AUGUSTA, Maine- Maine lawmakers have sent a bill to Republican Gov. Paul LePage that would allow the roughly 1,000 people seeking asylum in Maine to continue receiving General Assistance benefits.
The House and Senate gave final approval to the bill Tuesday evening without taking a roll call vote. The measure needs two-thirds support to overturn an all-but-certain veto from LePage and the vote in the House earlier this week fell about 20 votes shy of that.
Portland Mayor Michael Brennan says the city of Portland will face some difficult choices if it loses state funding for General Assistance benefits.
"We have a City Council meeting tonight and we're going to take this issue up, and it certainly would have made the situation much easier in Portland if the state were to continue to meet its obligation in terms of General Assistance," Brennan said.
LePage opposes General Assistance benefits for asylum seekers, and stopped reimbursing cities for those benefits last year.
The bill before lawmakers would provide asylum seekers with GA benefits for up to 24 months.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.