Good morning from Augusta, where Gov. Paul LePage is hoping the second or third or fourth time is a charm for conservative initiatives that have previously failed, including a new bill to give his successor a raise from $70,000 to $150,000starting next year.
LePage is flooding lawmakers with new bills. That’s even though there is less than a month left before the Legislature’s April 18 adjournment date and the “deadline” for legislative committees to finish their work is Friday. The governor issued a statement Wednesday about his bill to more than double future governors’ salaries but other proposals surfaced with far less fanfare. If some of them sound familiar, it’s because they are.
Right to work. The newest of the bunch would prohibit mandatory membership in a labor union as a condition of employment. LePage has said his many failures to make Maine a “right to work” state rank among his deepest regrets, though he gained ground on the issue last year when his administration negotiated contracts with two major unions that eliminated mandatory union fees for public employees.
The County is pleased to feature content from our sister company, Bangor Daily News. To read the rest of “Here comes the annual end-of-session flood of LePage bills,” an article by contributing Bangor Daily News staff writer Christopher Cousins, please follow this link to the BDN online.
