April’s almost here. Time to take the snow tires off, and nearly time for lawmakers to go home.

This year’s adjournment date is April 21. “We’d like to be done before then,” said House Speaker Patrick Colwell, D-Gardiner. Senate President Beverly Daggett, D-Gardiner, has been out ill for weeks, which has slowed things down.

A few signs appeared last week that hinted the end is near.

The speaker announced on the House floor that lawmakers’ last salary check will go out March 31. After that legislators will only get their food and mileage (or housing) money.

All of the legislative committees had until March 26 to get their work done – report out their bills to the House and Senate. “If bills are not acted on by the end of the week, those bills will be removed (erased),” Colwell warned. “We have a lot of work to do in a short time.”

Issues left are the big ones: the budget and property tax relief.

“I feel good about the work that’s been done around tax reform,” Colwell said. “We’ve got to pull it all together; that includes the education funding issue. Everyone’s in agreement on the Essential Programs and Services model,” which defines what programs all students should have and what state taxpayers will pay for. “This is the Chevrolet every student gets. If you want to provide a Cadillac, then you have to do it on your own nickel,” Colwell said.

With Carol Palesky’s tax cap referendum looming, the issue isn’t being ignored, but “there’s still 20 different plans out there,” said Gov. John Baldacci’s spokesman Lee Umphrey, with no jelling behind any one.

That jelling will happen soon, Colwell and Umphrey predicted.

Waking up the House

The House began its week Monday with a rousing rendition of the National Anthem by Lewiston’s Bonnie Edwards.

She works at L.L. Bean and leads the band “Bonnie Edwards and the Practical Cats.” Rep. Michael Vaughan, R-Durham, is a band member. He plays harmonica and keyboard.

Their music is “jump blues, a hot-rodded swing,” Vaughan said, musician-speak for jazzed-up blues.

This session Vaughan has performed with House Speaker Colwell, a member of “Pat Colwell and the Soul Sensations.” While Republicans and Democrats often disagree on issues, they’re harmonious in their music, Vaughan said.

Before business began Monday, Edwards’ Cats performed a few numbers in the hall. After she sang the anthem, House members responded with applause, not quite as loud as her singing. “The windows are still in the building. She tried her best,” Vaughan joked.

Good eats day

Lots of days around here are given a designation: Franco Day, Girls Day, Bankers Day, Agriculture Day, Hunters Day and so on.

Tuesday was “UMA Day” for the University of Maine at Augusta. Legislators were wearing yellow flowers that were being handed out, but the most telling sign involved tables in the Hall of Flags set up just before lunch. On the tables were huge bowls of food: multiple kinds of pasta salad, potato salad, Waldorf salad, tossed salad, fruit salad with fresh pineapples and strawberries, all kinds of corn bread, rolls, cookies and brownies, plus soda or water.

It was enough lunch for 425 people. Free! It didn’t look cheap.

There was more room in the cafeteria that day.

Quote of the week: “The state’s credibility has to be maintained in terms of what we sold that bond for to the public.” – Sen. Peggy Rotundo, D-Lewiston, raising concern about a plan by Gov. John Baldacci to take $8 million from a bond earmarked for school renovations and instead use it to expand the state’s laptop program.

– Bonnie Washuk

is the State House reporter