WASHINGTON — Nine months after police in riot gear dispelled racially charged protests, President Barack Obama is prohibiting the federal government from providing some military-style equipment to local departments and putting stricter controls on other weapons and gear distributed to law enforcement. The surprise announcement comes after the White House suggested last year that Obama […]
politics
Posted inMaine
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 […]
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Posted inMaine
Exclusive: State House Republicans offer plan counter to LePage on state budget and taxes
AUGUSTA — Gov. Paul LePage has promised he would campaign against any lawmaker who opposes his efforts to reduce and eventually eliminate the state’s income tax. But a tax-reform plan being offered by LePage’s Republican allies in the State House falls far short of the governor’s proposal, setting up the possibility that they will face […]
Posted inMaine
Democrats on Maine taxation committee reject LePage referendum bill
AUGUSTA — On a mostly party-line vote, a legislative committee Wednesday rejected a proposal by Republican Gov. Paul LePage that would ask Maine voters to repeal the state’s income tax by 2020. The proposal seeks to put a ballot question before voters in November that would amend the state’s constitution to prohibit a state income […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Video: LePage presses Congress to streamline energy permitting
Gov. Paul LePage starts at the 49 minute mark. LePage testified Wednesday before a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee considering a pair of bills aimed at reducing regulatory burdens on hydropower projects and speeding up permitting for natural gas pipelines. He suggested that activists are using the current system to slow down projects. “Overzealous activists […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Maine lawmakers vote to sustain, override LePage vetoes
AUGUSTA — The House and Senate have voted to override several bills vetoed by Gov. Paul LePage. The House voted 119-27 Wednesday in favor of overturning LePage’s veto of a bill that gives lawmakers control over plans to offer keno. The House also kept alive a proposal to increase filing fees for transmission line projects. […]
Posted inLewiston-Auburn, Maine
Lewiston lawmaker wants to limit cash withdrawals of welfare benefits
LEWISTON — A Lewiston Democrat is offering a bill that would limit the amount of cash welfare recipients could withdraw on state-issued electronic benefit transfer cards to 25 percent of their monthly benefit amount. The bill, LD 1097, proposed by state Sen. Nate Libby, also would restrict the use of Maine-issued EBT cards to Maine […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
LePage heads to Washington to testify on federal energy policy
AUGUSTA — Gov. Paul LePage is en route to Washington, D.C, where he’ll testify Wednesday before to the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s subcommittee on energy and power. The hearing, chaired by Rep. Ed Whitfield, R-Kentucky, will focus on Republican-backed proposals to expedite the interstate natural gas pipeline permitting process and streamline hydropower licensing and […]
Posted inMaine
LePage presents plan to reduce Maine’s welfare cliff
AUGUSTA — A Gov. Paul LePage plan aimed at moving more Mainers from welfare to work by allowing them to more gradually transition from public support as they gain income got a lukewarm reception from an organization that advocates for the state’s poor Tuesday. During a news conference earlier in the day, LePage rolled out […]