AUGUSTA — The Democratic chairmen of the Legislature’s energy committee Tuesday said they were encouraged by Gov. Paul LePage’s proposal to use carbon auction revenues to directly lower businesses’ electricity costs and help homeowners abandon costly oil heating systems, rather than invest all proceeds in energy efficiency initiatives. The Democratic chairmen of Legislature’s Energy, Utilities […]
Maine
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Emergency bill would shield identities of Maine concealed weapons permit holders from public
AUGUSTA — A proposal to keep the identities of concealed weapons permit holders secret is working its way through the Legislature in an emergency bill that already has more than 60 legislative sponsors, the majority of them Republicans. “An Act to Ensure the Confidentiality of Concealed Weapons Permit Holder Information” came before the House of […]
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Maine lawmakers and farmers flock to support turkey control bills
AUGUSTA — It may not be a good year to be a turkey in Maine. Especially if a host of bills aimed at controlling the state’s burgeoning wild turkey population take flight in the state Legislature. A bipartisan covey of lawmakers, who are also farmers, lined up Tuesday to testify in support of a bill […]
Posted inMaine
Spruce Mountain students ask lawmakers to allow youth hunters to shoot anterless deer
AUGUSTA — Some could barely reach the microphone, but their voices were heard loud and clear Tuesday as a group of Spruce Mountain Middle School students asked a panel of lawmakers to change the state’s deer-hunting rules. The students, all boys, testified before the Legislature’s Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Committee on a bill that would […]
Posted inLewiston-Auburn
Lewiston lawmaker seeks bonds for downtown redevelopment and passenger rail
AUGUSTA — A pair of bills introduced Tuesday by state Sen. Margaret Craven, D-Lewiston, would bring as much as $38 million in state bonding to the Twin Cities. One measure asks for $18 million in state-backed bonds to upgrade the rails from Yarmouth to Auburn in the hope of bringing passenger train service to the […]
Posted inMaine
Maine lawmakers look to close gap in budget
AUGUSTA — With the clock ticking, state lawmakers on the Legislature’s Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee went back to work to close an estimated $118 million state budget gap Monday. Lawmakers are running out of time on the bill, which needs to balance the state’s budget for the current fiscal year, ending in June. So […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Man’s body found in Penobscot River after storm
PORTLAND — The body of a Maine man who became disoriented in blinding snow and drove his pickup into the Penobscot River was recovered Sunday following a massive snowstorm that buried the region and left officials warning that the cleanup could take days, and possibly weeks, to complete in Maine and New Hampshire. Gerald Crommett, […]
Posted inFranklin
Snowmobilers take up cause for Lewiston girl
RANGELEY — Despite Mother Nature’s toughest winter challenge, 157 snowmobilers and a Western Maine community kept a promise to raise money for a little girl and others with cystic fibrosis. Ayisha LeMont, 5, came from Lewiston with her mother, Michelle, and her grandparents, Teri and Chris Bureau, on Friday night to stay ahead of the […]
Posted inMaine
LePage declares limited state of emergency
AUGUSTA — Gov. Paul LePage has declared a limited state of emergency for the State of Maine, clearing the way for Canadian power crews to assist state utility crews in the event an on-going blizzard causes wide-spread power outages. LePage issued the order about 3 p.m. as all state government offices closed for the weekend. […]
Posted inMaine
Maine governor draws cheers at gun-rights rally
AUGUSTA — Gov. Paul LePage drew cheers as he spoke to more than 100 people who turned out for a gun-rights rally outside the State House despite Friday’s snowstorm and bitterly cold temperatures. “While I’m your governor, they will not infringe on your rights,” LePage said. “The Constitution is very, very clear, and free people, […]