Bruce Poliquin

Bruce Poliquin is a Maine politician and investor. From 2011 to 2013, he was the State Treasurer of Maine.^[1] He was a candidate for the Republican nomination for the United States Senate in 2012, finishing second in the primary election.

Personal

Poliquin was born and raised in Waterville, Maine. He grew up in a family of French-Canadian ancestry, where his father was a school principal and his mother was a nurse . He received a scholarship to attend Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts and later attended Harvard University, where he studied economics, graduating in 1976. After leaving Harvard, Poliquin entered private business, including a position with Harris Trust and Savings Bank in Chicago.^[1] In 1989, he married Jane Carpenter, whom he had known in Waterville, but she died in a swimming accident three years later. He has one son. He lived in Georgetown, Maine until December of 2013 when he began living in Oakland in order to reside in the Maine's Second congressional district which he is running for.

Gubernatorial campaign

In 2010, Poliquin sought the Maine Republican Party's nomination for Governor of Maine. He spent $711,000 of his own money and over $798,000 in total, but finished sixth of the seven candidates behind winner Paul LePage. After his unsuccessful bid, Poliquin campaigned strongly for LePage, calling him a true fiscal conservative.^[2] Following the election of Republican Paul LePage in November 2010, Poliquin was elected by the state legislature to serve as state Treasurer.^[2]

State Treasurer

In the fall 2011, Poliquin criticized the Maine State Housing Authority for its plans to underwrite federal tax credits to redevelop an historic property in Portland's West End, 68 High Street. The vacant lot at 66 High Street and 68 High Street were planned to turn into Elm Terrace, a low-income facility with 38 units. Poliquin criticized the proposed unit price of $314,00, though the state housing authority never agreed to the price. Dale McCormick, the authority's director and an appointee by Democratic Governor John Baldacci, approved the proposal following a reduction in the per unit price to $265,000. McCormick noted that the average per unit cost in the West End was approximately $220,000 and the building had to be rebuilt to include elevators and other code requirements, while Poliquin argued that it was better and more cost effective to place low income housing on the outskirts of towns and cities.^[3]

In February of 2012, Poliquin faced criticism from Democrats over allegations he conducted commerce while serving as State Treasurer, which would have been a violation of Article V, Part 3 of the Maine Constitution. One allegation involved his ownership of the Popham Beach Club, a private club in Phippsburg, where he appeared before the Planning Board in a matter involving the club. A second alleged instance of commerce involved his real estate company Dirigo Holdings LLC. Maine Attorney General William Schneider advised Poliquin to disassociate himself from his business ventures but did not offer an opinion as to whether he had actually violated the Constitution. The Maine Legislature, after pressure from Democrats, voted 122-0 to send the matter to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court for review, but the Court declined to do so. ^{[4] [5]}

Also that month, Poliquin faced criticism from the left over his use of the Tree Growth Tax Program, a program meant to preserve forestland from development pressures for commercial timber harvesting, with 10 acres of his oceanfront property in Georgetown. The program reduced the value of his property from the originally assessed $1.8 million to $725,500, resulting in Poliquin paying $30 a year in property taxes on the otherwise valuable land. ^[6] A Maine Forest Service report in 2009 discussed Poliquin's property as an example of a property that may not be fully complying with the law, stating that restrictions on timber harvesting in shoreland areas would limit any commercial use of the land. They did state, however, that as long as the property was 10 acres, it could remain in the program. ^[7]

Poliquin later transferred the property in question to the Open Space program, a less generous tax abatement program. The Town of Georgetown Board of Selectmen unanimously approved the transfer, and declined to pursue penalties for removing the property from Tree Growth. Poliquin denied that he took his actions due to any alleged improper use of the Tree Growth program, and stated that the issue was a distraction for the Town and was politically motivated due to Democrats' dissatisfaction with his policies as Treasurer. ^[6]

At the end of his term, Poliquin wrote an op-ed in the Bangor Daily News with a list of what he believed to be his accomplishments as Treasurer. These included reforms to the State workers' pension plan, his efforts to reduce the cost of affordable housing, reduced wasteful spending, and retention of the state's Aa2 bond rating, among other initiatives. ^[8]

Post-Treasurer career

In March 2012, Poliquin announced he would be running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Olympia Snowe.^[9] He lost the Republican primary to Charlie Summers, who himself lost to Independent former Gov. Angus King.

Poliquin stated on July 10, 2013 that he was not interested in becoming the Chairman of the Maine Republican Party, despite encouragement to do so from many Republicans, including Gov. LePage. ^[10]

It was revealed on August 25th that Poliquin decided to enter the Second Congressional District race, despite residing in Georgetown in the First District at the time. ^[11] By December of 2013, he had begun to reside in Oakland within the Second District, according to his campaign. ^[12]

References

External links

• Bruce Poliquin official site
• Column archive at The Daily Caller