PORTSMOUTH, N.H. (AP) — Fishermen and federal officials grappled Friday with the increasingly bleak prospect of finding some way for the historic New England industry to avoid collapse amid troubles with the health of Gulf of Maine cod. Their meeting came in the week after regional regulators bought fisherman a yearlong reprieve from what would […]
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Hiring surges in January; jobless rate at 8.3 percent
The job growth was the fastest since last March and April. Before that, the last month with stronger hiring, excluding months skewed by temporary census jobs, was March 2006. The unemployment rate came down by two notches from December. It has fallen five months in a row, the first time that has happened since 1994, […]
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State of the State address: Governor LePage’s script
Governor LePage’s 2012 State of the State Address: President Raye, Speaker Nutting, Chief Justice Saufley, members of the 125th Legislature, distinguished guests, and my fellow citizens. I am here tonight to update the Legislature on the condition of our great state. However, before I begin, I want to recognize and thank a few people. First […]
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Shrimp season rolls on amid controversy over quota
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — New England fishermen have been casting their nets in the cold Gulf of Maine waters since the northern shrimp season began Jan. 2, but their season could be cut short this winter if their catches are too strong. Regulators are meeting Thursday to assess where the overall harvest now stands. If […]
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Economist: Maine employment won’t recover till ’17
PORTLAND — Job growth in Maine will be flat in 2012 and employment won’t reach pre-recession levels until 2017, a top economist said Tuesday in pushing back his forecast by three years on when the state would fully recover from the economic downturn. In his annual Breakfast with Charlie economic outlook presentation, Charles Colgan said […]
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LePage opposes renewable energy mandate in Maine
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Gov. Paul LePage is urging residents not to sign a referendum petition aimed at requiring at least 20 percent of Maine’s electricity come from new renewable energy sources by 2020. In his weekly radio address Saturday, LePage says the Maine Citizens for Clean Energy Coalition is collecting signatures for a November […]
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Maine ship-modeling center to add jobs in 2012
BRUNSWICK, Maine (AP) — A high-tech ship-modeling organization that set up operations in Maine last summer plans to add 16 people to its payroll next year. The American Bureau of Shipping says it now has 30 employees at its modeling center, which opened last summer at Brunswick Landing, the former Brunswick Naval Air Station. In […]
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Maine foreclosure picture mixed
GARDINER, Maine (AP) — Maine banking regulators are reporting a mixed pattern of residential mortgage foreclosures as the economy continues to struggle. Bureau of Financial Institutions’ Superintendent Lloyd LaFountain III says a third quarter survey of mortgages held by Maine’s 32 state-chartered banks and credit unions continued to show mixed performance. So there’s no clear […]
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Maine aims to build sustainable urchin fishery
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — During the heyday, Maine urchin fishermen harvested more than 40 million pounds of the spiny creatures a year. A move is now under way to jumpstart the industry, which has fallen on hard times and is just a skeleton of its former self. A panel made up of scientists, urchin harvesters […]
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Heating oil costs drop 2 pennies in Maine
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Maine’s average heating oil cost has dropped slightly over the past week as temperatures remained unseasonably warm. Maine energy officials say the average price in Tuesday’s oil dealer survey was $3.57 per gallon, which is down 2 pennies from last week. Ken Fletcher of the Governor’s Office of Energy Independence and […]