Maine chamber, business groups, oppose campaign finance referendum

The Maine State Chamber of Commerce and other business groups Wednesday came out against Question 1 on the November ballot.

The chamber and more than a dozen industry associations and other business groups said they object to the way the expansion of the state’s public campaign financing system would be funded: by eliminating $6 million in corporate tax breaks.

The chamber and the other groups say they aren’t taking a position on whether to expand the Maine Clean Election Act, but they’re opposing the referendum question because they don’t think funding meant for economic development should be used to finance candidates’ campaigns.

“Our concern is really about that part of the question that does not appear in the question,” Maine State Chamber President Dana Connors said in an interview with Mainebiz. “It’s the part of the law that people won’t see, and they need to understand.”

The other groups, largely made up of industry association, include Maine Retail Association, the Manufacturers Association of Maine, Maine & Co. and the Maine Department of Community and Economic Development.

The question doesn’t define the list of business tax incentives that would be eliminated.

Instead, it directs the Legislature’s Taxation Committee, if the referendum is approved, to report out a bill to permanently eliminate corporate tax expenditures totaling $6 million in each two-year budget, with the Office of Program Evaluation and Government Accountability determining which tax breaks offer little or no demonstrated economic development benefit, the Portland Press Herald reported.

“That’s $6 million that’s there intended to grow our economy and create jobs and will instead be used to fund candidates running for public office in the state,” Connors said. “That’s not the highest and best use for that $6 million.”

The referendum would expand Maine’s taxpayer-funded campaign system by increasing the allocation from $4 million to $6 million in each two-year budget and making more money available to publically funded legislative and gubernatorial candidates, the Bangor Daily News reported.

The head of the coalition running the pro-Question 1 campaign sent a statement to the BDN saying that eliminating low-performing tax breaks wouldn’t hurt the economy and that the question would strengthen the state’s democracy and increase transparency.