Current Publishing’s annual year-end tradition of consulting the Magic 8-Ball is here again, and this year we eagerly await the answers to our most probing of questions, some serious and others not so much.

If past years are any indication, the little black ball with a blurry floating mechanism can be quite the fortune-teller. Last year, for example, we asked: “Will Gov. Paul LePage manage to avoid verbal gaffes in 2015?” And the answer was: “Outlook not so good.” If that’s not proof that the sphere is a reliable source, we don’t know what is.

We want readers to know that when asking these questions, we print the first answer the 8-Ball gives us. There’s no shaking the sphere a second or third time seeking answers we might think are funny or acceptable, either socially or ethically. It is what it is, and the results speak for themselves. So, here’s another round of probing questions, this time asking what 2016 will look like in our neck of this mysterious cosmos:

Q: Will Susan Collins establish an exploratory committee for a 2018 gubernatorial run?

A: My sources say no.

Q: Will gas dip below $2?

A: My reply is no.

Q: Will the Legislature impeach Gov. Paul LePage over the Good Will-Hinckley/Speaker Mark Eves case?

A: My reply is no.

Q: Should fishermen hoping to compete in ice fishing derbies cancel their bait orders due to lack of ice?

A: Don’t count on it.

Q: After Windham voters emphatically rejected a $10 million project in November, will the Town Council pose another referendum for a new public works building?

A: Yes.

Q: As the Cape Elizabeth council is considering it yet again, will an entry fee be charged at Fort Williams?

A: Better not tell you now. (Later.) Most likely.

Q: Will the Spurwink Rod & Gun Club in Cape continue operations?

A: My sources say no.

Q: After three failed referendums last year, pushing the budget process to the brink of the new fiscal year, will the Scarborough school budget pass on the first try?

A: It is decidedly so.

Q: Will parking meters at Higgins Beach be successful or will would-be beachgoers revolt, leaving the beach to residents?

A: It is decidedly so.

Q: Will a municipal solar farm in South Portland be approved?

A: Concentrate and ask again. (Later.) Reply hazy, try again. (Later.) Ask again later. (Later.) Signs point to yes.

Q: With all this warm weather starting our winter, will there actually be ice and snow for Winterfest in either Scarborough or South Portland?

A: Most likely.

Q: After three fairly successful contestants already, will yet another contestant with Gorham connections be featured on the CBS TVshow, “Survivor?”

A: Reply hazy, try again. (Later.) Outlook not so good.

Q: What will Gorham’s 2015 “Survivor” cast member Dan Foley do for an encore?

A: It is decidedly so.

Q: With two town councilors arrested for operating under the influence in recent years and a third councilor’s daughter holding an underage drinking party at his house, will 2016 bring any additional incidents involving Gorham officials and alcohol?

A: Concentrate and ask again. (Later.) My sources say no.

Q: Will South Gorham and its new road configurations ever be relieved of bumper-to-bumper, rush-hour traffic?

A: Most likely.

Q: Will the longtime Gorham-based business, Sebago Brewing Co., build a new headquarters outside of Gorham?

A: Without a doubt.

Q: Will the average Westbrook resident like the new Bridge Street bridge alignment and intersection in the downtown?

A: Reply hazy, try again. (Later.) Outlook not so good.

Q: Will the Westbrook and the landlord of One Riverfront Plaza be able to find a new tenant, or tenants, to fill the building now that Disability RMS is gone?

A: My sources say no.

Q: After saying during the last election that she’d step down after a third term, will Mayor Colleen Hilton run for a fourth term in 2016?

A: My sources say no.

Q: Will another large piece of Westbrook farmland or rural land be sold to developers?

A: Most likely.