Passenger rail sees historic spending as Downeaster turns 20

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) Twenty years after Amtrak’s first Downeaster set off into darkness and uncertainty on a cold December morning, there’s now light at the end of the tunnel when it comes to passenger rail expansion projects thanks to the $1 trillion federal infrastructure bill.

Hunt for toxic ‘forever chemicals’ widens to 34 communities

FAIRFIELD, Maine (AP) Thirty-four communities across Maine will be tested for environmental pollutants associated with serious health conditions, after the so-called “forever chemicals” were found in chicken eggs and deer meat harvested in the Fairfield area.

Alaska judge allows evidence about alternative suspects

LEWISTON, Maine (AP) A Maine man charged in a young woman’s killing 28 years ago at the University of Alaska at Fairbanks will be allowed to present evidence about three alternative suspects at his trial next month.

Postal hike doesn’t stop catalogers from stuffing mailboxes

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) A big postal rate increase over the summer hasn’t stopped catalog retailers from stuffing mailboxes this holiday season.

Gov. Mills nominates utility expert to serve as Maine Public Advocate

Governor Janet Mills has nominated an attorney and member of the state’s energy office to serve as Public Advocate.

Maine sees 1,504 new coronavirus cases as hospitalizations climb to record high

The Maine Center for Disease and Prevention reported another 1,504 cases of coronavirus and two additional deaths on Wednesday, as the state sets another record for virus hospitalizations.

Horizon Organic to extend Northeast milk contracts 6 months

(AP) The company that announced this summer that it would stop buying milk from 89 organic dairy farms in the Northeast next August is offering to extend those contracts another six months.

Maine to be down to 2 neurological trauma centers soon

LEWISTON, Maine (AP) The closure of a neurosurgical trauma program in central Maine will leave the state with just two.

Attorney denies attorney general charge that she overbilled

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) A prominent Maine defense attorney accused of overbilling the state for court-appointed work is denying any wrongdoing.

‘Forever chemicals’ found in some central Maine chicken eggs

Chicken eggs from two homesteads in central Maine contain elevated levels of toxic industrial compounds that are associated with serious health conditions, the state’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention has found.