AUGUSTA — The controversy over a $3 million energy grant that went to a politically-connected group may lead to a new law to subject state and federal grants to a competitive process. On Tuesday, the legislature’s government oversight committee voted unanimously to begin the process of writing legislation that would make it hard to awardMore

AUGUSTA, Maine — No one in state government — all the way up to the governor — denies the state is failing to regularly inspect Maine’s potentially hazardous dams. Most, though, don’t expect to do much about it, even though state law requires regular inspections. Some say there’s no risk in the current situation. OthersMore

Maine is not living up to the state law that requires regular inspections of the nearly 100 dams in the state classified as hazardous for their potential to take lives or sweep away buildings, roads and bridges. The state has 93 such dams from Limestone to Sanford. Of those, the state classifies 24 as “highMore

AUGUSTA — A state audit has found that the agency in charge of all of the state’s energy programs gave a $3 million grant to a startup non-profit that was incapable of taking on the responsibility of the contract. And while the audit found no misuse of funds, it concluded that Efficiency Maine Trust shouldMore

AUGUSTA — Lawmakers Wednesday strongly condemned the potentially illegal leak of parts of a confidential state investigation of a now-defunct energy group, the Maine Green Energy Alliance, and its state sponsor, the Efficiency Maine Trust. They also said the leak was designed to cast both organizations in the best light possible before the formal releaseMore

Editor’s note: This is the first in an occasional series examining promises made by Paul LePage when he campaigned for governor in 2010. When he was running for governor, Paul LePage recognized the crisis that could be caused by the $4.3 billion the state owed for the pensions for teachers and state employees. But heMore

Editor’s note: This is part 6 of an occasional series on the effects of the state’s pension costs. The series began last July.   The year is 2020, just nine years from now, and the state is facing one of its worst budget crisis in years. A new governor and legislature are grappling with theMore

AUGUSTA — The head of the state’s accountability agency promised a legislative committee on Friday to “follow the money” as she investigates the $1.1 million grant that went to a now defunct energy group. The bipartisan Government Oversight Committee voted unanimously to not only order the probe by the Office of Program and Government AccountabilityMore

Sparks flew, the gavel banged and tempers flared Friday as lawmakers debated whether to have the Legislature’s watchdog agency conduct a formal inquiry into the now-defunct Maine Green Energy Alliance. Despite the rancor between the top Republican and Democrat on the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Energy, Utilities and Technology, committee members — who have spentMore

Final story of a four-part series Gov. Paul LePage’s proposed budget restores to the state judicial system a position that in the past helped to improve the hiring and training of state bail commissioners. According to Leigh Saufley, chief justice of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, the governor has agreed to fund a criminal processMore