Maine news, sports, weather | Kennebec Journal, Augusta, Maine

HOUSE DISTRICT 80: Wing, Simond vie for right to run

By Ethan Wilensky-Lanford ewlanford@mainetoday.com
Staff Writer

Democratic voters in Monmouth, Wales, and Litchfield will have a choice of two candidates in a House District 80 primary.

One candidate is a 39-year-old education technician at Monmouth Academy upset with the school district consolidation process; the other is a small-business owner who would like to see the state create a better business environment.

Scott Wing, the ed tech and recreational director for the town of Monmouth, said he always has been interested in politics, and is running because he would like to bring jobs to his district.

"Probably the biggest thing that everybody in the state is hurting for is good-paying jobs," he said, "and in this area, especially."

Tax incentives could be used to attract and retain businesses, Wing said. He would also like to encourage people to build or buy houses with tax incentives, presumably in a manner similar to the federal government's tax credit expiring this spring.

"There's no magic wand out there that would just bring jobs to the state," he said. "Because, if there was, they would have done it by now."

Wing said he would focus on education, and that it was important local school districts are able to retain programs people in the communities want.

"So much of the decision making authority has been taken away from the local communities," he said.

School consolidation may have looked good originally, he said -- and seems to have worked well for Wales and Litchfield, but people in Monmouth were very upset by the process, he said.

Wing would support a temporary 1 percent increase in the sales tax to fund education, he said, so that the state would be able to meet its 55 percent education funding commitment.

"I think that property tax is probably the most unfair tax that there is," he said.

He said that, if elected, he would evaluate all state services in order to ensure they were as efficient as possible.

Although Wing said he believes some people abused the system, social services are important in difficult economic times.

"You have to have that safety net there for people when times get tough," he said.

Raymond Simond, 71, said he wants to serve in state government because he wants to change how the system is run.

"I am currently very, very disenchanted with government, as are a lot of people," Simond said. "I'm not going up there because I want to make friends."

He said that many of the state departments are "top-heavy" with management jobs, including political appointments.

"We need a lean, trim government that is responsive to the people of Maine," he said, "and we need to get away from the old-boy, business-as-usual mentality."

Simond said he was not running to serve as state representative because he wanted a career change, and might not want to stay longer than a single term.

"If I cannot make anything meaningful occur in two years up there, I'm gone," he said.

As with Wing, he isn't happy with how school union consolidation occurred.

"There are benefits to be gained," he said, "but the towns that are involved in it have to think alike and work alike. In our (regional schoool unit) -- RSU 2 -- it's divorce time."

Simond said the state could have a major role creating jobs by promoting education -- including education that did not try to prepare everybody for colleges. He said Monmouth suffered when the school lost its industrial arts program in consolidation.

"We can't have all of our kids go to college," he said. "There are hands-on people, that are probably creative. If you don't offer them something, they will probably drop out of school."

He said education was a "key component" for job growth and attracting new businesses.

The winner of the June 8 primary will run against the winner of a three-way Republican primary in the general election for the seat being vacated by Rep. Nancy Smith, D-Monmouth.

Ethan Wilensky-Lanford -- 620-7016

ewlanford@mainetoday.com