9 votes short of ending a shutdown. #mepolitics https://t.co/842As1xhIK — Chris Cousins (@Storytiller) July 3, 2017 Updated 1:59 p.m.: AUGUSTA (AP) — Maine’s partial government shutdown stretched in to its third day Monday with state employees and union activists calling for Republicans to support a budget compromise that could end the stalemate. The state Legislature failed […]
Paul LePage
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Paul LePage says he wants a budget, not more delays
AUGUSTA (AP) — Republican Gov. Paul LePage urged lawmakers to put aside “petty egos” and send him a budget on Sunday as a legislative panel sought common ground on a proposal promoted by House Republicans who torpedoed the previous spending bill. LePage posted a Facebook video in which he chastised Republican Senate President Michael Thibodeau […]
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Gov. Paul LePage hammers Senate GOP on budget proposal
Gov. Paul LePage has again vowed to shut down state government if the Legislature votes for an increase in the lodging tax, which the governor himself proposed in February and which was resurrected Wednesday by Senate Republicans. That proposal drew fire from LePage on Thursday, who accused Senate President Mike Thibodeau, R-Winterport, of just wanting to “go home” […]
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Analysis: Today is the day to reach state budget deal to avoid shutdown
It’s the day of reckoning in Augusta. We’ve been giving you updates on the state budget process day after day and ticking off a number of deadlines by which lawmakers must act or cause a government shutdown. Today marks perhaps the hardest deadline yet. The six-member conference committee formed by legislative leaders two weeks ago […]
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Gov. Paul LePage visits Washington on Wednesday
AUGUSTA (AP) — Republican Gov. Paul LePage is headed to Washington, D.C., as a state budget shutdown looms large back home in Maine. The Trump administration invited the governor to participate in an energy-themed event on Wednesday. LePage’s office declined to provide details. LePage has been fighting to lower energy costs, saying Maine’s high energy […]
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Paul LePage says government may shut down but state parks won't
AUGUSTA (AP) — Maine Republican Gov. Paul LePage may not think the state government can stay open because of a budget dispute, he is optimistic that state parks will stay open. Sides agree that a shutdown at the start of tourism season would be costly. But LePage told WVOM-FM Tuesday that “the future of Maine […]
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Gov. Paul LePage: 'We’re going to shut down Friday night'
AUGUSTA — Gov. Paul LePage said Tuesday it’s worth putting state government into a shutdown to ensure the two-year state budget lawmakers are struggling to pass won’t harm Maine’s economy for the next decade. LePage, speaking during a radio interview on WVOM, accused Democrats of backing measures that will “do damage” to the state, namely […]
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Paul LePage tells Dems to pass GOP budget or there will be a shutdown
A Friday meeting between Gov. Paul LePage and the Legislature’s top Democrat inflamed partisan tension at the State House and made clear that, even if lawmakers pass a budget this week, state government could shut down Saturday. A Democratic account of that meeting was circulating around Facebook during the weekend, saying the Republican governor told […]
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Gov. Paul LePage signs food sovereignty bill into law
AUGUSTA (AP) — A new law will let Maine towns regulate local food production without requiring state and federal rules. Republican Gov. Paul LePage recently signed Democratic Sen. Troy Jackson’s bill into law. The bill received strong support in the House and Senate. Democratic Sen. David Miramant called the bill a first step toward promoting […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Gov. Paul LePage says no to 'noxious' spinach bill
AUGUSTA — Water spinach sounds like something Popeye would appreciate. But Gov. Paul LePage has a different take on the vegetable. A tasty green that’s long been a staple in Southeast Asia and Brazil, water spinach is listed as a federal noxious weed under the U.S. Plant Protection Act. As one of 112 federally recognized […]