Maine’s affordability checks leave a sour taste | Letter

Brunswick resident writes letter to Press Herald over state’s $300 “affordability checks”

A letter to the editor in the Portland Press Herald on Sept. 8, 2026, from Alan Shaver of Brunswick, Maine, raises questions about a state program that has been distributing $300 checks to residents.

Shaver, who is in his 80s, said in the letter that he and his wife have “provided the funds necessary for approximately 21 of those checks” over the first three quarters of the year. He made it clear that they had no expectation of receiving a check themselves.

The checks are part of a new state initiative, announced by Gov. Janet Mills earlier this year, that is intended to help low‑income residents cope with rising living costs. The program has been featured on the front page of the Press Herald in a story titled “How 5 Mainers are using their $300 affordability checks.”

In his letter, Shaver criticized the political leadership behind the program. He said he did not want “any expressions of gratitude from those who do receive the checks,” but that recipients should “bear in mind their debt to Gov. Janet Mills and to Democratic candidates Hannah Pingree and Troy Jackson, who burdened us with a government none of us can afford.” He added that he and other taxpayers in their 80s are “rapidly disappearing” from the state, and that “others will ‘vote with their feet,’ leaving Maine even older and poorer than it already is.”

Shaver closed by urging that when “it becomes obvious to the remaining voters what Mills, Pingree and Jackson have done to them – not for them – I hope they make sure Mills, Pingree and Jackson understand just what they think of it.”

The letter was published under the “Featured Letter” tag and the “Letter to the Editor” tag on the Press Herald website. No response from Gov. Mills, the candidates, or state officials has been reported at this time.