Things You Need to Know: Maine is Looking at Changes to ‘Blue Laws’ for Some Businesses
Here are the things you need to know today......
The Maine House voted that would let smaller grocery stores open on Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter. According to the Bangor Daily News there is concern from some this would be a first step into a total repeal of the 'blue laws' and all stores could be open on these major holidays.
From the Associated Press:
Colby College's president and Waterville's mayor are gathering for the groundbreaking on a 100,000-square-foot development on Main Street. Colby is building the mixed use complex that'll include community space, retail locations and housing for 200 Colby students, faculty and staff. The groundbreaking is set for Thursday.
Maine state revenues are forecast to dip below previous projections this year but jump in future years. The state revenue forecasting committee's May report comes as lawmakers continue work on Republican Gov. Paul LePage's two-year, $6.8 billion budget proposal. The committee said it's unclear whether taxpayers are shifting income or if a new income surtax is masking a big drop in estimate income.
A key committee of the Maine Legislature says it's time for the state to institute a lottery system to bring new people into the baby eel fishery. The Committee on Marine Resource voted Monday in favor of the creation of the lottery system, which will provide permits to fish for baby eels, also called elvers.
Maine's Republican governor and Democratic attorney general are trading barbs a day after the governor filed a lawsuit accusing her of refusing to represent his administration's positions. Both Gov. Paul LePage and Attorney General Janet Mills commented Tuesday during a radio call-in show. LePage says her office is a place to put "aging ideologues." Mills calls his lawsuit a waste of state resources.
The aunt of a black man shot and killed in front of a convenience store after an altercation with police last summer says those responsible for his death need to be convicted. Veda Sterling spoke at a vigil Tuesday outside the convenience store where her nephew Alton died. The vigil was held after news broke that the Department of Justice would not be charging two white police officers in connection with Sterling's death. Veda Sterling led a crowd in chants of "No justice, no peace!"
An attorney for the family of a black motorist shot to death by a white South Carolina police officer says justice has been done with the officer's guilty plea. Chris Stewart told reporters on Tuesday that the family of Walter Scott is thankful for the help and support shown to them by local and state officials after the 50-year-old motorist's April 2015 death.
Police in suburban Dallas have fired the officer who shot and killed a black 15-year-old boy riding in a vehicle leaving party, and family members of the teenager say they want criminal charges filed against the officer. The Balch Springs, Texas, officer, identified as Roy Oliver, was terminated for violating department policies in the shooting death of Jordan Edwards.
An influential Republican moderate who'd announced his opposition to the GOP health care bill says he's working with party leaders on an amendment that could pick up crucial votes for the stalled measure. Michigan GOP Rep. Fred Upton says the proposal would provide $8 billion over five years to help people with pre-existing medical conditions pay premiums. Upton described the plan to The Associated Press.
Former acting attorney general Sally Yates is expected to testify for the first time next week about her January conversation with the White House about former national security adviser Michael Flynn. Yates is expected to testify that she warned White House counsel Don McGahn on Jan. 26 that Flynn's Russian contacts could leave him compromised. The White House fired Flynn weeks later after concluding that he had misled them about his conversation with the Russian ambassador to the U.S.
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