Jackson competes for District 35 seat
Name: Troy Dale Jackson
Age: 44
Hometown: Allagash
Political Party: Democrat
What other political offices have you held? If none, what other offices, honors or titles have you earned? Maine House of Representatives (District 1), 2002-08, Chairman, Labor Committee (124th Legislature), Chairman, Inland Fisheries & Wildlife Committee (123rd Legislature), Chairman, Henderson Brook Bridge Reconstruction Task Force, Chairman, Citizen’s Trade Policy Commission, Chairman, Harness Racing Commission, Member, Governor’s Task Force on the Sustainability of the Forest Products Industry, Univ. of Maine at Fort Kent Alumni Association’s Outstanding Young Alumni Award 2004, Maine Educator’s Assoc. Friend of Education Award 2009, Solidarity Award presented by the Maine Labor Council 2011, Edie Beaulieu Legislative Award presented by the Maine AFL-CIO 2011 and Professional Logging Contractor’s Legislator of the Year 2012.
What is your career background? I have worked in the forest products industry for 26 years, most of them as a logger. When I initially graduated from high school, I worked at a small cedar sawmill in Allagash. In the late 1980s I began running a delimber, a piece of mechanized equipment that removes the limbs from tree length logs. To this day, when I’m not in session I work in the woods as a delimber operator. Several generations of my family before me were loggers and this year I was proud to have my son join me in the profession. Last winter I had the great fortune of working on the job site with him.
What made you decide to run for this office? I decided to run for office after I became frustrated with unfair labor practices that were being decided in Augusta and hurting northern Maine’s workers, businesses and families. My father and I had purchased our own mechanized logging equipment in the mid1990s and despite the initial success of our small business, we couldn’t keep up with cheaper, insourced foreign companies. I watched my hometown’s school close and its population dwindle, knowing the same was happening in other Aroostook County towns. I decided to run for office because I believed northern Maine needed a voice in Augusta. And I still do. Since being elected, I’ve dedicated myself to making sure that Augusta knows what we’re experiencing in northern Maine. I believe that our best days can be ahead of us and that our abundant natural resources offer incredible opportunity for a local economy that is innovative, able to adapt, and creates jobs. Working people and small business owners are not just the backbone of our economy; they’re our friends, neighbors and family members. To this day, I am motivated and enthused at the prospect of helping folks who just want their hard work to be rewarded with a fair shot at climbing the ladder of success.
What do you see as the most important issue facing Aroostook County? Aroostook County’s history has been one of outside influences too often deciding its future. Consequently, our young people continue to leave, our industry has withered, and the population of our communities has declined. But we know that the character of Aroostook County is one of hard work, resilience, and determination. This is why I believe that despite the struggles of the last few decades we can find a way to restore growth by focusing on what we’re good at and what we do best. The potential is here for new industries that can develop by utilizing the resources of our forests, farmlands, and natural beauty. This is crucial because working people need steady, good paying jobs in order to sustain a strong middle class. A strong middle class means a strong economy.
What do you see as your primary goal, if elected? If re-elected, my primary goal needs to be to continue to foster an atmosphere that will allow entrepreneurs to create jobs. During the last two years in Augusta, the legislature has focused on initiatives that have hurt working families and small business owners. Much to my dismay, in 2011, the Legislature passed an Insurance Rate Hike Bill that astronomically increased the burden of healthcare costs on rural business owners. I vehemently opposed this Rate Hike Bill knowing it would hurt business, kill jobs and leave people here in Aroostook without healthcare. It has done exactly that and we can’t afford bad policy like this. One of my top priorities when I return to Augusta will be to continue to fight to overturn this irresponsible bill. We need good, stable jobs here in Aroostook and my focus is to direct Augusta to do what it will take to make that happen.
