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What we're reading
— Maine's "forever chemical" problem traces back to environmental tradeoffs made in the wake of the federal Clean Water Act. The landmark law from legendary Sen. Edmund S. Muskie cleaned up befouled rivers and funded sewage treatment plants across the country. But one byproduct of the new plants was a tainted sludge that states decided to use as fertilizer on farmland. Standards on dumping loosened in the 1990s while governments looked to help utilities dispose of the waste. The state's fight against the chemicals is now as confounding as the circumstances that led to the problem.
— Parents of young children feel left behind in politicians' calls for a return to "normal" around COVID-19. Kids who are too young to be vaccinated and even some older ones are seeing major disruptions in learning and day care settings. For example, one Auburn mother has had to manage five quarantines for a 3-year-old son and three for her 5-year-old daughter.
— Portland police deleted a Facebook post on a "ghost gun" encounter after backlash. Last Tuesday, a passenger of a vehicle dropped a homemade gun as he fled a traffic stop. He is still at large and has not been identified. But the Tuesday post mentioned his gun and gave no further details on the incident, underscoring political tension over the legal guns that generally do not have serial numbers, leading police to argue they are more likely than most to end up in the hands of criminals. |
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Follow along today
9 a.m. Mills' utility accountability bill will get a hearing before the energy committee. Listen here.
Privacy bills will be heard by the Judiciary Committee, including one that would regulate companies or other entities that collect biometric identifiers of people, such as fingerprint or retina scans. Listen here.
The marine resources panel will work on high-profile bills to establish a legal defense fund for the lobster industry and limit the fishery for pogies, a key bait fish. Listen here.
10 a.m. It's a bond day in the budget committee, which will hold a work session on 15 borrowing proposals ranging from land conservation to weatherization and the replacement of Maine Public infrastructure with an eye toward releasing a package of proposals to go to voters. Listen here.
1 p.m. The health committee will take testimony on more of the major child welfare reforms proposed by lawmakers this session, including continuing a program that contracts management of low-risk cases to outside providers and limiting state caseworker workloads. Listen here. |
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| 📷 Lead photo: Central Maine Power utility lines are pictured on Wednesday, Oct. 6, 2021, in Pownal. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty) |
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