Democrats in Maine have presented bills raising the top rates on income tax and capital gains to 11% on high earners. As history shows, this will make our state even poorer.

Decades ago, Maine, New Hampshire and Utah had comparably average household incomes and tax structures. Those average income numbers and tax structures have seen a large separation. Average household incomes in 2023 are now $101,200 and $98,780, respectively, in Utah and New Hampshire, while Maine has fallen far behind at $75,740. Utah and New Hampshire are also rated first and fourth for the lowest income inequality. New Hampshire has no income tax and Utah’s highest rate is 4.55%.

Utah has become the second-largest location in the country for clean, high-tech, environmentally friendly businesses. These businesses are concentrated around Salt Lake City, while the state’s vast and spectacular wilderness areas remain virtually unchanged.

Maine is presently ranked by WalletHub as the fifth highest overall taxed state, which has already greatly stifled attracting clean, environmentally friendly, high-tech businesses. Such businesses use high salaries and stock options (think capital gains) to attract the best and the brightest. In turn, these ultra-high earners spend money on a vast myriad of small and large businesses, contribute to charities and significantly increase the economic well-being of the state and communities in which they reside.

I am sure that legislators would like to raise our state’s low economic ranking. Making our state possibly the highest overall taxed state in the country is demonstrably not the way to achieve this.

Peter Anastos
Yarmouth