AUGUSTA — A bill enabling cities and towns to better address blighted and abandoned properties gained the unanimous support of the Legislature’s Judiciary Committee on Wednesday. “Because of abandoned properties in my hometown, we are faced with blight, public safety hazards, theft, vandalism and demolition costs at the taxpayers’ expense,” Sen. Nate Libby, D-Lewiston, said […]
Maine
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Maine Senate approves bill for bicentennial license plate
AUGUSTA — History buffs and others who are excited about the state being free from Massachusetts for two centuries can show it with a new license plate, if a bill approved by a unanimous vote of the state Senate on Tuesday becomes law. The bill, LD 1273, sponsored by Sen. Garrett Mason, R-Lisbon, would allow […]
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Bill aimed at helping cities fight blight hits roadblock
AUGUSTA — A bill that seeks to give Maine cities and towns more power to deal with abandoned and blighted properties is held up in a legislative committee because of opposition from bankers. The bill, LD 1203, sponsored by state Sen. Nate Libby, D-Lewiston, places a host of new requirements on financial institutions once they begin […]
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Eves pitches $5 million in public-private partnerships for job training
AUGUSTA — With so many Mainers looking for work, it can be hard to imagine that there are employers out there waiting to write paychecks for employees they just can’t find. But that’s exactly the case for certain industries that require workers with skills that just can’t be found in the pools of the unemployed, […]
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Legal battle over brain-damaged baby prompts Maine bill
AUGUSTA (AP) — Lawmakers in Maine are considering changes to the state’s policies regarding life-sustaining treatment for minors after an 18-year-old mother went to court last year to fight a state-imposed do-not-resuscitate order on her brain-damaged daughter. Legislators are examining a bill that would prevent the state from withholding life-sustaining treatment for a child in […]
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Gov. LePage wants to dramatically expand drug testing of welfare recipients
PORTLAND (AP) — Gov. Paul LePage wants to further crack down on drug use by welfare recipients by eliminating food stamps and cash payments to families for recipients with a drug conviction. He also wants to require screenings that could result in drug testing for all participants in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. […]
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Biologists say early snow helped Maine’s deer hunters have a big harvest year
AUGUSTA (AP) — Maine’s state biologists say early snowfall helped the Pine Tree State’s deer hunters have a productive year in 2014. Officials said deer hunters in Maine harvested 22,490 deer in 2014. The total is the second-highest of the past six years. State Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife deer biologist Kyle Ravana said […]
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Maine Legislature eying plan to expand tax credit program for student loans
AUGUSTA (AP) — A bill that’s moving forward in the Legislature would allow more people to take advantage of a program that helps graduates pay off their student loans. Senate Democratic Leader Justin Alfond’s bill would allow Maine residents who’ve graduated from out-of-state schools to qualify for the Educational Opportunity Tax Credit. It would also […]
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GOP plan offers $380 million in income tax relief; Democrats question how it will be paid for
AUGUSTA — Republican leaders in the Maine Legislature on Friday made official their proposal for the state’s next two-year budget that includes an income-tax cut they say will save Mainers $380 million. Parts of the proposal, first leaked Thursday, shows a plan that diverges significantly from what Republican Gov. Paul LePage had asked for in his […]