Elizabeth Taylor. Sheryl Crow. Mary Tyler Moore. And you can add me, Representative Traci Gere, to that list. No, I haven’t suddenly become famous, although I have been known to belt out “Soak Up the Sun” on a beautiful Maine summer day. Rather, I have joined the list of people diagnosed with a meningioma, a […]
Courier Opinion
Posted inBiddeford-Saco-OOB Courier, Southern Maine Weeklies
Building on our successes in Biddeford and Saco
Watching the national news these days can be a sobering experience, with all the challenges associated with inflation, wars, Supreme Court decisions, violence, and more, some of which feel intractable at times to solve. But a good antidote to that is just to go outside and interact with neighbors and community members locally, and see […]
advertisement
Posted inBiddeford-Saco-OOB Courier, Southern Maine Weeklies
From Augusta: Understanding what the recent SCOTUS decision means for Maine
You’ve likely heard or read about the recent SCOTUS decision that overturned Roe v. Wade and gave states the authority to make laws governing a person’s right to access abortions and reproductive health care. There are many opinions, and lots and lots of information, around this ruling, so I want to focus on the immediate […]
Posted inBiddeford-Saco-OOB Courier, Southern Maine Weeklies
Ruralist Lament: Hire Rosa? R.I.P. Charlie
I went to a planning board meeting last night. Since we shed the reeking regional incinerator that occupied downtown for nearly 30 years, the city’s political class has been giddy over the wave of gentrification and sprawl that’s ensued. Concerns about working farm and forest land are easily swept aside in pursuit of “development.” The […]
Posted inBiddeford-Saco-OOB Courier, Southern Maine Weeklies
From Augusta – Delivering direct relief to Mainers
With Memorial Day behind us, marking the unofficial kick-off of summer, and our work in the Legislature now completed, I want to take a moment to reflect on and offer additional information about some of the Legislature’s accomplishments that benefit Mainers. To help with the increasingly high costs of goods and services caused by global […]
Posted inBiddeford-Saco-OOB Courier, Southern Maine Weeklies
From Augusta: Providing tax relief for Mainers
If you remember, last month I started my series of columns on the various investments that the Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee and the Legislature made in Maine people. For education, we created the Education Rainy Day Fund, made two years of community college education free, and froze tuition at the University of Maine System. […]
Posted inBiddeford-Saco-OOB Courier, Southern Maine Weeklies
Ruralist Lament: The (American) exception to the rule?
I pruned some tomatoes. I reviewed some stuff from a local Planning Board meeting last night (where nearly 200 manufactured houses were proposed for planting in farm fields across town). I checked the weather forecast. Then, as I sometimes do, I checked the Guardian newspaper on-line. I’ve seldom found big U.S. media terribly useful in […]
Posted inBiddeford-Saco-OOB Courier, Kennebunk Post, Southern Maine Weeklies
From Augusta – Helping Mainers learn skills, get jobs
At the end of April, the Legislature passed the supplemental budget with strong, bipartisan support. Among many budget items, I am very proud of the investments in workforce training and education. We created the Education Rainy Day Fund, that will ensure that the state continues to meet its funding obligation to cities and towns across […]
Posted inBiddeford-Saco-OOB Courier, Southern Maine Weeklies
Investing in Maine’s education system
As a member of the Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee – sometimes known as “the budget committee” — I work with my colleagues, both Democrats and Republicans, to balance both the books and the many priorities that drive our decision-making throughout the process. In the coming months, I plan to highlight some of the practical […]
Posted inBiddeford-Saco-OOB Courier, Kennebunk Post, Southern Maine Weeklies
From Augusta – A budget for working families and their children
On Tuesday, April 19, the Maine Legislature passed the supplemental budget, which features our plans for how to invest the state’s $1.2 billion surplus in Maine’s people. Then, on Wednesday, April 20, Gov. Janet Mills signed the budget into law. I’d like to discuss some of the items that will address our current challenges, offer […]