Zachary Earl Smith

I’m glad to see so many are taking an interest in the campaign, and the campaign is going well, very well. I will also be updating the website some more here soon for those who are also interested. Aroostook County is facing some truly challenging issues. One key issue we are going to have to address is Maine’s youth out migration rate in particular The County’s, which is quite alarming. You might be thinking when compared to all the problems we are facing how does this one issue compare to the rest? The key thing to the out migration problem is that its roots are founded in the whole gambit of issues we are facing. In order to solve this one problem solutions for the others must developed and implemented simultaneously, that they are in fact all connected and not isolated issues but go hand in hand. According to census data, Aroostook’s youth out migration rate was over 40% and the state average was over 20% (population decline in 20-34 year olds since 1990).

One can imagine that at those rates it won’t be too long before Maine is in a serious crisis. In order to see positive growth in the economy, we need to make it easier to do business in this state, and part of that means having a workforce, and one that has the skills necessary for working in the information age. It’s a rather interesting problem, as people leave Maine because they can’t get the high paying jobs they want here, and yet those same businesses don’t come here because we don’t have the workforce here. There needs to be a comprehensive approach to the out migration problem, as solving this problem goes hand in hand in solving our economic woes. State spending has reached record levels and has to be limited and reduced. Combine that with tax reform and cuts, and no doubt there would be an immediate positive impact felt across the state. This would stimulate business expansion and create the jobs that Mainers are seeking.

The rising cost of education is also a problem, because if Mainers can’t get the affordable quality education they want here, they’ll leave to get it, and once gone they will stay gone. Businesses need well educated employees, and in the new global economy if Maine is going to compete we need to make education a top priority to make sure our workforce can compete. Another way to boost business and put more money in our pockets, which would also stimulate our economy, is the development of alternative energy sources. Bio-fuel refineries could be constructed (maybe at our old military bases) to process crops grown here in Aroostook County (like sugar beats, canola, mustard, etc.), and then that fuel could be piped down state or even exported else where (imagine fuel tanker ships carrying fuel made in Maine). In the mean time more green energy might be nice, although I think Loring would make a nice location for a good old fashioned oil refinery. Either way with a significant investment in new technologies we could meet our own energy needs, decrease our foreign dependence, and significantly lower our energy costs. Lower energy costs will make Maine more attractive to business, let us keep more of our money, and we can develop these sources while balancing economic development and environmental responsibility.

All this would undoubtedly not only end our out migration problem, but dramatically change the economic climate in Maine for the better. A better direction is definitely what we need, and I look forward to the rest of the campaign ahead.

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