Maine needs to rein in government spending | Opinion
Sen. Scott Cyrway represents Senate District 16, comprising Albion, Oakland, Fairfield, Waterville and Winslow. He serves as the Senate Republican lead on the Legislature’s Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee.
I grew up on a farm and started my working life in agriculture. There was always something that needed money, but that did not mean you could afford it all. You had to decide what came first and what could wait. I believe state government should handle taxpayers’ money with that same care.
Maine’s latest budget forecast shows why that matters. The Maine Bureau of the Budget projects a $1.085 billion General Fund gap for the 2028-29 budget cycle. It also projects a separate Highway Fund gap of $256.7 million. Together, that means expected spending is roughly $1.3 billion more than expected revenue.
Those numbers may change, but they tell us we have a problem to address. The next governor and Legislature will have to bring spending and revenue into balance. We should start by looking at what the state spends and what it can afford.
Democrats have controlled the governor’s office and the Legislature for eight years. They wrote the budgets and decided how to pay for them. They are responsible for those decisions and should explain why the state faces another large gap after raising taxes and fees.
Republicans warned that spending was growing too fast. Yet the legislative majority continued to approve more spending and ask Maine people to pay more. Those tax and fee increases have not kept us from facing another round of difficult budget decisions.
Advertisement
The current General Fund budget exceeds $12 billion. This year’s supplemental budget also took nearly $300 million from the Budget Stabilization Fund, the state’s emergency reserve. Before asking taxpayers for more, lawmakers need to explain where that money is going and whether it is being used well.
Earlier this year, I raised concerns about funding for agricultural and forestry programs. Those programs were not adequately funded in the budget, while lawmakers considered borrowing money to pay for them. I introduced an amendment to fund them directly through the supplemental budget.
I support our farmers and loggers. I also believe we should make room for those needs in the budget before asking taxpayers to take on debt and pay interest. With a budget this large, lawmakers should be willing to choose which spending comes first.
We need to take the same close look at MaineCare. The program has needed more than half a billion dollars in additional funding over the last two years. We need clear answers about why costs are rising and whether payments are being made properly.
Independent audits would help us get those answers. People who depend on MaineCare need a program they can count on, and taxpayers need to know their money is being spent properly. Both deserve better than repeated requests to cover another shortfall.
Audits alone will not close the gap. We also need to review programs, change those that are not working and stop spending money on things we cannot afford. Departments should explain what they spend, what people receive in return and how they plan to control costs.
I will oppose new taxes or fees to keep paying for spending the state cannot sustain. Maine families already have bills to pay. They should not have to keep finding more money because lawmakers will not make hard choices.
The next budget needs to put necessary services first and keep spending within what Maine can afford. That will mean saying no to some requests and changing how some programs operate. Making those decisions is part of our job, and we owe it to taxpayers to do it.
Copy the Story Link
Tagged: columns
