With food and energy prices soaring, the one-time $850 inflation relief checks for Mainers could not arrive at a better time, but advocates for low-income families say renewing the Child Tax Credit would go further to set families up for the future.

Nationally, the monthly payments helped lift nearly four million children out of poverty, and when Congress allowed them to lapse, child poverty rose by more than 40%.

Kate Harvey, a former teacher and now a stay-at-home mother living with a disability, said the Child Tax Credit provided some stability during an unpredictable time.

"Being able to pay your cellphone bill on time and not have to play catch-up through accruing an extra fee, or worrying about a disconnect notice," Harvey recounted. "It was definitely impactful."

The Child Tax Credit helped families with more than 216,000 children across Maine. While conservatives in Congress say the program is too expensive, supporters say research shows the benefits -- in terms of better health, education and employment outcomes -- outweigh the costs 10 to one.

Claims the expanded credit would increase inflation or reduce parents' work ethic have not played out. Census surveys found when the monthly payments were being made, employment rose slightly more among people with children compared to those without.

Harvey noted she has spoken to many families in her neighborhood who also benefited from the tax credit and were able to plan for their futures, whether working or going back to school.

"We're not stashing in offshore accounts, or you know, throwing it at stocks and bonds," Harvey pointed out. "It's going directly into local businesses; local restaurants, even."

The number of families in Maine with children reporting they sometimes or often did not have enough to eat in the previous week has increased by 110% in the past year.

Other research showed children lacking enough food or secure housing are more likely to be in fair or poor health, and to be at developmental risk.

Ann Danforth, economic security policy advocate for the nonprofit Maine Equal Justice, said the Child Tax Credit gives families in need the dignity to spend the money how it works best for them. She thinks restoring it would improve everyone's economic security.

"We all do better when our neighbors and communities are doing well," Danforth contended. "I think that it's looking out for our neighbors -- which we as Mainers do -- and wanting to make sure that our neighbors are able to put food on the table, pay their rent."

The Child Tax Credit expired as the price of food, fuel and housing began to soar, leading more than 35% of Maine adults with children to report it was difficult to pay their regular household bills in September.

As the fall harvest season inches closer, Wisconsin farmers are hoping for promising yields but if the rural roads around them are crumbling, the outlook could change.

A state funding program is trying to make it less of a problem. Gov. Tony Evers' office just announced a second round of grant opportunities under the Agricultural Roads Improvement Program. Local communities have until Sept. 30 to sign up for project money, with $100 million up for grabs.

Julie Bomar, executive director of the Wisconsin Farmers Union, said many large trucks and farm equipment have trouble navigating certain county roads because of the shape they are in.

"In the era of corporate consolidation, it feels oftentimes like larger co-ops and corporations that are picking up milk just want to have the easiest route possible and don't want to get far off of the major highways," Bomar observed.

She suggested smaller dairy farms need every competitive advantage to stay profitable, and a smoother road for trucks hauling their products is one of them. Herd sizes have remained stable but federal data show the number of Wisconsin dairy farms has decreased by 30% since 2017.

It is not just traditional infrastructure, like roads, needing attention with Bomar arguing policymakers cannot lose sight of the processing gap felt by smaller- to mid-sized farms.

"Many of our members feel incredibly frustrated because there's nobody to choose from," Bomar explained. "There's only like one milk processor that's going to come by and pick up and that just leaves them in a very risky situation."

She wants to see rural processing facilities expand and be maintained. Back in June, a top U.S. Department of Agriculture official visited Wisconsin to announce $12 million in grant funding for the purpose. As for the state road repair program, the first round of funding awarded nearly $50 million, supporting 37 road improvement projects around the state.


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Nearly 100 local groups, officials and labor leaders welcomed federal and agency representatives to Sault Ste. Marie for a two-day discussion and listening session.

The meeting focused on fostering economic growth in the Upper Peninsula and northern Lower Michigan. The gathering organized by United Today, Stronger Tomorrow, and other community groups, highlighted promoting and accessing federal programs to meet community needs, such as lack of affordable housing and job creation.

Linda Hoath, executive director of the Sault Ste. Marie Visitors Bureau, feels the listening session was a huge success.

"What I saw was information being shared with many that hadn't been is shared before; how can we work together to help you?" Hoath observed. "I think it was one of the best things that has happened in the eastern UP in a very long time."

The historic funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and American Rescue Plan Act provided more than $650 million in the Sault Ste. Marie Lock and Dam rehab project and $2 million to upgrade the International 500 Snowmobile Race Track for year-round use.

During the listening session, participants identified barriers to federal investments in UP communities and drafted recommendations for the administration and federal agencies. They also learned about funding streams, formed community partnerships and built relationships with key officials.

Kalvin Carter, program director for Up North Advocacy, appreciated the discussion.

"It meant a lot to see them come into our small rural town and listen to us and help us strategize ways that we can use this historic investment wisely," Carter emphasized.

The goals of the listening session were to provide detailed feedback on federal funding flow, build a strong, well-paid workforce, transition to a new clean-energy future and continue collaboration beyond the session.


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Nebraska legislators are in the first full week of the special session focused on Gov. Jim Pillen's goal of decreasing property taxes by as much as 50%.

Among the groups keeping a close eye on the session and the governor's proposal is the Nebraska nonpartisan fiscal research organization OpenSky Policy Institute.

Rebecca Firestone, executive director of the institute, acknowledged they are still analyzing Pillen's plan and modeling its potential effects. She said it appears it would provide "substantial property cuts for large landowners," many of whom don't live in Nebraska.

"For the large portion of Nebraskans who do not own property, what we're looking at is a tax increase for them," Firestone argued. "It's a tax increase on some core aspects of daily living that for many Nebraskans of modest means will be hard."

Firestone cites sales taxes on automotive repair services as an example of a necessary service likely to become more expensive under this plan. A few of the other services to add sales taxes are veterinary services, hair cutting and legal services.

A document on the governor's website maintains with sales taxes, people are "in control," because they can decide what to purchase, when to purchase it and how much they are willing to pay.

In addition to new sales taxes, funding for the governor's plan would come from budget cuts, including to behavioral health, developmental disabilities and other health and human services programs. Firestone called the cuts unsustainable, potentially harmful and lacking in transparency.

"The methodology driving those cuts, which is from this contractor Epiphany and Associates, has not been made public to the people of Nebraska," Firestone pointed out. "Which is what the legislative process is for, and that needs to be a part of any rationale for budget cuts."

Firestone noted while OpenSky "appreciates the scope and ambition" of Pillen's plan, such a "major overhaul" of the state's revenue system warrants more than a special session.

"The Legislature must have the ability to exercise its oversight over how the state spends its money," Firestone contended. "To sort of redo that in a special session doesn't allow the kind of deliberation and careful scrutiny that our state budget deserves."

Pillen's website document states at the current rate of increase, property taxes in Nebraska will be increasing by $6 billion annually by 2026.