AUGUSTA -- The Fed Up with Taxes Coalition today filed more than enough signatures with the Secretary of State to force a statewide vote this fall on $75 million of new taxes on beverages and health care claims, despite a well-financed campaign urging Maine people not to sign their petitions.
"Maine people now get to have the final say on these new taxes," said Newell Augur, Chairman of Fed Up With Taxes, a bipartisan coalition of Maine people, businesses and organizations that is leading the effort to repeal the taxes. "Voters from all over the state eagerly signed our petitions because Maine families are struggling in this difficult economy. This is absolutely the worst time to be raising taxes on beverages, health care or anything else."
Augur said that his group filed petitions containing more than 90,000 signatures with the Secretary of State, two days before the July 17 deadline. More than 80% of the signatures have been validated by municipal clerks. The signatures now will be reviewed by the Secretary of State's office. Even if some of the signatures are rejected by the Secretary for technical reasons, as is usually the case, Fed Up With Taxes has provided far more than the 55,087 signatures necessary to put the issue to a statewide vote in November.
The new taxes, passed late at night in the closing days of the last legislative session without any public hearing, increase the price of beer, wine, flavored water, teas, sports drinks, juices, colas and diet colas, and a host of other beverages, and add a new 1.8% tax on health insurance claims.
"With more than 90,000 signatures collected in less than 60 days, it's clear that Mainers are angry about these taxes, upset about the way they were passed, and are ready to join us in voting YES on November 4th", said Augur. "A majority of legislators thought they could slip this one by the voters in the middle of the night. Thanks to the success of the signature gathering effort, we now will have a chance to debate these taxes in the light of day. We are confident that Maine people will reject them soundly."
He added that the petition drive - conducted by both volunteers and a professional signature gathering firm - faced an unprecedented attempt to keep voters from signing. Supporters of the new taxes flooded the state with automated phone calls, direct mail and other communications in recent weeks urging people not to sign the people's veto petition. Their financial backing came almost exclusively from millionaire hedge fund owner S. Donald Sussman.
"Our filing today is not just a victory for the people of Maine, it also represents a major defeat for the politicians and special interests who desperately tried to convince Maine people that raising our taxes even higher is a good thing," said Augur. "We can certainly expect more of that as we head into November, but Maine people just aren't buying it this time."
Augur said that the Fed Up With Taxes coalition has already begun planning for the fall "YES" campaign. He also offered special thanks to the many municipal clerks around the state who had to verify the petition signatures before they could be turned in to the Secretary of State. "We know that clerks and their staffs had a lot of work to do in reviewing the signatures so that we could file this week. We appreciate their efforts."
