The Lisbon Reporter

WELCOME TO THE LISBON REPORTER. In an effort to keep our community informed of what is going on at local and Federal levels of government, we decided to create this on-line newspaper. It is our hope that this on-line newspaper will help you stay informed so that you can get involved and take action for the benefit of our ENTIRE community. Thank you for visiting and please check back frequently for information about what is happening in LISBON/LISBON FALLS, MAINE USA

Friday, February 21, 2014

The Maine Wire: “Daily Catch: Big Brother in Newsroom, Kerry the Warmist, Tough Love for the Maine Municipal Association” plus 1 more‏

Daily Catch: Big Brother in Newsroom, Kerry the Warmist, Tough Love for the Maine Municipal Association

Posted: 20 Feb 2014 12:51 PM PST

Big Brother FCC Enters Newsrooms: The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is preparing to send spies researchers into newsrooms across the country to investigate how news outlets decide what to report. The so-called “Multi-Market Study of Critical Information Needs” is scheduled for a field test this spring in Columbia, S.C. The FCC report will explore how […]

“Non-partisan” State House staff wrote Medicaid expansion talking points for Democrats

Posted: 20 Feb 2014 07:13 AM PST

AUGUSTA – A non-partisan analyst on the Legislature’s Health and Human Services (HHS) Committee engaged in partisan activism to push a Democrat-backed Medicaid expansion bill last year, according to emails obtained through a public records request. The emails surface one week after top State House staffers held a closed-door meeting with Republican lawmakers in an […]

Rep. Willette’s Tough Love to the MMA
Speech given by Assistant House Republican Leader Alex Willette at a Jan. 18, 2014 press conference organized by the Maine Municipal Association (MMA) to thank lawmakers for passing a bill to forestall cuts to state revenue sharing funding to municipal governments.
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Good afternoon. Thank you, Rick, for inviting me to speak here today.

I am glad that we were able to fund revenue sharing for our local communities.

When the snow is flying and folks are counting on the plows to leave the town garage and clear the way so we can get to work, to school, or to the doctors’ offices, politics doesn’t seem very important.

In my town of Mapleton, our town manager does a great job at managing local government and ensuring the efficient delivery of services to the people.

It’s tempting to look at this recent vote as a win for bipartisanship or as a disaster averted. But it’s important to warn all those who are concerned about local services that the issue of revenue sharing will likely come up again.

There is an elephant in the room and until we have the political courage to address it, our towns, our schools, our roads, our natural resources management agencies, and countless other important state priorities, will be under siege.

I’m talking about runaway welfare spending. I’m talking specifically about our Medicaid system here in Maine.

Medicaid has doubled as a share of the state budget since 1998 and now consumes a quarter of all state spending. It’s estimated to consume 40 percent of the state budget in 10 years from now.