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What we're reading
— Mills' utility accountability measure is on the rocks in Augusta after Democrats in the House divided on two different versions. The split between Democrats aligned with the governor and those most zealously backing a consumer-owned utility threatens to kill the measure, the original version of which was opposed by both utilities and their biggest critics. (Rep. Seth Berry, D-Bowdoinham, a leader of that latter faction, announced a compromise offer today.)
— In overwhelming votes, lawmakers sent a $1.2 billion spending measure to Mills' desk on Tuesday. (She will sign the package highlighted by $850 relief checks to 857,000 Mainers today.)
— Mills signed a bill into law to investigate sexual abuse allegations within the Maine National Guard and expand oversight. It comes after a Bangor Daily News investigation exposed a predatory culture on the Army side of the organization.
— The first bidding wars for apartments in southern Maine's tight market are here. That phenomenon is old news in big and desirable cities including New York and Los Angeles, but they are just beginning here. |
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Follow along today
10 a.m. The House and Senate are back. Since it is the last scheduled day of the session with some question of whether lawmakers or the governor will extend work, it is hard to predict what will come up in either chamber. It may be more illustrative to examine what is left to vote on.
The highest-profile bills awaiting House action are a proposed ban on flavored tobacco, a constitutional right to privacy and a ban on the use of certain restraints and chemical sprays on children in state prison. Watch here.
The Senate calendar is full of study bills to be reviewed by legislative leaders before advancing or dying. The biggest bill awaiting action is Mills' utility accountability measure, which was tabled late Tuesday. Watch here.
Backers of an expanded Good Samaritan bill that would shield more people who report drug overdoses hold a State House news conference urging Mills to sign it. She issued a veto threat on the current version on Tuesday that urged lawmakers to send her a watered-down version of the measure.
11:30 a.m. Tribal leaders and supporters hold a rally and news conference at the State House to hail the advances of key sovereignty measures.
1:30 p.m. Mills signs the supplemental budget at a news conference in the State House's Hall of Flags alongside lawmakers and department commissioners. |
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| 📷 Lead photo: Senate President Troy Jackson, D-Allagash, conducts business at the State House on April 12, 2022, in Augusta, Maine. (AP photo by Robert F. Bukaty) |
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