This is my plan for a new Maine. It starts with the premise that attracting, creating and keeping jobs in Maine is the foundation for bringing hope and prosperity back to our state. Government has not, cannot and will not provide enough programs for our state to thrive. A healthy economy fueled by a strong job market will always be a greater benefit for our people.

You know that politicians have been promising to solve Maine’s problems for decades. Yet they don’t deliver because after they get elected and their campaign rhetoric ends, they make political compromises and don’t make the hard choices they promised. But I’m not part of the government class, and I pledge not to let political compromises stand in the way of making Maine a better place for all its citizens.

It’s time for bold, new leadership to take on Maine’s most pressing issues and fix them the right way. Maine will grow with a new leader who has the experience of running businesses in the private sector, and who has actually brought jobs to our state.  Maine can be a competitive and world-class place in which to live and work, but we’ve got to do things differently. And that takes new leaders. I invite you to join our cause. It’s our time. My plan for a new Maine includes the following:

1. Attract new jobs to Maine: Maine will be the location of choice for expanding companies from all over the country and the world. This is critical for you, for your children and for your community. Right now, taxes are too high, regulations too many and our job market is seen as weak. Our reputation has been tarnished. Let’s change that. Let’s make Maine a place where you can earn an honest living and feel that government takes just enough – but not too much. As Governor, I will improve our reputation and lead the state’s economic development efforts.

How it will happen: There are several ways to make Maine a more attractive place for out-of-state businesses to relocate. That includes eliminating Maine’s costly corporate income tax, and streamlining state permitting and regulatory approval processes. I also will establish a Governor’s Opportunity Fund that would earmark money for grants or loans to help attract new companies and create new jobs.  With more private-sector jobs in Maine, we will be able to substantially lower Maine’s high state income tax rates to be competitive with other states.

2. Keep our people and our current jobs in Maine: We can keep people, jobs and companies in Maine by making it easier for businesses to expand, grow and hire. I will work with Maine companies to ensure they have the tools they need to stay open and to keep our jobs and people in our state.

How it will happen: Keeping existing Maine companies strong means making our state more affordable with a more business-friendly environment in Maine. I pledge to do that by increasing the availability of tax credits for business investment, and making sure Maine’s businesses aren’t unfairly squeezed by onerous permitting and regulatory approval processes. I will push for a business cost-matching tax credit that would keep other states from recruiting away our Maine businesses. And let’s finally make a meaningful change to keep our people in Maine: we will eliminate the state’s punitive estate tax and the income tax on military retiree pensions.

3. Create new jobs from within Maine: We want our children and grandchildren to finish school, start companies of their own, and stay in Maine to raise their families. Entrepreneurs young and old must be enabled to succeed. Great ideas can and should come from Maine people. I’ll support their entrepreneurial efforts.

How it will happen: Fostering innovation is the best way to create new jobs in Maine. In addition to a 100% seed tax credit that will spark an increase in investment to startup companies, I plan to create fully funded business incubators at the University of Maine and the University of Southern Maine. There’s no reason the next Google can’t come from the University of Maine System.

4. Transform Maine into the easiest state in which to do business: Excessive regulations cause us to lose jobs and businesses. Through my administration, Maine’s permits and regulations will be simple to understand and to comply with. With a one-stop shop to oversee permits and regulations, companies will be able to quickly expand, move and create jobs here in Maine.

How it will happen: I will develop a responsible and efficient regulatory process. I will overhaul and streamline the state’s regulatory approval process to make it easier for businesses to stay within the state’s guidelines. That includes mandating that decisions on regulatory applications must be made within 120 days, and that routine business applications will be decided in 48 hours or less.

5. Produce the best workforce in the world in Maine: Not everyone needs to go to a four-year college, but 100% of our kids must graduate from high school. We can develop real skills, trades, and careers through one-, two- or four-year post-high school technical or college programs. Companies will create jobs here based on the reputation and quality of our workforce. We don’t need to spend more money on schools – we need to spend it smarter. I will fix our school structural problems and improve student outcomes, integrating learning with job opportunities.

How it will happen:  I pledge to restructure our educational system to recognize the interdependence of education, whether it’s pre-kindergarten or post-graduate studies. I will establish funding mechanisms that will take advantage of economies of scale, and will eliminate funding competition between different educational levels. I also believe Maine’s universities must match course offerings and degree programs with existing and emerging employment opportunities. These initiatives and more will help us reach the goal of 90% of Maine’s high school graduates earning a one-, two- or four-year degree within six years of high school.

6. Promote Maine as the top state to which young people and families will want to move: For communities to thrive, they need families, and families need jobs. Maine has the most industrious and friendly people in the nation. But we are losing our young people and we are the oldest state in the country. Instead of facing declining K-12 enrollments, we must increase the number of children in our schools by attracting more families to our communities.

How it will happen: More jobs and a more varied employment market will make Maine a much more attractive destination for young people and families, and will enable the state’s current crop of young people to build careers. And as I recruit outside jobs to Maine, I will focus those attraction efforts to areas with a lower median age.  We will also eliminate the state income tax on the earnings of active duty military personnel to keep these families in Maine.

7. Advance Maine as the nation’s tourism leader: Maine is Vacationland, but we are missing out on significant economic opportunities by not taking full advantage of the millions of tourists who come to Maine for our beautiful scenery, delicious food and amazing vacation spots. We must strive for a record number of visitors to our lakes, ports and mountains.

How it will happen: Maine must look at tourism as more than selling visitors a lobster dinner and a place to stay. We must re-imagine what tourism can mean to Maine: One such idea includes aggressively recruiting cruise ship lines to dock here in Maine while also offering cruise ship companies incentives to locate their headquarters here. It means provisioning ships with the best food and supplies Maine has to offer, and repairing cruise ships in the state’s many shipyards, and crewing those ships with Maine Maritime Academy graduates. Looking at tourism in a new way will open up larger opportunities for Maine.

8. Guarantee that Maine energy and power costs will be among the cheapest in the nation: Our energy prices are too high for Mainers to afford. We must be vigilant in lowering those costs. Maine will also reasonably increase production of our own alternative energy sources, and I will lead the effort to partner with and become a passageway for other power sources – lowering the energy costs for Maine families and businesses.

How it will happen: We will negotiate agreements with Bangor Hydro/Emera to build a line to transport clean, low emission power from Canada through Maine via the Maine Turnpike to points south while providing Mainers with low-cost electricity. Each year, Maine will collect tens of millions of dollars for that line, creating a funding stream to winterize all Maine homes. Proposed LNG and offshore wind projects must not languish in regulatory purgatory; we will create a streamlined regulatory process for such projects. We will become leaders in alternative energy by creating an energy research center at the soon-to-be-redeveloped Brunswick Naval Air Station.

9. Reward healthy Maine lifestyles with low health insurance costs: Too much regulation has burdened our people with out-of-control health costs and taxes. Lowering surcharges, fees, and taxes can be accomplished by better individual and employer-based wellness programs and welcoming additional health insurance competition to Maine to lower costs for our families. Maine’s healthcare reforms will prevent a government bureaucrat from coming between the patient and the doctor.

How it will happen: Step one is putting an end to Dirigo Health, a well-intentioned but ultimately disastrous experiment. We will change Maine’s onerous mandates and promote employer-based wellness programs. These changes will welcome greater competition in the health insurance market. I will design and implement these healthcare reforms with the overall goal of improving patient outcomes. Any reform will be able to predict and measure its success through the use of metrics and frequent evaluations.

10. Devise a smarter and better way to deliver Maine government services: Maine taxpayers cannot sustain the oversized government we have today. We can provide better government services to those who truly need them while curbing unnecessary state spending and lowering our tax burden.

How it will happen: The key to creating a smarter and more efficient government is more private-sector jobs. With more jobs, our taxes can be lowered. With more jobs, fewer families and individuals will need a safety net. I will restructure our outdated tax code and our government agencies to be more responsive and based on performance and outcomes.