LEWISTON — The chief architect of a state tax reform plan that was rejected by the Legislature in 2013 said Friday that he sees hope on the horizon for a Gov. Paul LePage budget proposal that includes similar reforms. Former state Sen. Dick Woodbury, a Yarmouth independent, said LePage’s 2016-17 state budget proposal, currently being […]
budget
Posted inMaine, sj-web
LePage’s budget proposal aims to overhaul forest service
Eight months after vetoing a bill that would have armed Maine forest rangers, Gov. Paul LePage, in his budget proposal, is seeking to overhaul the Maine Forest Service by creating a new class of natural resources law enforcement officers under the Bureau of Forestry and removing the police powers of existing rangers. The budget plan […]
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Posted inMaine
Public health group warns of heavy budget cuts to Maine CDC
Health advocates are decrying proposed funding cuts in Gov. Paul LePage’s two-year budget that would “decimate Maine’s public health system,” including programs aimed at reducing smoking and staffing at the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. LePage’s budget “drastically” reduces funding for the state’s tobacco program and “all but eliminates” the Healthy Maine Partnerships, […]
Posted inRiver Valley
Mexico selectmen to ask town manager to reduce department budgets by 10 percent
MEXICO — The Board of Selectmen voted 3-1 Tuesday evening to ask the town manager to draft a budget for the 2015-16 fiscal year that attempts to reduce each department’s budget by 10 percent. Selectmen Albert Aniel, Byron Ouellette and Andy Dupuis voted in favor of the motion, while Selectman Reggie Arsenault was the lone […]
Posted inRiver Valley
MDOT receives $11.1 million to replace Mexico-Peru bridge
MEXICO — The Maine Department of Transportation will begin replacing the Androscoggin River Bridge, located between the towns of Peru and Mexico, sometime in 2016 or 2017. The plan to replace the 85-year-old bridge began in 2014, after MDOT declared that the bridge was structurally deficient and at the end of its useful life. While […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
What you need to know about the 2015 budget
AUGUSTA — Friday’s late afternoon release of Gov. Paul LePage’s biennial budget proposal didn’t leave lawmakers or reporters much time to digest the contents of the document, which spans hundreds of pages. More details will emerge in the coming days, along with plaudits and criticisms from the constituencies that LePage’s ideas will help or hurt. […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
LePage says his tax overhaul is different from the 2009 effort
AUGUSTA — Republican Gov. Paul LePage’s plan to overhaul Maine’s tax code could put some GOP lawmakers in the tough position of having to throw their support behind an idea they once opposed — and used to attack Democrats in order to get elected. But LePage is trying to make the case that his proposal […]
Posted inMaine
LePage budget plan reforms Maine tax policy
AUGUSTA — Gov. Paul LePage on Friday made good on his promise to “go after” Maine income taxes in his next two-year budget. LePage’s 2016-17 spending plan for state government includes sweeping reforms to Maine’s tax policy, dramatically changing the sources of state revenue from the income tax to a broader and higher sales tax. The […]
Posted inMaine
Democrats leery of LePage’s proposal to cut income taxes
AUGUSTA — Legislative Democrats were hesitant Thursday to embrace a proposal to eliminate Maine’s income tax, which could be a key pillar in the next budget proposal from Republican Gov. Paul LePage. LePage’s next two-year budget is due to lawmakers Friday. On Wednesday, the governor was clear that the state’s income tax was in his […]
Posted inFranklin
Farmington selectmen to take first look at proposed budget requests
FARMINGTON — The Board of Selectmen will take their first look at the proposed 2015 town budget when they meet at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 6, at the Municipal Building. The special meeting was scheduled to allow each department director to present their requests to the board prior to the Budget Committee starting work on […]