AUGUSTA, Maine — “Good jobs, strong wages.”
As the curtain opens on the 127th Legislature, that’s the tagline for what Democrats say will be their agenda for the next two years.
To get there, Democratic lawmakers will propose a series of bills aimed at workforce development, job training and college affordability, according to party leaders who assembled Tuesday in the State House Hall of Flags to tout their agenda.
The end goal is more, higher-paying jobs and a state economy that incentivizes young Mainers to stay in the state, and talented people from elsewhere to relocate here.
House Speaker Mark Eves, D-North Berwick, said that while the economic recovery has begun the state has only recovered about 56 percent of the jobs lost in the Great Recession.
“We cannot be satisfied with 56 percent,” he said. “We must be leading, not lagging.”
While the party didn’t unveil any specific proposals, Eves and Senate Minority Leader Justin Alfond, D-Portland, said the priorities outlined Tuesday would guide the efforts of Democratic legislators for the next two years.
Alfond said prioritizing workforce development and the attraction of good-paying jobs is necessary because too many residents — even those who work two or three jobs — are one check-engine light or heating oil price spike away from destitution. Maine’s wages are still 20 percent lower than the national average, he said.
“It’s like sitting on pins and needles, waiting for the other shoe to drop,” he said.
Alfond and Eves also revealed that Democratic legislators would embark on a statewide “jobs tour,” during which they’ll ask businesses about their needs and ideas.
House Republican Leader Ken Fredette, R-Newport, said he was happy to hear Democrats shift their focus to jobs and the economy after spending the last session focused on Medicaid expansion and the previous one, during which Democrats were the minority party, focused on opposing Gov. Paul LePage’s budget.
“It’s nice to hear the tone coming from the Democrats has changed over what it had been,” he said Tuesday.
Senate Majority Leader Garrett Mason, R-Lisbon, said the Democrats’ ideas were nothing new. He also said Republicans had already conducted a jobs tour.
“It was called the 2014 election,” he said.
Follow Mario Moretto on Twitter at @riocarmine.
