-
The bill, LD 2004, states that any laws passed by Congress pertaining to other federally recognized Indian tribes would also apply to the Passamaquoddy Tribe, the Penobscot Nation, the Mi'kmaq Nation and the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians.
-
Such a move – “majority budget” in Augusta-speak – is rare, but it happened as recently as 2021. And it could happen next week.
-
Gov. Janet Mills held a private meeting Tuesday with legislative leaders and budget writers to discuss negotiations over the state's next two-year spending plan. The discussion comes amid growing concern from Republicans that Democrats will flex their majority to ram through the governor's $10.3 billion proposal.
-
FEMA announced Monday that it's awarding nearly $2.7 million to the Mills administration for purchasing PPE for state employees, and nearly $3.7 million to Maine Medical Center for the cost of testing staff for COVID and for hiring temporary employees.
-
A spokesperson for Mills said the governor had been invited but cannot attend because of a scheduling conflict. Instead, she's invited the tribal chiefs to meet her afterwards.
-
There were a few hot topics that the governor did not mention despite her potentially pivotal role in the policy outcomes.
-
Maine lawmakers have started the 2023 legislative session by introducing an unusually high percentage of placeholder bills that purport to tackle big issues, but are void of any details that might inform the public of their purpose, price tag or impact.
-
As expected, Mills didn’t propose sweeping new initiatives or massive expansions of existing programs as part of her two-year budget proposal. Instead, it was the total dollar figure of the governor’s budget proposal — $10.3 billion — that drew the most initial attention.
-
The governor's proposal is nearly $1 billion more than the current baseline budget of roughly $9.4 billion, a figure that accounts for legislative spending initiatives that kicked in after passage of the biennial budget in 2021.
-
Mills, all white in suffragette-style and wearing a pair of iconic “Bean Boots,” gave an aspirational inaugural address, front loaded with accomplishments and backfilled with a to-do list for her next four years in office.