Maine Things Considered

Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine says two health care bills she wanted in exchange for her vote for a massive GOP tax overhaul bill that passed Wednesday won’t be considered until next year.

We’re all familiar with getting overbilled for something and asking for our money back. But what happens when customers are underbilled? That’s the issue in a case pending before the Maine Public Utilities Commission. Documents show that over an extended period of time, a Maine natural gas company undercharged a group of its biggest commercial customers by almost half a million dollars, and regulators will now have to decide whether those companies should be required to pay it back. Maine

A state commission tasked with helping military veterans find jobs officially started work this week. The Commission to Streamline Veterans’ Licensing and Certification held its first meeting at the State House, and co-chair state Rep. Jared Golden, a Democrat from Lewiston, says it faces a difficult job, with many licensing boards willing to substitute education for experience but not the other way around. “Work to address those barriers to bringing military skills out into the civilian

Picture the classic Victorian Christmas: a stately evergreen in the grandest room of the family home, with thick boughs reaching up to almost touch the ceiling. It’s a pretty vision, but these days the trend sees more consumers downsizing, even opting for tiny, potted trees that can be replanted.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree announced Tuesday that she’s not running for governor. The decision ends widespread speculation about her intentions and leaves intact a crowded field of 22 declared candidates, including 10 Democrats.

It’s Thursday and time for Across the Aisle, our weekly roundtable on politics. This week, Cynthia Dill, an attorney who served in the Legislature as a Democrat; Dick Woodbury, an economist and former independent lawmaker; and Mike Chianchette, an attorney and former chief counsel to Republican Gov. Paul LePage.

In less than a month, Maine voters will decide whether to permit a casino to open up at a so-far undecided location in York County. Opinions in the county’s business community vary sharply about whether a casino would help their economic prospects or hurt them. In the former mill towns of Biddeford and Saco, which straddle the Saco River, there’s a buzz in the air. Since the last textile plant closed for good eight years ago, the communities have made a pretty quick transition to a revitalized,

It used to be known as Wolfe’s Neck Farm in Freeport, but from this week on, the 600-acre coastal farm will be known as Wolfe’s Neck Center for Agriculture and the Environment. Underscoring the center’s new name is the advancement of what’s known as “regenerative farming.”

Democratic state senator and former Cumberland County Sheriff Mark Dion is throwing his hat in the ring for the governor’s race. At a press conference at the Cumberland County Jail in Portland on Thursday, he said Maine needs a governor who will lead through teamwork and persuasion, instead of provocation. “Mine will be an administration that you can actually talk to. Will listen first and speak last. Will be an administration that will know priorities,” he said. Those priorities include

New England electricity consumers paid billions of dollars more than necessary over a three-year period. That’s the conclusion of an academic analysis sponsored by a national environmental group that suggests that natural gas suppliers withheld fuel capacity needed for electric generation at key moments on the coldest days — to the benefit of the companies' affiliates. But some industry players and observers are skeptical at best, while one utility named in the report is calling it an outright

A group of veterans and veterans’ families gathered Wednesday outside the Bangor offices of 2nd District Republican U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin to deliver more than 600 complaints from Mainers who say they are unhappy with Poliquin’s vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

The Maine Medical Association and the Maine Primary Care Association are urging voters to support a ballot initiative on next month’s statewide ballot to expand Medicaid. Their announcement at a press conference in Portland Wednesday follows an endorsement earlier this month by the Maine Hospital Association. But the medical community’s support is not swaying Gov. Paul LePage, who dedicated his weekly radio address to oppose Question 2. At the press conference at Greater Portland Health,

This week Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt proposed repeal of the Clean Power Plan, the cornerstone of the Obama administration’s efforts to address climate change. While not unexpected, the decision is coming under fire as ideologically driven and a boon for the fossil fuel industry at a critical time for the planet. Considered one of the signature policies of President Barack Obama, the Clean Power Plan is designed to significantly cut greenhouse gas emissions from

A man who has spent nearly 30 years in prison for a murder he says he didn’t commit was in Cumberland County Court Tuesday for a hearing to determine whether he can go free.

It’s no secret that populations are shrinking on some of Maine’s isolated island communities, such as North Haven and Monhegan. More and more island residents are often older, with no kids, and present only during the warmer months.