AUGUSTA — Following a threat by Gov. Paul LePage to end the sales of tiny bottles of liquor in Maine rather than allow lawmakers to require a nickel deposit on them, a bottler that employs 130 people in Lewiston withdrew its support for the compromise measure. Mark Brown, the chief executive officer of Sazerac Co., […]
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Lawmakers debate bill to allow wrongful-death suits for fetuses
AUGUSTA — A proposal to allow families to file wrongful-death lawsuits after a fetus dies is sparking disagreement in Maine, where some say the measure is an attack on reproductive rights. Backers of the bill say it’s a way for families to seek financial damages when a fetus dies due to neglect or default by […]
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State Senate endorses measure to keep teens out of tanning salons
AUGUSTA — For Sen. Amy Volk, one of the hazards of prom season is that teenage girls become so determined to look their best that they often turn to tanning salons to help give their skin a seemingly healthy glow. “I have known girls who have tanned just to go dress shopping,” the Scarborough Republican […]
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DHHS fired a public records coordinator — for releasing a public record
Maine’s top disease control office fired the person responsible for coordinating the release of public information after she permitted a public report to be sent to the Bangor Daily News in August. The move by Maine’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention to terminate Judy Gopaul, a six-year employee, highlights how Maine Department of Health […]
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Maine bill to release bonds for senior citizen housing advances
AUGUSTA (AP) — Maine lawmakers have advanced a bill to force the release of $15 million in bonds for senior citizen housing that voters approved two years ago, but an initial House vote fell short of the two-thirds majority needed to override the governor’s expected veto. The Democratic-controlled House on Tuesday voted 85-57 supporting the […]
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Gov. Paul LePage threatens to ban nips if 5-cent deposit passes
AUGUSTA — Gov. Paul LePage said he’d work to ban the sale of 50-milliliter alcohol containers if the Legislature passes a widely supported bill to extend the state’s bottle deposit law to include the so-called “nips.” The Republican governor’s threat came the same day that the Maine Senate voted 32-3 to approve the bill. It […]
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Welcome center for immigrants in Lewiston gains support
AUGUSTA — A proposal to add a welcome center for immigrants in Lewiston survived a committee session this week that stripped away a companion provision to create an Office of New Mainers to try to attract more newcomers to the state. With backing from the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee, the Legislature will consider whether […]
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Shenna Bellows’ bill would ban ISPs from selling customer browsing data
AUGUSTA — A Maine Democrat says her bill would ban internet service providers from selling their customers’ online browsing data to third parties without explicit consent. Roughly a dozen states have taken up measures in the last two months to enhance internet privacy laws following the defeat of protections proposed on the federal level. Sen. […]
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Paul LePage says selling drugs used in fatal overdoses is manslaughter
Maine Gov. Paul LePage, center, speaks to reporters at a news conference accompanied by Kellyanne Conway, an advisor to President Trump, far left, and U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Tom Price, right, after a meeting to discuss the state’s efforts to fight the opioid epidemic, Wednesday, May 10, 2017, at the State House […]
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Bill attempts to force Paul LePage to release housing bonds
AUGUSTA — Maine housing developers and affordable housing advocates hope lawmakers roundly support a Republican’s bill to release $15 million in bonds for senior housing that voters approved two years ago. Republican Sen. Roger Katz’s bill awaits a vote in the Democratic-controlled House, which next convenes Tuesday. Supporters have been waiting weeks for action on […]