AUGUSTA – The Maine House Monday failed to override a Gov. Paul LePage veto of a bill that funds a voter-approved expansion of the state’s Medicaid system. Conservative House Republicans stood with LePage, voting against the override on an 85-58 tally that fell short of the two-thirds necessary. The vote came with no debate on […]
Paul LePage
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Maine lawmakers extend disputed tax break
Maine lawmakers have enacted a bill to extend the life of a controversial economic development program that has created hundreds of tax havens for businesses in Maine. The Pine Tree Development Zones program was set to expire at the end of this year, but its expiration date has been extended by three years to Dec. 31, 2021, and […]
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Paul LePage vetoes bill that would ease access to medical marijuana
Gov. Paul LePage vetoed a medical cannabis bill Friday that would allow doctors to certify patient use for any medical reason. In a veto letter fired off late Friday afternoon, LePage, a staunch marijuana opponent, ticked off 11 reasons why he was vetoing the sweeping reform bill, ranging from complaints about the establishment of a medical […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
LePage proposes increasing taxes on hospitals to cover Medicaid expansion
AUGUSTA (AP) — Maine’s Republican governor is publicly laying out a proposed tax hike on hospitals to pay for voter-approved Medicaid expansion. Gov. Paul LePage’s office says Medicaid expansion will offset a tax hike by decreasing charity care and bad debt. Maine’s hospital tax rate is 2.23 percent, and Rabinowitz said Maine could go up […]
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LePage adds 13 more vetoes, including CMP audit and opioid treatment
AUGUSTA — Gov. Paul LePage vetoed a bill Tuesday that could require utility shareholders to bear the costs of audits similar to the ongoing review into massive, unexplained price spikes reported by some Central Maine Power customers. The CMP audit bill was among 13 vetoed by LePage on Tuesday, one day after he vetoed 23 […]
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Paul LePage vetoes 23 bills, including funds for Medicaid expansion
AUGUSTA — Gov. Paul LePage vetoed nearly two dozen bills Monday, including one that was spurred by Maine’s failure to investigate the deaths of more than 130 developmentally disabled Medicaid patients. LePage is continuing his historic use of the veto pen as he attempts to block legislation dealing with everything from Medicaid expansion to needle […]
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Paul LePage vetoes funding for lead abatement program
AUGUSTA — As part of his effort to undermine a minimum wage hike approved by Maine voters in 2016, Gov. Paul LePage vetoed a spending bill Monday that includes $4 million for a lead abatement program aimed at alleviating a serious public health issue in Lewiston and Auburn. Lewiston and Auburn are considered among the […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Paul LePage vetoes Medicaid expansion bill
Gov. Paul LePage vetoed a $60 million Medicaid expansion funding bill Friday, an expected move that sets up a veto override vote by lawmakers when they return on July 9. LePage said in a statement Friday evening that he vetoed the bill, passed by the Legislature last week, because lawmakers acted in a fiscally irresponsible […]
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LePage stalls borrowing package; Democratic leader says tactic puts ‘petty demands’ before public interest
AUGUSTA – Gov. Paul LePage has stalled the sale of voter-approved bonds as a dispute intensifies between the governor and Legislature over state borrowing and a package of new spending bills. LePage’s spokesman, Peter Steele said in a statement Monday that LePage was concerned over “11th-hour legislative spending” and was asking Maine’s State Treasurer Terry […]
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LePage agrees to send helicopter, two National Guard pilots to border
PORTLAND (AP) — Maine’s Republican governor has OK’d a federal request to send a National Guard helicopter with two pilots to the U.S.-Mexico border. Gov. Paul LePage’s office said the team will support Customs and Border Patrol in Arizona from July through September. LePage’s office said Maine will fly the helicopter but won’t be involved […]