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Sociology

The University of Maine

Maine

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Full-Text Articles in Public Policy

Policy Changes For A Nutrition Education Program In Maine: Issues And Implications, Alan Majka, Janet C. Fairman, Kathryn Yerxa Jan 2013

Policy Changes For A Nutrition Education Program In Maine: Issues And Implications, Alan Majka, Janet C. Fairman, Kathryn Yerxa

Maine Policy Review

Food insecurity and preventable chronic disease have profound impacts on quality of life and health care costs in Maine. Many government programs have been developed to address these issues; however, effectiveness has often been limited by restrictive policies and less than optimal coordination. In this paper the authors draw upon their research and experiences in Maine, research conducted by others, and state and national statistics to elucidate some of these programs, including their efficacy, limitations, potential and threats to their sustainability. The authors contend that recent federal rule changes allow for greater impact through implementation of evidence-based strategies at the …


It’S Growing Season For Maine’S Food System, Deborah Felder Jan 2011

It’S Growing Season For Maine’S Food System, Deborah Felder

Maine Policy Review

In the introduction to this special issue, guest editor Deb Felder lays out the elements of a sustainable food system. She notes that the increased interest in more ecologically sustainable, safe, humane, and economical community-supported food systems has “put Maine in the forefront of the food movement.”


Revitalizing Maine’S Service Centers, John Melrose Jan 2003

Revitalizing Maine’S Service Centers, John Melrose

Maine Policy Review

Maine’s 77 “service center” municipalities account for a large proportion of all the state’s consumer retail sales, jobs, services, and tax revenues from income, sales and property taxes, and are home to most of the state’s higher education and health care institutions. However, John Melrose points out that Maine’s public policy turns “worse than a blind eye” to these communities. He presents the policy recommendations put forth in a strategic plan by the Maine Service Centers Coalition for supporting and strengthening service centers. These include leveling the financial playing field between service centers and other communities; improving local government administration …


Ten Years Of Affordable Housing Policy: Is Maine Making Progress-- A Symposium, Elizabeth H. Mitchell, Dennis P. King, James B. Hatch, Jay Hardy Jan 1999

Ten Years Of Affordable Housing Policy: Is Maine Making Progress-- A Symposium, Elizabeth H. Mitchell, Dennis P. King, James B. Hatch, Jay Hardy

Maine Policy Review

In December 1987 Governor McKernan appointed a 30-member, statewide task force to address the issue of affordable housing in Maine. The task force was charged with investigating the quality and cost of affordable housing for lower- and middle-income families, and recommending a set of actions to improve the quality of existing housing as well as to increase the supply of housing. In September 1998 the Task Force issued a report that prescribed a number of local and regional—as well as private and public—solutions to the problem of affordable housing. More than ten years later Maine housing advocates note that the …


A Challenge For The Next Decade: Preserving Affordable Rental Housing, Laura Burns Jan 1999

A Challenge For The Next Decade: Preserving Affordable Rental Housing, Laura Burns

Maine Policy Review

Many of Maine’s low-income families and elderly residents have been able to secure affordable housing with help from a Section 8 certificate, which allows residents to pay no more than 30 percent of their income toward rent and ensures the federal government will make up the difference. Over the years, much of the development of Section 8 housing projects has been assisted by financial incentives and agreements between private and non-profit owners and the federal government. Yet recent changes in federal legislation remove many of these incentives and the agreements that go with them. As a result, some of Maine’s …