Instead of bemoaning Mainers’ lack of cash for living expenses (“Many Maine households struggle to cover basic expenses, report finds,” June 1), Maine Equal Justice should encourage more Mainers to participate in the workforce, work more hours and be more productive.

Mainers trail in all of these measures compared to other New Englanders.

Mainers have the lowest labor participation rate in New England, at only 59.4%. Likewise, Mainers work 34.3 hours per week, lower than any other New England state.

Maine also has the lowest productivity at $55,000 GDP per capita. New Hampshire is $68,000 GDP per capita, Vermont and Rhode Island have $57,000 GDP per capita. Connecticut and Massachusetts are at $79,000 and $90,000 GDP per capita.

Gross domestic product per capita is not just determined by how hard one works. If businesses deploy more capital to make workers more efficient, productivity rises. How do businesses obtain capital? By earning profit, or by convincing investors who have saved earnings, to invest in productivity-increasing measures.

Instead of welcoming the wealthy to Maine, state legislators discuss new ways to confiscate their capital. This even forces existing Maine investors to leave.

It doesn’t stop with capital. Maine added a paid employee leave tax, which reduces people’s income, and — thanks to green energy mandates — Maine had the third-highest increase in electricity prices in the country between 2014 and 2024 .

Timothy Michalak
Cumberland