News

Maine Legislature Passes Bill to Study Costs of Climate Change

Maine Legislature Passes Bill to Study Costs of Climate Change

Photo: 560 WGAN Newsradio


The Maine legislature could be closer to holding major polluters responsible for the impacts of climate change.

The state House and Senate have approved a bill to study the cost of greenhouse gas emissions to the state.

The bill passed mostly on party lines this week, with Democratic support and Republican opposition, and will require more votes before final approval.

It replaces a proposal that would have established a program to collect fees from groups that produce greenhouse gases.

The amended bill passed by both houses includes a proposal to study the cost of greenhouse gas emissions to the state between 1995 and 2024. A report would be submitted to the state by January 1, 2028.

Supporters of the bill say it’ll allow Maine to assess the true cost of climate pollution, while opponents say it’s unnecessary and is drawing opposition from businesses.

Laws now in place in New York and Vermont that are similar to the original Maine proposal to collect fees from polluters are being challenged in court by the Trump administration and some businesses.

The amended bill passed the Maine House on Tuesday, 75-72, largely along party lines. It passed in the Senate on Monday on party lines 19-13.

Latest Headlines

2 hours ago in Local

Police arrest driver who they say struck 3 police cruisers in South Portland

Updated

An Augusta woman is charged with OUI after police say she crashed into three police cruisers Friday night in South Portland.

7 hours ago in Local

Portland Police Locate Missing 17-Year-Old Girl from NH During Traffic Stop

Officers say they pulled over a vehicle at the intersection of Hanover and Lancaster streets.

8 hours ago in Trending, World

Late Queen Elizabeth II’s legacy still looms over British monarchy 100 years after her birth

Queen Elizabeth II lives on at the Cool Britannia gift shop across the road from Buckingham Palace. Four years after the queen's death, the shop is doing a brisk business in mugs, tea towels and key rings bearing the likeness of Britain's longest-reigning monarch as the nation marks the centenary of her birth on Tuesday.

21 hours ago in Local

Kittery Man is Maine’s Top Finisher in Boston Marathon

Results reported by the Boston Athletic Association show there were 165 entries from Maine in the race.

21 hours ago in Local

Wildfire Awareness Week Declared in Maine

Maine has experienced 71 wildfires that have burned 48 acres so far in April.