Republicans in the U.S. Senate blocked passage of a bill that would have set up a nonpartisan commission to investigate the deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol spurred on by former President Donald Trump.
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
Maine House speaker stands ground on COVID mask mandate
A policy requiring that people entering the State House wear face coverings remains, even with mask mandates lifted in other places.
advertisement
Posted inLocal & State, News
Lawmakers may limit use of facial recognition software by police in Maine
A bill sponsored by Rep. Grayson Lookner, D-Portland, would limit police use of facial recognition technology to investigations of only the most serious crimes.
Posted inLocal & State, News, Politics
Lawmakers vote to study security at State House complex
The State and Local Government Committee endorses the bill on a party-line vote after one lawmaker testifies about run-ins with a man now charged in the Jan. 6 insurrection at U.S. Capitol.
Posted inCops & Courts, Local & State, News, Politics
Lawmakers consider bill to eliminate cash bail for minor charges
The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Rachel Talbot Ross, D-Portland, would allow those charged with Class E misdemeanors like drinking in public to be released from jail without posting cash bail.
Posted inElections, Local & State, News, Politics
Legislature rejects bill to make Election Day a state holiday
But a bill to boost pay for school support staff to $16 an hour advances in what was likely lawmakers’ last meeting at the Augusta Civic Center.
Posted inBusiness, Local & State, News, Politics
Divided tax committee endorses surcharge bill for high-wage earners
The Legislature’s Taxation Committee voted 6-5 Tuesday to advance a bill that would tack a 3% surcharge on taxable income over $200,000.
Posted inLocal & State, News
Bill would end use of student restraint and seclusion in Maine schools
The measure has the support of advocates for the disabled, but school administrators and some parents said the bill would prohibit some of the only techniques that work in dangerous situations.
Posted inLocal & State, News
Maine lawmakers could head back to the State House soon
The Legislature has been meeting at the Augusta Civic Center to maintain distancing, but new federal and state guidelines have prompted legislative leaders to begin planning for a return to the Capitol.
Posted inLocal & State, News, Politics
Gov. Mills proposes $187 million increase in school funding in updated state budget
The plan would fund education at the voter-approved level of 55% for the first time, provide more money to cities and towns, and put a record amount in the state’s ‘rainy day’ fund.