AUGUSTA — Gov. Paul LePage’s bid to ask Maine voters if they want to eliminate the income tax was blocked in the Senate by Democrats on Tuesday.
The bill garnered support from majority Republicans in the Senate but resistance from Democrats kept it from getting the necessary two-thirds support.
LePage’s bill, LD 1367, will be the subject of more votes but the House voted against it Monday, and Tuesday’s Senate vote — both with Democrats entrenched against it — means it is likely dead. The lone Democratic vote for LePage’s bill in either chamber came Tuesday from Sen. James Dill, D-Orono.
LePage has identified eliminating the income tax as his top priority for the remainder of his second term. Before the Legislature had even considered the bill, the Republican governor told reporters that he would spearhead a citizen petition to circumvent the Legislature and force the question to the ballot.
LePage also began to make good on his promise to veto every Democratic bill that comes to his desk Monday with the veto of 10 Democrat-sponsored bills, though he did let one progress to enactment Tuesday without his signature.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.