Gov. Janet Mills

The electric utility wants to increase its annual spending by almost half a billion dollars a year to fund an overhaul of its systems to handle more intense storms.

The governor's comments came during a rare, three-stop tour with business leaders and local officials and amid pressure from some Democratic decisionmakers hoping to recruit her to challenge Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins next year.

But the Maine Principals' Association is asking a federal court to block the request for a trove of information, saying it is irrelevant to the central issue in the DOJ's lawsuit against the state.

Those are two of roughly 60 bills that Mills is holding onto until state lawmakers return to Augusta either later this year or in January. She then has the option of either vetoing the measures or allowing them to become law without her signature.

Gov. Janet Mills has signed a bill to offer state-backed no-interest loans to federal and state employees if they are furloughed or required to work without pay during a federal or state shutdown.

Maine is required by law to have balanced budget and the Trump domestic policy bill is expected to result in billions in lost federal aid for Medicaid and food assistance. It's unclear when state lawmakers might have to patch such a hole because Republicans delayed implementation of some cuts until after the 2026 midterm elections.

Mills plans to hold onto the legislation, which would have limited how much local and state police in Maine can collaborate with federal immigration agents seeking to round up and deport non-citizens.

Gov. Janet Mills says the reconciliation bill will dramatically shift costs from the federal government to Maine, and those are expenses the state cannot absorb.

The Democratic governor laid out her concerns in a letter to the state's congressional delegation this week as the Senate continues work on the bill, which contains key aspects of President Trump's domestic agenda.

Gov. Janet Mills has vetoed five bills enacted by the Maine Legislature and lawmakers have been unable to muster the two-thirds support needed to override her.