I’m disappointed in my local representatives. They campaigned on rooting out welfare fraud and have failed to take action against the most egregious example.

The Finance Authority of Maine’s New Markets Program is slated to pay out more than $35 million to out-of-state “investors” — for investments that have been labeled as sham transactions. This is blatant corporate welfare fraud. These sham transactions promised new business and jobs for Maine people, but didn’t actually invest a penny in Maine’s economy.

Gov. Paul LePage and elected Republicans would have you believe that individual welfare bums are where the real welfare fraud and waste is. The state has ordered between $100,000 and $250,000 yearly in restitution for individual welfare fraud cases. It would take 150 years of individual fraud restitution to equal $35 million.

So, you would think that when lawmakers have the opportunity to prevent waste, that they would jump at the chance. The Maine House in a roll call vote overwhelmingly supported the stoppage of these $35 million in corporate welfare fraud payments. Unfortunately Republicans in the State Senate came together to prevent stoppage and gave away your tax dollars.

Sen. James Hamper voted to give away $35 million. Rep. Tom Winsor voted to give away $35 million. Rep. Skip Herrick voted to give away $35 million. Rep. Kathleen Dillingham was absent.

I would have voted to stop the payments and fix the New Markets Program.

Colin O’Neill, Oxford