From RepJohn.Richardson at legislature.maine.gov Wed Sep 27 11:54:26 2006 From: RepJohn.Richardson at legislature.maine.gov (Richardson, RepJohn) Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2006 11:54:26 -0400 Subject: [House Speaker] Report from the Regional Economic Development Forums, Wednesday, Sept. 27, 2006 Message-ID: <0D2815B2ECEEE44D903521FCDCEE706C01DFFC47@charm.sh.mainelegislature.org> Update from the Speaker of the House Wednesday, September 27, 2006 In this Update ... Note from the Speaker Our tour of Regional Economic Development Forums has been off to a very positive start. More than 125 people attended the forums in Damariscotta, Rockland, and Lincoln and gave us some excellent information about their visions for their region, and the tools/solutions that will help make those visions a reality. The solutions were different in each location, but some themes cut across all of them. Foremost, people believe that the state needs to invest in Maine people and Maine industries, such as marine and natural resources, research and development, technology, and tourism. What is clear to me, so far, is that we must continue to push agressively for bond issues that will go to support investment in these areas. We know that investing in R&D, for example, draws millions of dollars in additional federal and private matching funds, all of which goes to create high paying jobs at our universities, colleges, and in private industry at places like Jackson Laboratories in Bar Harbor and elsewhere. In addition, the research that is conducted in these locations results in spinoff businesses that keep graduates in Maine, and result in successful new companies. I and other Democratic leaders have fought hard for these investments, and maine people have consistently supported these efforts when they go to the ballot box. All bond issues must first go to the voters for approval. It is my hope that people who care about continued economic development in Maine will ask Republican legislators to pledge their support for new bonding to invest in R&D, training, and the road and bridge infrastructure necessary to build Maine's economy and create high paying jobs. Please share your thoughts on bonds, economic development, and any other matters with me by going to my website and clicking on Contact Us. You can also go there to learn more about the Economic Development Forums, as well as the results of last year's Small Business Initiative. Thank you, John Richardson Did you know? According to "congressional Quarterly State Fact Finder, 2005," Maine ranked 40th lowest with respect to the corporate income tax burden in 2004. Let's talk about What's Right with Maine. Click here for more facts about Maine's economy . * Economic Development Forums address regional needs * Three more forums coming up * Information about last year's Small Business Initiative Charting the Course for Maine's Regional Economies Forums offer vital local input With three forums completed and three more to go, we have already compiled lots of good ideas from you, the local experts, on how to invest in the state's regional economies. What we heard Here are just a few of the recommendations we heard. In Damariscotta (Waldoboro Labor Market Area): * Need for a bypass around Wiscassett so tourists, residents, and businesses can get to and from the region more easily. In Rockland (Rockland and Camden Labor Markets): * Need for higher education, such as a branch of the community colleges, closer to home. Stronger efforts to keep youth at home. In Lincoln: * Beef up the local airport for economic development. Click here to read the full report from the first three forums. Dates set for remaining forums Forums scheduled for Farmington, Augusta, and Sanford Be sure to attend one of the forums in your area: Farmington Thursday, Oct. 12, 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. North Dining Hall, University of Maine, Farmington Augusta Tuesday, Oct. 17, 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. Lecture Hall, City Hall, Augusta Sanford Tuesday, Oct. 24, evening Location to be determined Click here for more information, or to register for the forums. The Small Business Initiative Last year's Small Business Initiative was a resounding success, with 13 out of 16 bills passing - all with unanimous and bipartisan support. In fact, the success of the model we used - going out to people in the community for feedback and suggestions - was so successful, it is the model we are following for the current Economic Development Forums. Among the highlights, we passed legislation to: * Establish a Consumer and Commercial Court to speed up business and other cases. * Make it easier for small businesses to bid on state contracts. * Do a better job of providing business assistance services to small businesses in Maine. * Create an Office of Small Business and Entrepreneurship dedicated to the needs of small businesses. * Create the Maine Regulatory Fairness Board to hear testimony and recommend changes in legislation to support small businesses. Learn more about the Small Business Initiative by clicking here. Keep informed More information at speaker.maine.gov . Participating in the legislative process You have a right and a responsibility to make your voice heard in Augusta! You can find a list of committee members here. Click here to learn more about testifying on a bill or submitting written testimony. Click here to find your local state representative or senator. 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Name: not available Type: image/jpeg Size: 26710 bytes Desc: image001.jpg Url : http://mailman.informe.org/pipermail/housespeaker/attachments/20060927/bd767427/attachment-0009.jpe From RepJohn.Richardson at legislature.maine.gov Wed Sep 27 12:37:02 2006 From: RepJohn.Richardson at legislature.maine.gov (Richardson, RepJohn) Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2006 12:37:02 -0400 Subject: House Speaker Update: Report from the Regional Economic DevelopmentForums, Wednesday, Sept. 27, 2006 Message-ID: <0D2815B2ECEEE44D903521FCDCEE706C01DFFC48@charm.sh.mainelegislature.org> Update from the Speaker of the House Wednesday, September 27, 2006 In this Update ... Note from the Speaker Our tour of Regional Economic Development Forums has been off to a very positive start. More than 125 people attended the forums in Damariscotta, Rockland, and Lincoln and gave us some excellent information about their visions for their region, and the tools/solutions that will help make those visions a reality. The solutions were different in each location, but some themes cut across all of them. Foremost, people believe that the state needs to invest in Maine people and Maine industries, such as marine and natural resources, research and development, technology, and tourism. What is clear to me, so far, is that we must continue to push agressively for bond issues that will go to support investment in these areas. We know that investing in R&D, for example, draws millions of dollars in additional federal and private matching funds, all of which goes to create high paying jobs at our universities, colleges, and in private industry at places like Jackson Laboratories in Bar Harbor and elsewhere. In addition, the research that is conducted in these locations results in spinoff businesses that keep graduates in Maine, and result in successful new companies. I and other Democratic leaders have fought hard for these investments, and maine people have consistently supported these efforts when they go to the ballot box. All bond issues must first go to the voters for approval. It is my hope that people who care about continued economic development in Maine will ask Republican legislators to pledge their support for new bonding to invest in R&D, training, and the road and bridge infrastructure necessary to build Maine's economy and create high paying jobs. Please share your thoughts on bonds, economic development, and any other matters with me by going to my website and clicking on Contact Us. You can also go there to learn more about the Economic Development Forums, as well as the results of last year's Small Business Initiative. Thank you, John Richardson Did you know? According to "congressional Quarterly State Fact Finder, 2005," Maine ranked 40th lowest with respect to the corporate income tax burden in 2004. Let's talk about What's Right with Maine. Click here for more facts about Maine's economy . * Economic Development Forums address regional needs * Three more forums coming up * Information about last year's Small Business Initiative Charting the Course for Maine's Regional Economies Forums offer vital local input With three forums completed and three more to go, we have already compiled lots of good ideas from you, the local experts, on how to invest in the state's regional economies. What we heard Here are just a few of the recommendations we heard. In Damariscotta (Waldoboro Labor Market Area): * Need for a bypass around Wiscassett so tourists, residents, and businesses can get to and from the region more easily. In Rockland (Rockland and Camden Labor Markets): * Need for higher education, such as a branch of the community colleges, closer to home. Stronger efforts to keep youth at home. In Lincoln: * Beef up the local airport for economic development. Click here to read the full report from the first three forums. Dates set for remaining forums Forums scheduled for Farmington, Augusta, and Sanford Be sure to attend one of the forums in your area: Farmington Thursday, Oct. 12, 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. North Dining Hall, University of Maine, Farmington Augusta Tuesday, Oct. 17, 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. Lecture Hall, City Hall, Augusta Sanford Tuesday, Oct. 24, evening Location to be determined Click here for more information, or to register for the forums. The Small Business Initiative Last year's Small Business Initiative was a resounding success, with 13 out of 16 bills passing - all with unanimous and bipartisan support. In fact, the success of the model we used - going out to people in the community for feedback and suggestions - was so successful, it is the model we are following for the current Economic Development Forums. Among the highlights, we passed legislation to: * Establish a Consumer and Commercial Court to speed up business and other cases. * Make it easier for small businesses to bid on state contracts. * Do a better job of providing business assistance services to small businesses in Maine. * Create an Office of Small Business and Entrepreneurship dedicated to the needs of small businesses. * Create the Maine Regulatory Fairness Board to hear testimony and recommend changes in legislation to support small businesses. Learn more about the Small Business Initiative by clicking here. Keep informed More information at speaker.maine.gov . Participating in the legislative process You have a right and a responsibility to make your voice heard in Augusta! You can find a list of committee members here. Click here to learn more about testifying on a bill or submitting written testimony. Click here to find your local state representative or senator. ABOUT THIS SERVICE Please forward this message to others who you think would appreciate this service. If you received a forwarded copy of this message, you can sign up for these updates . If you wish to stop receiving these updates, send an e-mail message to: mainehousedemocrats-business-request at informe.org with the word "unsubscribe" in the text of the message. If you have trouble unsubscribing, or have questions about this service, send email to david.connertymarin at legislature.maine.gov. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://mailman.informe.org/pipermail/housespeaker/attachments/20060927/1c8a5f5f/attachment-0001.html -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... 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