Texas persuading veterans to move to Maine are a waste of money (“Everything is bigger in Texas, including Maine’s help wanted signs,” April 18).

When I worked for National Semiconductor in 2009, it decided to close its Texas factory and offered the affected workers positions at our South Portland facility. Some took the free trip to Maine to check out the possibility of working here – and very few made the move.

What turned most away from working in Maine was the high cost of living here compared to Texas. This fact is still in place today and getting worse. Right off the bat, Texas has no state income tax. Second, the average cost of a home in Texas is listed at $290,000, while Maine is $354,000 – if you can find one.

And the biggest factor keeping workers (and businesses) out of Maine is the cost of energy. If we want to help bring more workers to Maine, our state government needs to work on not making Maine such an expensive place to live.

Theodore Sirois
Saco