AUGUSTA — A study commissioned by the Legislature and released last year has prompted lawmakers to propose several bills that would allow more casinos to join those in Bangor and Oxford, despite opposition from officials representing the two existing facilities. LD 1346, An Act to Establish a Comprehensive Gaming Policy, proposed by Rep. Diane Russell, […]
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Maine panel rejects bill to nix legislative term limits
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — A legislative committee has dealt a blow to an effort to repeal term limits for lawmakers. The State and Local Government Committee voted 10-1 on Monday in favor of rejecting Democratic Rep. John Martin’s bill. Martin, who returned this year for his 24th term in the Legislature, told the committee last […]
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Hayride safety: Maine lawmakers consider regulations
AUGUSTA — A hayride mishap that claimed the life of a 17-year-old Oakland girl last October at a farm in Mechanic Falls has Maine lawmakers grappling with what the state can or should do to try to prevent similar tragedies in the future. On Monday, the Legislature’s Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee heard testimony […]
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LePage wants more timber cut; Lawmakers want bonds released
CUMBERLAND — Gov. Paul LePage on Monday reiterated that he will not authorize roughly $11.5 million in voter-approved conservation bonds unless the Legislature approves a new plan to cut more timber on public land and use the new revenue to pay for heating assistance programs. Details were limited, but in a memo sent to lawmakers […]
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Lawmakers take up repeal of Maine’s Clean Elections law
AUGUSTA — A proposal to ask voters whether they want to repeal Maine’s Clean Election law has received a cool response from a legislative committee. The Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee began on Friday to examine Republican Sen. Eric Brakey’s proposal to place a measure on the November ballot to repeal the public-financing elections law […]
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Ban on shackling pregnant prisoners advances in Legislature
AUGUSTA, Maine — A measure to ban the shackling of incarcerated pregnant women won the approval of the Legislature’s Criminal Justice Committee on Friday. The bill, LD 1013, would allow for the shackling of pregnant women in Maine’s jails and prisons only in extraordinary circumstances, and would require documentation whenever restraints are used. The bill’s […]
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Maine lawmakers struggle to find funding solution for county jails
AUGUSTA — Lawmakers are struggling to find a solution for a looming county jail funding crisis that’s being driven in part by a dysfunctional Board of Corrections. The Legislature’s Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee on Thursday discussed legislation offered by state Rep. Ricky Long, R-Sherman, that would return control of the jails, along with […]
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Republicans propose cutting Maine Legislature’s budget
AUGUSTA — Republicans on Thursday made several proposals that would cut spending within the Maine Legislature’s budget. “It’s time to put the Legislature’s budget on the treadmill,” state Senate President Mike Thibodeau, R-Winterport, said in a prepared statement. Thibodeau said the cuts being offered would save Maine taxpayers an estimated $430,000 over the Legislature’s two-year […]
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Gun control groups release ads in Maine against concealed gun bill
AUGUSTA — Gun control groups are urging Maine residents to help defeat a bill that would allow people to carry concealed handgun without a permit. Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund and the Maine chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America released TV, radio and digital ads Thursday that claim that the […]
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People with intellectual disabilities oppose LePage-supported bill
People with intellectual disabilities and their families told lawmakers Wednesday that a measure backed by Gov. Paul LePage would hamper their ability to weigh in on significant funding changes to state services. Under the bill, the Department of Health and Human Services would no longer be required to hold a public hearing in the Legislature […]