Randy Billings is a government watchdog and political reporter who has been the State House bureau chief since 2021. He was named the Maine Press Association’s Journalist of the Year in 2020. He joined the Press Herald in 2012 as the Portland City Hall reporter, where his beat touched on a wide range of topics, including municipal government, immigration, homelessness, housing and social services. Prior to that, he worked at various weeklies as well as business and arts publications. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Maine, Orono. He lives in North Yarmouth with his wife and two children and enjoys the outdoors and playing his upright bass.
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PublishedJune 13, 2013
Lobster firm seeks processing space on Portland pier
Richmond-based Shucks Maine Lobster wants to lease nearly 19,000 square feet of space in the city-owned Portland Ocean Terminal on the Maine State Pier.
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PublishedJune 8, 2013
Backyard coops provide urban respite, generate cackling at city halls
Backyard chicken farming arrived in Maine cities about five years ago, when communities from South Portland to Bangor debated whether to allow the practice in urban settings.
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PublishedJune 3, 2013
Portland hospital planning $40 million expansion
Maine Medical Center has submitted preliminary plans for a $40 million expansion that would add four operating rooms to its Portland campus.
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PublishedMay 21, 2013
Officials plan to act on Maine restaurant oversight
Legislators will look into fixes after the Sunday Telegram reported that the state’s inspection program is one of the least rigorous in America.
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PublishedMay 19, 2013
Accessing, crunching the state’s results ultimately frustrate bid to create database
PORTLAND – Unlike in most other states, there is no easily accessible way for diners in Maine to look up the inspection history of their favorite restaurant. The inspection reports maintained by the state’s Health Inspection Program are accessible only through a time-consuming and costly manual process. Last fall, the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram […]
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PublishedMay 19, 2013
Why do failure rates vary across the state?
Insiders say a code is applied uniformly to inspect eateries, but using ‘common sense’ can still make results subjective.
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PublishedMay 19, 2013
Oversight of Maine restaurants diminishes, just as complaints rise
Maine’s guidelines for overseeing restaurant safety were quietly scaled back last year, even as the number of health-related complaints about Maine restaurants has been on the rise. An investigation by the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram has found that restaurant kitchens in Maine are subject to fewer inspections and less transparency than restaurants in much […]
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PublishedApril 28, 2013
Rentals in Portland hard to find, costly
The Portland area rental market is tight these days, and some are finding it difficult to land a good spot to call home.
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PublishedApril 5, 2013
Maine mayors to unveil $85M bond request Monday
The bond package, which would need legislative approval before going to voters, would fund education, research and development, transportation and environmental initiatives.
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PublishedMarch 7, 2013
Portland launches effort to ban polystyrene cups, plastic bags
The non-biodegradable, petroleum-based products cannot be recycled in a cost-effective way and pose a serious environmental and public health risk, the city says.
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