Author: Ben Gilman and Newell Augur

Question 1 on the ballot this November will read as follows: “Do you want to create the Universal Home Care Program to provide home-based assistance to people with disabilities and senior citizens, regardless of income, funded by a new 3.8% tax on individuals and families with Maine wage and adjusted gross income above the amount subject to Social Security taxes, which is $128,400 in 2018?” This language, however, doesn’t begin to describe what is buried in the proposed legislation. In fact, Question 1 includes provisions entirely unrelated to improving care for older and disabled adults — and in some cases with dangerous…