AUGUSTA (AP) — The state ethics commission says it will keep investigating a Democratic lawmaker who didn’t return roughly $2,600 in unspent public campaign funds for two months. The Portland Press Herald (http://bit.ly/2mf3hxH ) reported that Rep. Dillon Bates ended up returning the funds after the commission contacted him 11 times between December and February. […]
Maine
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Bill would make state comply with federal ID standards
AUGUSTA (AP) — A Maine-issued driver’s license won’t be enough to board a domestic flight next year without legislative action. A public hearing is scheduled Tuesday for a bill that would have the state comply with federal requirements that have raised privacy concerns in past years. The state Secretary of State’s office says compliance could […]
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Former Winslow state representative found safe after search
WINSLOW (AP) — A former Maine lawmaker from the town of Winslow who went missing has been located and is safe. Police say 47-year-old Susan Morissette went missing Saturday afternoon after meeting a friend for lunch in Waterville. She wasn’t answering her phone and police appealed for help. State Police detectives joined Winslow Police on Sunday […]
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Woman killed after snowmobile crashes into trees in Somerset County
PARLIN POND TWP. (AP) — Authorities say a Massachusetts woman died after her snowmobile drifted and crashed into several trees while crossing a trail on a Maine pond. Maine’s Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife said 45-year-old Karen L. Pillman, of Wilmington, was leading a group of snowmobilers crossing a connector trail on Parlin Pond […]
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Supporters hope to organize first-in-the-country food and farming credit union
Joel Alex wants more local grain for his fast-growing Blue Ox Malthouse in Lisbon Falls and he’s got farmers in Auburn and Leeds who want to grow it. The hitch: They don’t have the right equipment or storage space for commercial-grade grain, and it’s a $5,000 to $20,000 investment to do it right. That’s where […]
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Maine lobstermen set record for seventh straight year
In this June 12, 2015 file photo, lobster are seen at the Clam Shack in Kennebunkport, Maine. The state’s lobstermen set a record for the value of the lobster catch for the seventh year in a row. Maine lobsters were worth a little more than $533 million at the docks in 2016, exceeding the previous […]
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Higher education leaders to address Legislature
AUGUSTA (AP) — The leaders of Maine’s higher education institutions are set to address the Legislature. Maine Maritime Academy President William Brennan is scheduled to speak first during a joint session of the Legislature on Thursday. The heads of the University of Maine System and the state’s community college system will speak afterward. The University […]
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Airbnb agrees to start collecting, forwarding Maine lodging tax
AUGUSTA (AP) — The online home-sharing service Airbnb says it has agreed to start collecting lodging tax in Maine this spring. Airbnb says it is voluntarily agreeing to start forwarding the tax to Maine by April. Republican Gov. Paul LePage’s spokeswoman said that his office applauds the announcement and that it levels the playing field […]
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Nonprofit group to support Maine's new national monument
PATTEN (AP) — A nonprofit group has been formed to preserve and protect the newly-designated national monument in Maine. The private group, called Friends of Katahdin Woods and Waters, plans to work collaboratively with the National Park Service, which manages the monument. The group’s president, Lucas St. Clair, says its initial focus will be on […]
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Sen. Eric Brakey developing plan to end corporate income tax
Sen. Eric Brakey, R-Auburn, laid out a plan to bulldoze many of Maine’s convoluted set of business tax exemptions. The plan from Brakey is just a concept at this stage, but he told the Legislature’s Taxation Committee that it targets 47 tax programs that he termed “corporate welfare,” costing the state between $425 million and […]