These are some of the stories central Maine is talking about today.

A group of lawmakers from both sides of the aisle says Maine must create a competitive bidding process to guide the further expansion of casinos and ensure the state gets the best deal. Casino development so far has been steered by citizen initiative so the state has had no say on things like licensing fees. Supporters say the legislature now has a great opportunity to finally establish such a policy using the report as a blueprint. (AP)

Environmentalists are urging lawmakers to back a bill they say would help more residents invest in solar power. The Natural Resources Council of Maine feels this bill could add about 200 megawatts of new solar power in Maine by 2022. The group says Maine needs to create strong solar policies to keep up with other states in the Northeast, which are investing heavily in solar power. Gov. LePage has been skeptical of solar power and vetoed a bill last year that would have reinstated a solar rebate program. (AP)

Maine Sheriffs' Association inspectors are reporting no major issues in the month and a half since the state hired them to conduct compliance checks on medical marijuana caregivers. The checks are unpopular with some caregivers, who grow marijuana for medical use. DHHS says the compliance program grew out of an increasing number of complaints. The number of registered caregivers has grown 600 percent in four years to 1,720. The executive director of the sheriffs' association says four compliance specialists have completed about two dozen checks since March 1 and all have gone smoothly. (AP)

The Northeast may have just escaped one of the coldest and snowiest winters to date, but that still will not reduce the risk of Lyme disease or other tick-borne illnesses. Researchers focused on ticks and the diseases they spread say the heavy snow that blanketed the Northeast this winter acted as a cozy quilt for baby blacklegged ticks that are now searching for blood in the warmer weather. University of New Hampshire entomologist Alan Eaton says the abundant snowfall could mean more ticks, but a dry spell later in the spring or summer could kill them off. People should check themselves for ticks not only after hikes in the woods, but also after trips to urban parks and playgrounds. (AP)

Federal weather forecasters say Maine remains a higher-than-normal risk for flooding over the next two weeks. Officials say river levels and stream flows are above normal because of melting snow, and that could present a problem with a rainstorm forecast for the coming week. The River Flow Advisory Commission held a conference call yesterday, even as ice jams were creating problems around Allagash and Caribou in northern Maine.(AP)

A Maine group is launching a bid to put a proposal to raise the minimum wage on the ballot next year. Mainers for Fair Wages says it will begin collecting more than 60,000 signatures needed to force a referendum in November 2016. It wants to raise the wage from $7.50 an hour to $9 an hour in 2017. It would then go up a dollar a year until it hits $12 in 2020; from then on, adjustments would be made based on the cost of living. Opponents argue that the move would kill jobs. (AP)

Apple is expanding its environmental efforts by investing in a new Chinese solar power project and preserving 36,000 acres of "sustainable" timberland in Maine and North Carolina. 2,400 acres of forestland in Aroostook County, just south of Wytopitlock Lake and on the border with Penobscot and Washington counties. The goal is protect the forest while keeping it in the hands of private owners who pay taxes and create jobs. Apple announced a new focus on using paper from trees harvested under environmentally sound conditions. It's also promising to use more renewable power overseas. (Bangor Daily News)

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