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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PublishedMay 27, 2020
Guard’s mask-fitting mission helps in battle against coronavirus
The Maine National Guard is helping long-term care facilities prepare for possible outbreaks by fitting workers with medical-grade masks normally used in hospital settings.
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PublishedMay 22, 2020
Maine fails to deliver online inspections as restaurants reopen in pandemic
Officials planned to update the state’s inspections database five years ago, but it still hasn’t happened.
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PublishedMay 16, 2020
Bangor police investigate shooting involving people in 2 cars
They’re looking for the occupants of two four-door sedans in connection with the incident Friday night at York and Essex streets.
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PublishedMay 16, 2020
Racial disparity in Maine’s COVID-19 cases deepens
But in one of the whitest states in the country, there is also growing concern about stigmatizing immigrant and minority communities.
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PublishedMay 7, 2020
Racial disparity grows along with Maine’s number of virus cases
Blacks and African Americans make up 1.6% of Maine’s population but more than 6% of its coronavirus infections.
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PublishedMay 7, 2020
Increase in arrests of Portland’s homeless worries civil liberties group
Police say the rise in arrests is due to many factors. The ACLU is concerned about introducing the coronavirus into the county jail.
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PublishedMay 5, 2020
Shortage of swabs hampers COVID-19 testing in Maine nursing homes
Most of the facilities that responded to a survey said they lacked the basic tool to detect the disease.
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PublishedApril 30, 2020
Newly released data suggest ‘alarming’ racial disparity among Maine’s COVID-19 cases
African Americans account for 1.7% of the state’s population but 3.7% of the state’s infections. The state CDC director says, ‘These disparities are concerning.’
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PublishedApril 30, 2020
Thousands of Mainers turning to program that helps renters and landlords
In less than 2 weeks, 5,000 people have applied for rent relief under the new statewide program aimed at keeping people housed during the pandemic.
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PublishedApril 30, 2020
State rents 115 hotel rooms to create social distancing for homeless Mainers
Hotel rooms in Portland and Bangor are reserved for people awaiting test results or recovering from COVID-19, while rooms in Knox County are used to create physical distance.
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