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Supporters of a proposal for what's known as a millionaire’s tax in Maine are drawing inspiration from the success of similar policies in other blue states. They say legislation to create a 2% tax on incomes over $1 million would generate significant revenue to help cover more than half the costs of public education. Maura Pillsbury, tax| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey and several district attorneys in Maine have come out in support of legislation that would remove criminal penalties for possession and exchange of hypodermic syringes. The bill, sponsored by state Rep. Genevieve McDonald (D-Stonington), is being championed by health experts and criminal justice reform and harm reduction advocates as a| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
Taking aim at decades of failed “War on Drugs” policies, Maine lawmakers are introducing legislation that would decriminalize the possession of small amounts of certain drugs, remove criminal penalties for possession or exchange of some drug paraphernalia and reform the state’s drug sentencing laws. That effort comes after a similar bill last session died when| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
A litany of advocates, lawmakers and people with direct experience in the state’s carceral system pushed back Monday against the levels of spending for incarceration and law enforcement in Gov. Janet Mills’ budget proposal, calling for Maine to employ a different approach that helps those who are struggling rather than criminalizing people and locking them| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
Recent polling from the University of New Hampshire’s monthly Pine Tree State Poll is showing us that Maine politicians who are standing up to Pres. Donald Trump and his administration are faring much better among voters than those who are not. This is not simply a left/right issue. One conservative Democrat is feeling the heat,| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
As part of a slate of bills to move away from failed “War on Drug” policies, Maine lawmakers heard a measure Friday that would reform the state’s felony drug trafficking law so that people can no longer be charged with a crime that can carry a sentence of up to 30 years simply for possessing| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
Over 500 Mainers. That’s how many people died of drug overdoses in 2020, setting a new record in the state. Pointing to that grim tally and the large number of people incarcerated for drug-related charges, lawmakers, doctors and Mainers in recovery from substance use disorder argued Friday that criminalizing drug possession is not working, urging| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
Evan Popp contributed reporting to this story. Long-fought efforts to reform the state's punitive drug laws had success in the Maine Legislature this session, with two notable reforms advancing and a third that would make possession of certain drugs a civil violation still awaiting approval in the Maine Senate. The Maine House on Thursday voted| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
Dan Neumann contributed reporting to this piece. Gov. Janet Mills issued a series of vetoes Wednesday on bills passed by the legislature, including a measure to close Maine’s last youth prison, a tax fairness bill to bolster underfunded affordable housing programs, and legislation that would prevent companies owned by foreign governments from conducting electioneering on| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
The Maine Senate voted 18-14 Wednesday night to kill a bill that advocates say would have begun to move Maine away from decades of failed, punitive “War on Drugs” policies by decriminalizing possession of scheduled drugs and making it a civil violation. Senate President Troy Jackson of Aroostook County, Sen. Ned Claxton of Androscoggin, a| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
The top legislative priority for the recovery community this session as the state’s grim toll of overdose deaths continued to mount was a bill to permit harm reduction health centers, also known as safe injection sites, where people can use previously obtained drugs under medical supervision. Proponents say such facilities are one piece of an| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
Advocates in the recovery community announced Wednesday that they had come to an agreement with Gov. Janet Mills on a bill to save lives by creating additional protections from prosecution at the scene of an overdose. They said the deal they reached will help fight Maine’s opioid epidemic by enacting one of the strongest Good| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
As other states battle outbreaks of COVID-19 in their jails and prisons, Governor Janet Mills said she is not currently considering using her executive authority to commute sentences to reduce Maine’s incarcerated population, instead relying on an existing early-release program, one that some lawmakers have unsuccessfully been trying to retool due to its limited capacity.| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
Labor unions and renewable energy advocates are at odds with some conservation groups over a proposal to locate a port for Maine’s burgeoning floating offshore wind power industry on Sears Island in Penobscot Bay. On Monday, Maine lawmakers delved into a state plan to designate Sears Island as the nucleus of that industry. The proposal,| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
Across the country, states and municipalities have recognized that to retain workers, and prevent more people from falling into poverty, the minimum wage must be at least $20 an hour. It is past time for Maine to do the same. In California, the minimum wage for health care workers will be $25 an hour by| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
After the Maine Governor’s Energy Office (GEO) last week announced $2 million in federal support for six programs around the state to support and prepare hundreds of Maine people for clean energy careers, organizations providing that training are responding. The $2 million, which will come from the U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration,| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
Decrying what they describe as a lack of a “coordinated, consistent, or transparent statewide effort to address the health and safety of incarcerated people” in Maine, a broad coalition of groups sent a letter to Governor Janet Mills and Maine Department of Corrections Commissioner Randall Liberty on Monday outlining a plan to mitigate the risk| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
Pointing to the COVID-19 outbreaks that have occurred in prisons and jails across Maine, advocates say the state's incarcerated population should be included in a higher priority level under the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention's vaccination plan. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use on Friday, and| Maine Beacon - A project of the Maine People's Alliance
