As our state’s population continues to grow older, we are spending more and more time thinking about how an aging demographic will impact our economy and well-being in the years and decades to come.
As a lawmaker, helping my fellow Mainers age at home and with dignity has been incredibly important to me. I’ve worked to ensure Mainers with mobility challenges have access to transportation and can afford to make improvements that allow them to remain in their homes. I also have supported measures that improve access to affordable housing for seniors. These efforts save money and improve quality of life in the long-run.
As the oldest state in the country, we have to be proactive about making our communities safe and welcoming to older Mainers. That remains at the top of the agenda, but a report released last month is turning the spotlight on another group of Mainers: our kids.
Each year, the Kids Count report makes available new data that shine a light on how children are doing in every state in the country. Measures considered by the report include health, family, education and economic well-being.
Many of us in Maine are feeling the effects of a tough economy. We have struggled to overcome the effects of the recession. We have faced devastating job losses as mills in a number of communities have closed or laid off workers. In 2015, we saw an estimated 2 percent drop in manufacturing output, and this year has continued to deliver bad news for working people.
As the rest of New England’s recovery has picked up steam, our growth has continued to lag behind. It is no surprise these challenges are affecting our young people, too.
The 2016 Kids Count report shows that the overall well-being of Maine’s young people actually has declined while nationwide averages have improved. According to the report, Maine’s ranking for overall child well-being has dropped five spots since just last year, down from 12th to 17th, putting us behind all our New England neighbors.
Roughly 35 babies are born in our state every day. Unless we turn things around, roughly seven of them will grow up in poverty. Too many parents are juggling multiple jobs, working hard to make ends meet, but they can’t seem to get ahead.
Many Mainers, including a large number of children, face hunger. We know that adequate nutrition is critical for students’ success and achievement. But for too many families it’s a challenge to meet their children’s basic needs, let alone invest in their future. We must support the important hunger relief efforts throughout our communities.
If we don’t address these problems now, our economy will continue to struggle as older Mainers age out of the workforce and today’s students come of age. A brighter future for our state is inextricably linked to the success of working families in the near term.
For all young Mainers to succeed, we need to invest in the next generation by supporting quality education from early childhood on. But the single most important factor to our kids’ success is an economy that works for all hardworking people.
While we know it will take a multipronged approach, I know we all can agree on the urgency of strengthening our economy. From keeping local property taxes in check to expanding access to high-speed internet for small businesses in rural Maine to improving our roads and bridges, we need a comprehensive approach to make our state competitive and successful in today’s economy.
Let’s make it our top priority to come together around bipartisan solutions to improve the economy and make life better for working Mainers, young and old, today and into the future.
Rep. Arthur “Archie” Verow is a Democrat serving his second term in the Maine House. He is a member of the Transportation Committee and represents the majority of Brewer.