Heating oil prices

It took less than 10 hours for the smiles, back-slaps and warm-and-fuzzy feelings on the opening day of the session Wednesday to fade away and for partisan tensions to rear up in the Maine Legislature.

Lawmakers are being sworn into Maine's 131st legislature on Wednesday. Gov. Mills wants to have the legislature introduce, pass and let her sign an emergency energy relief bill the same day that the new legislature is sworn in. And that has not happened in nearly three decades.

About two weeks ago, a gallon of number two heating oil cost, on average, $5.71 in the state, with some retailers reporting prices well over $6. But the Governor's Energy Office says statewide average prices this week have fallen downward, closer to $5 a gallon.

Community action programs around Maine are bracing for what they believe will be a sizeable increase in the number of Mainers calling for emergency fuel this winter, as heating assistance funds won't stretch as far due to high energy costs.

Heating oil prices rose nine times faster than the cost of food over the past year. So while it's only July, homeowners and public officials in Maine are bracing for a painful – and potentially dangerous – winter heating season in a state with the nation's highest reliance on heating oil.

Inflation is the highest it's been in over 30 years and the cost of living has increased by 6% this year. Mainers are also facing another significant price increase: heating fuel and electricity costs are both going up.

AUGUSTA, Maine - Winter is in full swing in Maine, but heating oil prices are continuing to tumble in the state. The Governor's Energy Office said on…

Prices for heating oil across Maine have at last begun to stabilize, according to the latest state data."They're still 16 per cent higher than they were…

PORTLAND, Maine - The price of heating oil continues to climb steadily in Maine even as global crude oil prices have fallen. The Governor's Energy Office…

AUGUSTA, Maine - The Governor's Energy Office says heating oil prices are starting to rise in Maine. A statewide survey this week put the average price at…