AUGUSTA - The Legislature's Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services Committee has rescheduled the public hearing for Senate President Troy Jackson and House Speaker Ryan Fecteaus COVID-19 Patient Bill of Rights for 11 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 23. The public hearing will be streamed through the HCIFS Committees Youtube Channel here.
AUGUSTA - Rep. Edward Crockett, D-Portland, has been appointed to serve on the Citizen Trade Policy Commission.
The 22-member commission is focused on assessing the impacts of international trade policies on Maine's state and local laws, business environment and working conditions. Established during the Second Special Session of the 121st Legislature, the commission includes: six legislators, an Attorney General designee, five nonvoting agency officials and 10 public members representing business, labor, health, government and environmental interests.
AUGUSTA - The Legislature's State and Local Government Committee voted Wednesday to advance a measure by Assistant House Majority Leader Rachel Talbot Ross that would give lawmakers a new tool to combat racial disparities in Maine's laws. The vote was 8-5.
AUGUSTA - Rep. Nicole Grohoski, D-Ellsworth, presented LD 155, Resolve, Directing the Board of Pesticides Control To Prohibit the Use of Certain Neonicotinoids for Outdoor Residential Use, to the Legislature's Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee on Thursday.
AUGUSTA, MAINE - Rep. Kyle Bailey, D-Gorham, has introduced bipartisan legislation to ban foreign campaign contributions in Maine elections.
Currently, it is legal in Maine for foreign governments, corporations and billionaires to spend unlimited sums of money in support of, or in opposition to, state and local referenda. LD 479 would prohibit foreign spending to produce and disseminate communications about state and local ballot referenda.
AUGUSTA - The Legislature's Energy, Utilities and Technology Committee held a public hearing Thursday on a proposal that would push for Maine to enter into early talks with Canadas Atlantic provinces regarding a proposed renewable energy project that would span five provinces and potentially cross through Maine.
AUGUSTA - Rep. Roland "Danny" Martin, D-Sinclair, presented his bill, LD 280, An Act To Increase Funding for Snowmobile Trails and Capital Equipment Grants, to the Legislature's Committee on Inland Fisheries and Wildlife on Wednesday.
AUGUSTA - Rep. Rebecca Millett, D-Cape Elizabeth, has introduced a bill that would ensure female firefighters receive cancer coverage for reproductive system cancers. Currently, prostate and testicular cancers are covered under the Workers Compensation Act of 1992, while female reproductive system cancers are not. There will be a public hearing on L.D. 213, An Act To Require Coverage for Female Firefighters Facing Reproductive System Cancer, on Wednesday, Feb. 17.
AUGUSTA - The Legislature's Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services Committee unanimously agreed Thursday to a measure from Rep. Denise Tepler, D-Topsham, to ensure emergency access to insulin. The bill, LD 60, would require that emergency insulin refills be dispensed in at least a 30-day supply.
AUGUSTA - Rep. Nicole Grohoski, D-Ellsworth, and Rep. David McCrea, D-Fort Fairfield, have been appointed to serve on the New England and Eastern Canada Legislative Commission, along with Sen. Mark Lawrence, D-Eliot, and Sen. Marianne Moore, R-Washington.
The commission was established in 1986 to facilitate a relationship and strengthen regional cooperation between the Maine Legislature and legislative bodies in nearby states and Canadian provinces.