Maine Legislature

Democratic state lawmakers are sounding alarms about proposed federal cuts and work requirements for Medicaid- known in the state as MaineCare- which they say would be extremely detrimental to Mainers who rely on the program.

During the debate in the Maine House, one Republican lawmaker who was there in D.C. that day even suggested that police officers or other actors — not Trump supporters — incited the violence that day.

MaineCare patients have complained for years that the private vendors who are paid to shuttle them to non-emergency medical appointments sometimes show up late or not at all. But DHHS said the bill is unnecessary — and potentially costly.

Bills that would rollback transgender rights and ban them from participating on girls' sports teams are receiving more scrutiny amid the Trump administration's lawsuit against Maine.

But the fate of the measure remains unclear despite bipartisan support for filling the nearly $120 million shortfall in the state's Medicaid program.

While some Democrats in the Legislature want to expand the law and many Republicans want to repeal it, there are bipartisan talks about tweaks that would make it more palatable to the business community.

There is growing concern in Maine and nationwide about the use of AI to manipulate videos or audio to harm political candidates or influence voters.

The bill presented by Senator Stacy Brenner, D- Cumberland, would modify the Agricultural Marketing Loan Fund to provide funding in the event of lost federal grants or loans or to recover in the event of a disaster.

A slew of bills aim to repeal or overhaul the 2023 law. They come before any benefits have been paid, but just a few months after payroll taxes kicked in to fund the program.

But the bill's $12 million price tag could be a challenge for lawmakers to cover given the state's budget constraints. And while the funding would not pay for abortions, Republicans were skeptical and accused Democrats of resisting efforts to make prohibition explicit.