The omnibus spending legislation includes a rider that freezes new federal regulation of lobstering practices. President Biden is expected to sign the bill into law.
Gov. Janet Mills
Posted inLocal & State, Politics
$450 relief checks could begin arriving in late January
If passed by the full Legislature as expected on Jan. 4, the first checks would be mailed to qualified taxpayers in late January.
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Posted inLocal & State, Politics, Uncategorized
Legislative committee supports heating aid package that includes $450 checks
The vote came after an hours-long public hearing where advocates and lawmakers urged passage of the original $473 million bill to provide emergency heating and energy relief, and rental assistance.
Posted inElection 2022, Local & State, Politics
Record $28 million spent on Maine’s race for governor
Spending also surpassed national projections, with one group estimating that $27 million would be spent on the race for governor.
Posted inOpinion
Jim Fossel: Mills failed to prepare for Maine heating crisis
Her administration had plenty of time to plan for and avert the challenges we’re facing. Instead, it allowed them to burgeon.
Posted inLocal & State, News, Politics, Uncategorized
Lawmakers agree to public hearing on $450 emergency checks, boosting heating aid
Legislative leaders formed a committee to receive public testimony on a $473 million emergency heating and energy plan, whose centerpiece would be immediate payments to most Mainers.
Posted inLocal & State, Politics
Talbot Ross soaks in historic role in Legislature
Speaker of the House Rachel Talbot Ross, D-Portland, became emotional as she described being unprepared for the moment she took the gavel for the first time.
Posted inLocal & State, Politics
Two state senators propose smaller heating aid plan
A bipartisan proposal to help Mainers afford heat and electricity this winter would drastically scale back Gov. Janet Mills’ $474 million emergency package that Senate Republicans blocked last week.
Posted inElection 2022, Politics
From big reelection win to partisan pushback, what lies ahead in Mills’ second term?
While Gov. Janet Mills didn’t get the votes she needed for an emergency heating assistance package last week, she goes into a second term with a Democratic majority in the Legislature and projected budget surpluses.
Posted inLocal & State, Politics, Uncategorized
Bill to provide heating aid and relief checks unlikely to pass before January
Citing the expedited process, Republicans in the Maine Senate blocked the emergency bill Wednesday, but it will come up again, likely when the Legislature reconvenes after the holidays.