AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Despite a threat from Gov. Paul LePage that he wouldn’t sign a supplemental spending bill, Maine lawmakers on Friday gave final approval to the measure aimed at balancing the two-year $6 billion budget that ends in mid-2013. The Maine Senate emphatically gave its final approval with a 35-0 vote that sent […]
Paul LePage
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Senate effectively kills bill that sought to remove public access to governor’s ‘working papers’
AUGUSTA, Maine — The Maine Senate on Wednesday voted unanimously to postpone indefinitely a measure that sought to exempt from Maine’s Freedom of Access Act any “working papers” created by the governor or members of his staff. Sen. David Hastings, R-Fryeburg, who supported the bill when it passed the Judiciary Committee, made the motion to […]
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Posted inMaine, sj-web
Teacher evaluation bill awaits LePage’s OK
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — A teacher evaluation bill that’s part of Gov. Paul LePage education reform package awaits the governor’s signature. The bill requires school administrators to develop comprehensive performance evaluation systems for teachers and principals. Teachers found to be ineffective would be allowed to implement professional improvement plans. It also sets statewide standards for […]
Posted inOur View
Profiting from pink slime; yay for Maine
Regarding Thursday’s editorial about pink slime, an alert reader pointed out an interesting fact that we missed. The U.S. Department of Agriculture official who approved the use of this slime, or “finely textured lean beef,” commonly added to ground beef over the objection of USDA scientists was then-Undersecretary of Agriculture Joann Smith. Her decision produced […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Panel rejects LePage move to eliminate MPBN funding
AUGUSTA – The legislature’s Appropriations Committee voted unanimously to reject Gov. Paul LePage’s proposal to eliminate all state funding for the Maine Public Broadcasting Network, saying the issue had become a “political football.” Several committee members spoke at a late Thursday night work session about the service MPBN provides as the anchor for the statewide […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Gov. LePage signs east-west highway bill
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Saying he sees an opportunity for improved commerce between Maine and Canada, Gov. Paul LePage on Thursday signed into law a bill setting aside $300,000 to study the feasibility of a privately funded highway connecting two Canadian provinces through Maine. During a brief State House ceremony Thursday, the governor signed the […]
Posted inBusiness, Maine, sj-web
Maine governor vetoes foreclosure bill
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Maine Gov. Paul LePage has vetoed a bill that supporters said would streamline foreclosure proceedings. In his veto letter, LePage said the bill would create more paperwork for lenders with little benefit for Maine residents. Rep. Roberta Beavers, the sponsor of the bill, said it would have protected homeowners by requiring […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Maine bill seeks end to day-care union rights
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — A bill submitted by Gov. Paul LePage would end collective bargaining rights for Maine family child care providers who are not state employees. The governor’s bill would repeal a 2008 law that gave nearly 300 child care providers the right to unionize, even though they are not state workers. LePage’s legal […]
Posted inMaine
LePage administration retools agency plan after concerns over power-grab
AUGUSTA — The LePage administration is revamping its plan to create a new streamlining agency following bipartisan concerns over the breadth of its investigative and subpoena powers. The proposed Office of Policy Management stems from the governor’s plan to dismantle the State Planning Office. In addition to a mission to find $1 million in annual […]
Posted inOp-Eds
LePage must restore trust if he’s to correct DHHS shortfall
All the time Gov. Paul LePage was insisting that 65,000 Mainers must be dropped immediately from the Medicaid rolls because the state couldn’t afford to pay for them, his administration was providing Medicaid benefits to 19,000 ineligible people. The significance of these events has still not quite sunk in at the State House, but it’s […]