We were disappointed with the outcome of some of Maine’s November ballot questions, including Question 2, which will now require adding a 3 percent tax on individuals with a taxable income above $200,000 to help fund K-12 public schools. We weren’t surprised that it passed, just disappointed. We knew that many voters supported the referendum because they wanted to help school children, always a top priority with most folks. Still others saw it as a way to make “rich’’ folks pay their “fair share.”

We have a problem with both arguments.First of all, the bill reminds us of LD1994, introduced here in Maine in the early 1970s and signed into law in 1973 in which the state taxed communities according to their property valuation and redistributed the money via an educational fund, primarily benefiting poorer school districts. Local communities here on the peninsula and other property-rich coastal towns forked over thousands of dollars which the state doled out to school systems elsewhere. Thanks to a  determined Garland  crusader, Mary Adams, who refused to accept this kind of unfair taxation in her home state,  the law was overturned in 1977 but there are those to this day who will never give up their efforts to take from the high valuation “rich’’ communities and “give to the poor.’’

We see the new law as an attempt to penalize those in the higher income brackets, and feel it is just one more step backwards in our efforts to improve our economy. Why, if you were a successful young businessman or woman, would you want to stay in, or move to, Maine with this added tax, especially since our state already has the distinction of having one of the highest tax rates in the country?  As for how the new educational dollars will be spent, well, peninsula residents, don’t wait for the gravy train to head your way anytime soon. We’ve been virtually funding our own schools for years, and we might add have been quite successful at it, thanks to the support of taxpayers. Our buildings are well maintained, we continue to attract highly qualified teachers, and the success of our students is well documented as they continue to excel in everything they do.

We think this new law is very unfair by penalizing successful Maine residents and by the method in which it will distribute the newly acquired education funds.  We’ll be anxious to see if it backfires on us all and if we’ve cut off our nose to spite our face.