Mainers have more than $6 billion in student debt, exacerbated by predatory practices of the student loan industry.
Scott Thistle
Scott Thistle is the State House reporter for the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram. He has covered politics and government in Maine since 2006. Prior to that he served as the State House reporter for the Duluth News Tribune in Duluth, Minnesota. A Maine native, Thistle has worked in journalism since 1990, when he got his start at a weekly newspaper in rural Oxford County, Maine. He is a veteran of the U.S. Air Force and an active volunteer with the National Ski Patrol. He resides with his wife, Amy and his two sons Finn and Kai, in Auburn, Maine. @thisdog
Posted inLocal & State, News, Politics
Lawmakers urged to limit Maine child protection workers’ caseloads
The Department of Health and Human Services supports the idea of reviewing caseload standards, as proposed in a bill that is one of several that seek to tighten the system while improving working conditions.
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Posted inLocal & State, News
Bill would set aside $2.5 million for pensions for volunteer firefighters
Supporters say it’s needed to retain and recruit firefighters in rural parts of the state, where volunteers have been increasingly difficult to recruit.
Posted inHealth, Local & State, News
Maine will get $2.3 million in federal funds to fight opioid crisis
The award, part of a $1.4 billion national funding effort by the Trump administration, will help the state expand medication-assisted treatment for people with opioid use disorder.
Posted inLocal & State, News, Politics
Bill seeks to expand Maine’s ranked-choice voting to presidential elections
The legislation would extend the balloting system to the primaries, if political parties choose to adopt them, and presidential general elections.
Posted inLocal & State, News, Politics
Maine senator revives ‘red flag’ bill to allow confiscation of guns from people who pose threat
The measure sponsored by Democrat Rebecca Millett of Cape Elizabeth would allow police and family members to seek a court order to temporarily disarm someone in mental health crisis.
Posted inLocal & State, Politics
Republican Party’s anti-immigrant tweets anger Portland mayor – and Republican senators
In a series of tweets late Thursday night, the state party took aim at migrants and the city, falsely connecting immigrants to outbreaks of infectious diseases.
Posted inHealth, Local & State, News, Politics
Mills brings back bill that would expand access to abortion
The legislation would make Maine the 9th state to authorize health care practitioners other than physicians to perform procedures, removing a barrier to reproductive health services in rural areas.
Posted inLocal & State, Politics
Panel rejects bill that would require all police in Maine to wear body cameras
The Legislature’s Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee voted unanimously against the measure, which many police officials opposed.
Posted inCops & Courts, Local & State
Former Maine lawmaker faces charges of fraudulently obtaining hunting licenses
Jeff Pierce, a Republican from Dresden, is charged with failing to disclose he had a felony conviction when buying hunting licenses in 2016, 2017 and 2018.