Our young people are leaving Maine in droves. By median age, Maine is the oldest state in the nation. Our economic, societal, and political
consequence of this exodus of youth has many repercussions to our future as a viable state.

The economic impact of losing our best, brightest and most motivated youth is impacting our ability to support government services. When you have young entrepreneurs with wealth creating ideas flee from our state, the burden for paying for the welfare state falls directly on the working man and woman, and there are fewer of us every year.

The societal impact of losing our youth is damaging as well. Families become estranged, and the loss of relationships impacts our loves. Our communities lose the vibrancy they once had when our communities were more balanced among age groups.

The loss of our youth creates a political environment that is less confident of the future, more resistant to change, and more likely to expand entitlement programs. To turn this tide, we must be prepared to embrace many new ideas and question how we are currently managing our resources.

As Governor, I would support new initiatives to create opportunities which nurture the environment that young people desire. The following are some of these ideas:

  • Work closely with universities and colleges, local economic development groups and Councils of Government to establish incubators for new young start-ups, utilizing the skills learned by our young graduates.
  • Work in developing the creative economy into incubator business campuses.
  • Create a world class virtual medical school for a healthier Maine.
  • Invest in science and technology to attract sustainable jobs.
  • Reform our State tax and regulations codes.
  • Invest in the State’s public transportation infrastructure.
  • Improve education standards to have our students ready for the workforce.
  • Create revolving low interest loan opportunities for innovative and creative start-up businesses.
  • Become the “Food Basket” to the Northeast by investing in our Agriculture infrastructure.