AUGUSTA — The court master overseeing the Riverview Psychiatric Center in Augusta has suggested reopening group homes on state grounds to relieve a space crunch. Daniel Wathen, a former Maine Supreme Judicial Court chief justice, told a legislative committee Tuesday that even though not every bed is occupied, some of the 53 patients at the […]
legislature
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Task force drops proposed amusement tax, submits new plan targeting business tax breaks
AUGUSTA — The panel charged with reducing or eliminating $40 million in tax breaks to prevent further cuts to revenue sharing put forward a plan Monday that may fall short of meeting that goal. Gone from the plan are proposals floated last week to tax entertainment, recreation and personal care services, which were deemed too […]
advertisement
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Maine lawmakers consider expanding pre-kindergarten programs
AUGUSTA — Proponents of expanding early childhood education opportunities in Maine lobbied the Legislature’s Education Committee on Monday in favor of a bill that would give every Maine child the opportunity for a pre-kindergarten education. While some members of the committee said they appreciated the opportunity to delve into an issue outside the constraints of […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Maine lawmaker pushes statewide pre-kindergarten
AUGUSTA (AP) — A state lawmaker is urging Maine to pass legislation that would require every school district in the state to offer pre-kindergarten programs. Bill sponsor Sen. Eloise Vitelli told the Legislature’s Education Committee on Monday that early childhood education plays a critical role in determining a child’s future. The Arrowsic Democrat’s bill would […]
Posted inMaine
Lawmakers ax bills on pot and welfare reform; accept human trafficking and veterans housing proposals
AUGUSTA — Legislative leaders Thursday rejected a bill that could have put the issue of legalizing marijuana on the lawmaking agenda for the session that begins in January. Portland voters earlier this month overwhelmingly approved a city ordinance that makes legal the possession of up to 2½ ounces of marijuana for recreational use by adults […]
Posted inMaine
Lawmaker sponsors bill to revoke MaineCare ride contracts
AUGUSTA — A Democratic lawmaker has introduced a bill to revoke Maine’s contracts for a troubled non-emergency transportation program. The bill introduced by Senate Democratic Leader Troy Jackson of Allagash was admitted by a bipartisan panel of legislative leaders on Thursday for consideration next session. The MaineCare rides program has received reports of missed rides […]
Posted inMaine
Lawmakers challenge LePage on contract for Medicaid critic
AUGUSTA — Key state lawmakers, including a Lewiston senator, are questioning a nearly $1 million contract to hire a consultant to study an expansion of Medicaid in Maine. Lawmakers also are questioning the consulting firm’s objectivity and why Department of Health and Human Services officials in Republican Gov. Paul LePage’s administration awarded the no-bid contract under […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Lawmakers to reconsider rejected bills for 2014 session
AUGUSTA — Maine lawmakers whose bills were rejected last month will have one more shot this week to convince legislative leaders that their measures merit consideration when they meet again in January. The Legislative Council, a bipartisan panel of House and Senate floor leaders and presiding officers that decides what bills are heard next session, approved […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
LePage threatens to sue Legislature over state budget
AUGUSTA — Gov. Paul LePage has threatened to sue the state’s budget-writing Appropriations Committee if they do not balance the state budget in the next session. Speaking to a group of Kiwanis Club members in Dexter on Nov. 15, the governor lamented “gimmicks” used to balance the budget approved by the Legislature in July. LePage […]
Posted inMaine
Maine Legislature’s energy docket set for full slate in 2014
AUGUSTA — The cost of energy in Maine, its production and transmission, as well as whether the mix of renewable sources is balanced, will continue to be debated at the State House in 2014. Lawmakers on the Legislature’s Energy, Utilities and Technology Committee have spent their past few meetings honing up as they prepare to […]