Gov. Paul LePage has released the text of his legislation to close a loophole in state ethics law that has allowed high-level state officials not to report millions in state payments to organizations run by themselves or their family members. Current law only requires that legislators or high-level state employees report state purchases of goodsMore

  A proposal for a joint venture that would undertake major construction of wind towers across the state and region has encountered more regulatory complications, a week after reports were published that state officials recommended the proposal be turned down.   The state’s Public Utilities Commission (PUC) was set to decide on Jan. 31 whetherMore

The Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting will look into the material you sent us, including the mailing we received a few days before Thanksgiving Day. Reporting will begin within the next 10 days, but it will likely take a couple months to complete the project. We still need any help you can give us,More

By working with interns, the Center fulfills one of its missions: To train the next generation of journalists in the skills of non-partisan investigative and public-interest journalism. Over the last 18 months, the Center has been lucky to have four interns who researched and wrote stories for us. Emily Guerin, Mary Helen Miller, Darren FishellMore

This spring, as part of the Center’s goal of training future journalists, John Christie and Naomi Schalit taught an investigative reporting class at Bates College in Lewiston. The ten students in that class conducted important research for the Center’s recently published story about weaknesses in Maine’s dam safety program. You can read all about theMore

The Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting has been awarded a $100,000 grant from the Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation.       The grant will allow the Center to produce more in-depth journalism, expand its staff and improve its website by offering the public online, interactive sources of information on state and localMore

Normally, the rest of the world hears about Maine in August — when national and international reporters take a vacation here and justify it by tossing off a story. Those stories usually include intrepid lobstermen and their stoic, lockjawed wives. Now, the rest of the world can hear about what’s really going on in MaineMore

Maine’s not the only state experiencing friction between advocates for and against wind power. So is Vermont. Vermont Public Radio wanted to help its listeners understand the broader context of those conflicts, and interviewed Naomi Schalit, senior reporter at the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, about the clash  in Maine between the impact ofMore

John Christie and Naomi Schalit got about seven minutes on the Ken and Mike show this Monday — with Phil Harriman standing in for Mike — to talk really fast and explain everything you ever wanted to know about the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting. You can find the podcast of the interview atMore

The Sun Journal published an editorial based on our stories about the Maine Green Energy Alliance: Energy group wasted money, got little done Let’s imagine you are starting a business,  ABC Consulting. You need 13 employees, including a manager. So you advertise, compare resumes, interview and check references before hiring. Then, on the first dayMore