PORTLAND — Gov. Paul LePage on Thursday gave a preview of his ambitious agenda for the January legislative session, including a long-term goal to eliminate the state income tax on all retirement pensions. LePage told an audience of about 500 listeners at the Greater Portland Regional Chamber event at the Holiday Inn by the Bay […]
Paul LePage
Posted inBusiness, Maine, sj-web
Unemployed, underemployed loggers struggling to meet with LePage
AUGUSTA, Maine — More than a month after Gov. Paul LePage said he’d happily take a call from any unemployed or underemployed northern Maine loggers, some of those loggers are finding it difficult to get the governor’s ear. A recent email exchange between a Legislative aide to Sen. Troy Jackson, D-Allagash, and the governor’s scheduler […]
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Gov. LePage has new take on why labor mural was removed
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Gov. Paul LePage has a new explanation for why a mural depicting labor scenes was removed from a Maine state office last March. LePage told Brian Williams of NBC News that his decision to remove the artwork from the Department of Labor’s headquarters had nothing to do with the painting’s pro-labor […]
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Coalition: LePage, lawmakers who repealed same-day voter law have used it themselves
AUGUSTA — The coalition seeking to restore the state’s 38-year-old, same-day voter registration law announced Tuesday that several Republican lawmakers who voted in June to repeal the law have registered on Election Day or in the period that could soon be illegal. According to the coalition Protect Maine Votes, Gov. Paul LePage also registered the […]
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LePage urges ‘bigger and bolder’ university system reforms
BANGOR, Maine — Governor Paul LePage continued his administration’s focus on public education as an economic driver with a terse letter to the University of Maine System Trustees calling for substantial reforms. The letter, which was addressed to Board Chairwoman M. Michelle Hood and distributed to the full board at its Sept. 19 meeting, applauded […]
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LURC fate: Reform, abolish or return to the ’60s wildlands?
In 1969, Republican state lawmaker Harrison Richardson attempted to bring some order to Maine’s “wildlands.” Richardson, and many other political leaders, felt the handful of large corporations that owned most of Maine’s North Woods were putting profits ahead of public interest. The largest contiguous forest east of the Mississippi and the 10.4 million acres of […]
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Despite ruffling feathers, Poliquin vows to remain ‘activist treasurer’
AUGUSTA — When the Republican-controlled Legislature elected Bruce Poliquin state treasurer last December, the Georgetown resident promised to spread the word about the state’s fiscal problems. The past nine months have shown that Poliquin suffers no shortage of words, or ways to deliver them. In the past, the public rarely heard from the state treasurer […]
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Gov proclaims Apple Sunday in Maine
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Gov. Paul LePage has proclaimed today Maine Apple Sunday and is encouraging families to visit an apple orchard this weekend and throughout September. Maine has 60 apple orchards, and a listing of where they are located can be found at www.getrealmaine.com . In his proclamation, the governor says apple farms serve […]
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High-profile flag-wavers join Freeport flag ladies
FREEPORT, Maine (AP) — The Freeport Flag Ladies maintained their decade-long tradition of waving the Stars and Stripes and were joined by Gov. Paul LePage, Maine’s entire congressional delegation, the commanding general of the state’s National Guard and several hundred others in a show of patriotism on the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
LePage names choice to head Maine DEP
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — The acting commissioner of Maine’s Department of Environmental Protection is being tapped to head the agency on a permanent basis. Gov. Paul LePage announced Friday that he has nominated Pattie Aho (AH’ hoe) to the post. The Maine Senate is expected to vote on the nomination Sept. 27. Aho has been […]