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

Gov. Paul LePage's administration wants permission from the federal government to ban the use of food stamps to buy junk food. LePage's administration is backing a bill from Sen. Roger Katz that would allow the DHHS to request a waiver from the federal government to restrict the purchase of certain products, like soda, chips and candy. A similar measure was defeated in 2013. Opponents told the Health and Human Services Committee Thursday that limiting the kinds of food people can buy isn't the right approach and noted that such a wavier has never been granted. They're backing a measure from Democratic Sen. Chris Johnson that seeks to help nonprofit organizations create programs to improve the diets of people in the food stamp program. (AP)

Gun control groups are urging Maine residents to help defeat a bill that would allow people to carry concealed handguns without a permit. Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund and the Maine chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America released TV, radio and digital ads Thursday that claim that the proposal would put Maine people at risk. The TV ad says the bill would allow people with no training, "even violent criminals," to carry concealed weapons in public. The National Rifle Association said in email that the groups are spreading lies. They feel that violent criminals are currently banned from possessing firearms and that wouldn't change under this bill. A committee plans to hold a work session on the bill Friday. (AP)

New England's governors have agreed to a mix of regional and state actions to cut energy costs. Five of the six states' governors met in Hartford Thursday and said they'll work as a region while each state pursues individual projects. New Hampshire Gov. Maggie Hassan didn't attend. Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island are jointly seeking power purchase agreements for hydropower or other renewable energy. New Hampshire regulators are looking at new energy efficiency standards. The governor of Rhode Island has proposed an infrastructure bank to centralize financing for environmentally friendly public works. Vermont regulators are considering an application for a transmission line that would bring hydropower to transmission points linking power to other New England areas. The region's high energy costs are due in part to natural gas pipeline bottlenecks.  (AP)

The median sale price for existing single-family homes in Maine went up slightly for the three-month period ending in March. The Maine Association of Realtors said  the median price for homes sold statewide in those months was $165,500, up 1.2 percent from the same period in 2014. It was the third month in a row that the median price was up slightly over the same quarter in 2014. Maine realtors sold 950 single-family homes in March, a 6.5 percent increase from March 2014. The median sale price for detached, single-family homes in the state was $170,000 in March. That is up from $167,400 in February and $162,000 in March 2014.  (AP)

The Maine Warden Service is offering a $1,000 reward for information about who illegally killed a deer in Chesterville.  According to the KJ, the doe, pregnant with twin fawns, was found dead later by game wardens in a field posted with a “No Trespassing” sign. The deer had a fatal gunshot wound to her spine. Under state law, anyone who hunts deer during a closed season faces a class D misdemeanor charge, which can carry a sentence of at least three days in jail and a fine of at least $1,000. The $1,000 reward is being offered under the Operation Game Thief program “for anyone who can provide information that leads to a conviction for those responsible for this senseless killing.” Wardens asked that tipsters call 800-253-7887 or the Maine Department of Public Safety dispatch center in Augusta at 624-7076. (centralmaine.com)

A bill to give $1 million in state funding to help build cabins for homeless veterans at the federal veterans’ hospital at Togus won unanimous approval from a legislative committee.  According to the KJ, the proposal from Rep. Jared Golden, D-Auburn, could jump-start a stalled fundraising effort for the project from Volunteers of America, a charity trying to spend $4 million to build 21 cabins for homeless veterans on the Togus campus. $1 million in funding that would have to be matched by $3 million in private money, will head to the full Legislature after the recommendation from the Labor, Commerce, Research and Economic Development Committee. The charity said the funding probably would make the project go forward. (centramaine.com)

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