Report cites highs, lows of state economy

AUGUSTA – Only three states have the “civic courage” to issue economic report cards each year, Gov. Angus King said Monday, as he unveiled the annual report from the Maine Economic Growth Council.

While Maine improved in many of the economic statistics measured in the council’s report, the rest of the country made similar improvements, leaving the state without real progress in national rankings, King said.

For the seventh year, the report issued gold stars for areas of improvement and red flags for identified problem areas.

Gold stars went to:

. Land conservation, with a 10 percent increase in areas where conservation is encouraged to a total of 1.2 million acres.

. Toxic chemical use, which dropped 44 percent. The report predicted a steady decrease until at least 2004. The use of toxic chemicals decreased from 474 million pounds in 1997 to 200 million pounds in 1999.

. International exports, which jumped 10 percent from 1998 to 1999 compared to a national increase of only 1.8 percent. The added exports were in semiconductors, paper, lumber and wool.

The problem areas that “require earnest attention” and earned red flags were:

. River pollution. Maine has 292 miles of rivers that are not suited for fish consumption because of high levels of dioxin. Fish consumption warnings have been issued for portions of the Penobscot, Salmon Falls, Sebasticook and Kennebec rivers and the entire Androscoggin River.

. Job growth among new businesses, which dropped to 43rd among the states, down from 39th the year before.

. New products and services, which have remained static despite a booming economy.

. Innovation assets, or technology resources. Maine has slipped from 45th to 46th among the states.

. Employer-sponsored training. Only 17 percent of Maine workers who earned less than $35,000 reported any employer-sponsored training during 2000.

. Lifelong learning. During a five-year period, Maine has failed to improve its lifelong learning rating, an indicator of attendance at an educational seminar, program or course during the previous year.

. Livable wages, defined as 85 percent above the poverty line, or $20,000 for a family of two. The number of Maine workers earning livable wages actually declined from 1998 to 1999.

. Smoking rate, which rose for the third straight year despite a number of programs sponsored by the state and funded by the tobacco settlement. The study reported that 31.4 percent of residents age 18-34 smoked cigarettes. Although studies of high school students showed decreases in smoking rates, “the state still has work to do in reducing the number of smokers in the state,” the study said.

. Tax burden compared to the rest of New England. Maine residents pay an average of $128 per $1,000 earned compared to the New England average of $110. “Given that Maine competes with other New England states to attract business and people, we are concerned with our comparative tax burden,” the report stated. King said Maine residents pay an average amount of taxes compared to all other New England states but because the state’s income is so low, the tax burden is higher.

Council co-chair Chellie Pingree said the group was created during the bitter period of government shutdowns in the early 1990s when state leaders wanted a method to study the state economy in a bipartisan manner and to plan for the future of the state. Co-chair Kevin Gildart, BIW vice president, applauded the “staggering” rise in exports and applauded the decrease in the use of toxic chemicals as a sign that business will work voluntarily on environmental problems without restrictive legislation.

House Speaker Michael Saxl said the state cannot make real progress without establishing a “livable wage” for all its residents. He noted that legislation to tie increased “livable wages” to state assistance programs failed in the last session. Maine is far above the national average of workers with multiple jobs, another indicator of the state’s economic problems, Saxl said.

Senate President Michael Michaud said the report should focus attention on the income disparity in northern and western Maine compared to the southern region.

Only New Jersey and Minnesota issue similar “report cards,” officials said.